Director of Purchasing Position Available In Davidson, North Carolina

Director of Purchasing 3.3 3.3 out of 5 stars Lexington, NC 27292 • Remote About This Position TThe Purchasing Director plays a critical role in the success of our company by overseeing and leading all purchasing activities. Leads in the development, implementation, and management of the purchasing strategy, and provide overall marketplace insights to the leadership and sales teams. Establishes strong vendor relationships, with a keen understanding of frozen vegetable procurement cycles. Directs procurement strategy, executes purchases agreements, and provides direction for releases. Ensures ingredient sourcing is consistent with all company and lawful standards for food safety, quality, and safety. Works collaboratively with the Sales Department to rectify customer complaints, grow sales, and improve earnings.

Principal Job Responsibilities:

As the Purchasing Director, you will be responsible for developing and implementing effective strategies to optimize the sourcing, procurement, and inventory management processes for our frozen vegetable products. This role requires a strong blend of leadership, strategic thinking, supplier relationship management, and operational execution.

Purchasing:

Develop and execute the overall purchasing strategy aligned with the company’s goals and objectives. Identify and evaluate potential suppliers and negotiate favorable terms and conditions. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure alignment of purchasing strategies with production, quality, and logistics requirements. Lead the procurement process, including RFQs and supplier selection. Monitor market trends, evaluate market conditions, and identify potential risks and opportunities. Implement cost-effective procurement practices to maximize value and minimize costs while maintaining product quality. Calculate accurate costing by researching history, po’s, pa’s, and utilizing marketplace connections to come up with total foundational costs. (ie. product, manufacturing, loss, handling, storage, freight, lumpers, tariff, ocean freight, customs, detention, demurrage, brokerage, programs / rebates, payment terms, damage likelihood, and pallets.)

Supplier Relationship Management:

Build and maintain strong relationships with global suppliers to ensure the availability of high-quality frozen vegetable products at competitive prices. Collaborate with suppliers to drive innovation, deliver high product quality, and optimize the supply chain. Resolve disputes arising from lapses in quality, adherence to the specification, or delivery condition. Coordinate with Quality Assurance Manager to vet and qualify new suppliers, all purchased products meet rigorous quality standards and regulatory requirements, and to ensure existing suppliers documentation and standards are current.

Inventory Management:

Develop and implement inventory management strategies to ensure optimal levels of frozen vegetable products. Monitor inventory levels, track product demand, and collaborate with sales and production teams to forecast accurate inventory needs. Implement effective inventory control measures to minimize waste, effectively turnover products on hand, and balance inventory holding costs with marketplace realities.

Team Leadership and Collaboration:

Raise the organizational knowledge of the marketplace by sharing with Sales and Leadership Teams as market conditions shift. Continuously improve the organization’s expertise and nimbleness in strategic buying, selling and distributing. Develop purchasing team by providing guidance, coaching, and mentoring. Foster a collaborative and inclusive work environment that promotes teamwork and professional growth. Set clear performance expectations, conduct regular performance evaluations, and identify opportunities for training and development.

Sales Support:

Support selling organization with timely and accurate costing. Work collaboratively with Sales to define cost basis used for pricing, both ongoing pricelists and opportunity bids. Communicate in a timely, effective manner, transferring knowledge & practices from purchasing to apply towards sales capacity & growth.

Market Analysis:

Monitor industry trends, market conditions, and competitor activities to inform purchasing decisions and strategies. Review and research sourcing locations, vendors, availability, time-frames, volumes, quality specifications, to develop a procurement model that’s functional for any given bid. Directly handle any assigned competitors or suppliers seeking trades, with communication on pricing with Sales.

Importing & Containerized Logistics:

Oversee All Operations, Management, and Coordination of Importing CIF Containerized Purchases. Ensuring our imports are within regulations in regards to

FSMA, HTS, CBP, FDA

etc.

Customs:

Review ISF Filings. Maintain real-time and accurate information for our imported containerized products. Ensure visibility for the organization to incoming container

Education and Experience:

Proven experience in a senior-level purchasing or procurement role with at least 10 years in the frozen vegetable industry. Exceptional negotiation, communication, and analytical skills with a proven ability to drive strategic initiatives. Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, or a related field. In-depth knowledge of procurement best practices, sourcing strategies, and supplier management. Strong track record of achieving cost savings and of value creation. Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities. Proficient in using ERP (Syteline preferred), CRM, and inventory management software systems. Exceptional leadership and team-building skills. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

Work Environment:

Remote work with periodic travel (