Sr. Procurement Manager (Pena)

Sr. Procurement Manager

Panasonic Energy of North America (PENA) is collaborating with Tesla Motors, Inc. in a large-scale advanced battery manufacturing facility known as the Gigafactory near Reno, Nevada which is known for its quality of life and expansive outdoor adventures. Panasonic manufactures and supplies cylindrical lithium-ion cells for the world's leading electric vehicle manufacturer, Tesla Motors, Inc. Based on the battery demand from Tesla, the Gigafactory plans to produce cells which will double the world's current production.

Our mission at PENA is to make the vision of affordable Electric Vehicles a reality by production of the world's safest, highest-quality, and lowest-cost batteries. Through this effort we will create a clean energy society and our products will change society's use of and perceptions of electric power.

Job Purpose

The Sr. Procurement Manager oversees and leads the sourcing, negotiating, and procuring of quality products in our 24/7 high-volume, high speed manufacturing operation. Will assist in reducing costs, ensuring on time deliveries, and bringing in quality products by developing effective business strategies while remaining compliant with current policies and procedures. He/She will extensively collaborate and build relationship with internal and external business partners

Recognized procurement expert who can develop, plan, implement, and maintain leading edge sourcing strategies for a variety of indirect categories, such as Travel, Professional Services, Contingent Labor, MRO, injection-molded parts, manufacturing equipment and consumables, and facilities operations. The individual will focus exclusively on the Panasonic Energy of North America (PENA) division, which is dedicated to making the vision of affordable electrical vehicles for the masses a reality by producing the world's safest, highest quality, and lowest cost batteries. PENA operations, and thus this role, are co-located with Tesla Inc. in Sparks, Nevada. Will also serve as liaison between the PENA business and corporate (headquarters) Procurement category managers and leadership in Newark, NJ.

Primary Role and Responsibilities

Category Management:

• Provide sourcing category expertise for all related categories including insourcing vs. outsourcing models

• Support development of category strategies based on rigorous analysis of spend data, supply market dynamics, category intelligence, and business requirements

• Leverage PENA division volume in conjunction with other PNA businesses to obtain the best value for all, through coordination with corporate Procurement category leaders

• Identify profit improvement opportunities beyond sourcing, such as demand management, process improvements, insource vs. outsource, innovation, etc.

• Actively drives value beyond cost - e.g., growth, innovation, risk management

• Regularly monitors the market for category leading practices and demand/supply shifts such as supply consolidation, technology innovations, etc.

• Through knowledge of Category Strategy Management identify regional/global sourcing opportunities for improved systems and process efficiencies Agency SOW management, Production Process management, End to End business process management in both OpEx and Media Categories

Strategic Sourcing: Execute strategic sourcing projects utilizing best practice sourcing methodology to deliver exceptional total value in partnership with key stakeholders across the business

• Execute strategic sourcing initiatives following the 7-step Sourcing Methodology

• Gather stakeholder and subject-matter expertise/insights and market intelligence to ensure sourcing solutions meet business needs

• Assess supplier capabilities and identify new potential suppliers

• Analyze supplier proposals and facilitate fact-based supplier selection process

• Prepare and present business cases and should-cost models; perform complex data analysis and build financial models (i.e. ROI, NPV, supplier scorecards, savings tracking, make vs. buy decision models)

• Analyze and summarize RFP responses and results and prepare recommendations for Senior Management

• Develop negotiation strategies, plan and lead negotiations to maximize total value and minimize risks

• Establish contract terms and conditions and coordinate with legal to execute contracts with suppliers that optimize the relationship. Partner with internal stakeholders to develop and implement transition plans to new supplier(s)

• Ensure savings are delivered in a timely manner and that Panasonic realizes expected benefits

• Support PNA's supplier diversity and sustainability goals by increasing use or opportunity of suppliers in all commodity areas and by tracking opportunities to increase impact

• Lead a cross functional team (Specialists from the various categories inside and out of the organisation who act as Subject Matter experts) through a series of interventions to deliver thorough cost, process, market, and technical analyses to uncover what drives costs within each category and identification of opportunities

Supplier Relationship Management: Establishes and manages the governance processes with suppliers and outsourced service providers for categories in scope:

• Develop qualified, competitive sources of supply on a continuing basis through comprehensive financial and market review

• Lead local implementation of national, regional, or global supplier contracts. Establish expectations for local supplier teams and ensure that business needs will be met effectively.

• Provide feedback on performance, seek continuous improvement and innovation

• Work with suppliers and key stakeholders to manage supplier performance and develop new capabilities

• Build and maintain strong relationships with stakeholders and third-party providers

• When performance issues emerge, identify root causes and work with internal and external stakeholders to drive efficient resolution

• Develop and execute upon negotiations strategies, which entails significant analysis, preparation, and collaboration with business partners to define Should-be Costs, Most Desirable negotiation outcome, Least Desirable negotiation outcome, and other negotiation wants and needs

Continuous Improvement: Work with team's post-projects to identify continuous improvement initiatives. Identify costs drivers to increase awareness and influence cost consciousness within the business.

• Identifies, oversees, pursues and manages re-engineering, value engineering and demand management opportunities to enhance operational effectiveness, interfacing with cross-functional teams

• Implements and drives procurement strategy, policies and procedures

• Enforces compliance to procurement policies and works to increase adoption

• Lead Procurement participation in plant or product Value Analysis/Value Engineering (VAVE) or Major Model Review (MMR) activities

Procurement Analysis: Support value generation sourcing and process improvement initiatives to optimize PENA third party spend across all related categories

• Conduct analysis in Excel, Tableau and other BI tools to support procurement activities including spend analytics, budget analysis, etc.

• Leverage spend analytics to identify consolidation opportunities; understand total cost of ownership and cost drivers, analyze product/service specifications to identify rationalization opportunities; analyze demand and spend to identify patterns and reduction opportunities

• Analyze market intelligence to build business cases and should-cost models to identify and quantify improvement opportunities for both sourcing and non-sourcing - e.g., demand management, process improvements, insource vs. outsource, etc.

• Gather requirements and specifications from business and category experts to ensure that proposed solutions meet business needs

• Work closely with the finance department and leaders from all company departments to maximize short and long-term purchasing effectiveness

Education and Experience

• BS/BA degree in relevant area such as supply chain, business or STEM required.

• MBA and other relevant degree /certification (e.g., ISM CPSM) highly desirable.

• 10 years+ of relevant strategic sourcing experience demonstrating success in positions of increasing complexity.

• Understanding of Lean Six Sigma concepts and participation in manufacturing process improvement

• Japanese and other Asian language fluency highly desirable

• Strong multicultural leadership ability

• Professional designation in Procurement (CIPS, ISM)

• PMP and Six Sigma certifications and designations

Competencies:

• Deep experience designing end-to-end procurement strategies and a track record of leading sustainable high impact sourcing approaches levering sourcing levers beyond tendering

• Experience with category management strategies for categories in scope: opportunity diagnostic, strategic sourcing process, supplier management with a proven track record of delivering business impact

• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills; record of managing relationships across the business to achieve objectives

• Expert understanding of contract terms and techniques for driving additional value and managing risks

• Demonstrated analytical, financial, problem solving, organization, and project management skills

• Ability to support, lead, plan, and conduct successful negotiations

• Strong project management skills, including management of stakeholder timelines and meeting management skills

• Knowledge of and experience utilizing Supplier Management tools (SRM, conducting Quarterly Business Reviews, etc.)

• Technology-savvy and high competency in MS office: Advanced Excel and analytics skills as well as eSourcing, Ariba, etc.

• Highly motivated with an entrepreneurial mindset; proactive and innovative. Able to work independently, i.e. not co-located with management.

• Experience working effectively in global complex organizations and with offshore providers

• Ability to lead and influence change in the face of complexity and ambiguity

• Thrives in a fast paced, goal oriented, dynamic organization with time sensitive deadlines

• Through knowledge of Category Strategy Management identify regional/global sourcing opportunities for improved systems and process efficiencies Agency SOW management, Production Process management, End to End business process management in both OpEx and Media Categories

Communications:

• Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills including meeting facilitation and presentations

• Ability to interact effectively and gain credibility with internal associates at all levels as well as external third parties.

Other Requirements:

• Some travel may be required

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience leading strategic sourcing and operational/value generating initiatives.

• Experience providing strategic sourcing strategies and directional guidance and integration across supply categories and supplier relationships to accomplish transformational business results and achieve best total value for the business.

• Demonstrated capability to develop, decide and execute category/commodity management strategies, supplier relationship management programs and activities, negotiations, risk management, and supply base performance management.

• Record of accomplishing cost saving targets, required quality, and improved service levels through leading negotiations and contracting in collaboration with cross-functional counterparts and stakeholders.

• Excellent analytical, influencing, and communication skills, business acumen, and the ability to work in a team environment are also critical.

Supplemental Information

In addition to an environment that is as innovative as our products, we offer competitive salaries and benefits. Panasonic is an Equal Opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to: race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. All qualified individuals are required to perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation.

Pre-employment drug testing is required. Due to the high volume of responses, we will only be able to respond to candidates of interest. Panasonic Energy of North America will not sponsor applicants for work visas for this position. All candidates must have valid authorization to work in the U.S. Thank you for your interest in Panasonic Energy Corporation of North America.

#LI-LM1