Regional Procurement Manager - Chemical Direct Materials

About The Job

At Quaker Houghton, we make the essentials of everyday life possible and enable innovative approaches for a positive future. Our customers include the world’s most advanced and specialized automotive, steel, aluminum, aerospace, offshore, can and mining companies. Based in every corner of the world, our people are passionate about what we do.

As EMEA Procurement Manager, Direct Materials, based in our regional HQ, you will support the development of our regional category management team and our regional and global stakeholders to ensure we follow the global procurement strategies to achieve our goals. You will lead any efforts to solve unexpected supply disruptions and most importantly foster and lead a continuous improvement culture with a sustainable sourcing approach. A key role to allow us to continue to exceed customer expectations.

What will you do?

• Execute strategies and approaches to achieve goals set out by local, regional and global management.
• Manage a team of 5 Regional Direct Category Managers.
• Deliver/drive results in area of responsibility by working with internal and external customers.
• Study market trends, interviews, researches & audits suppliers & determine those who can supply raw materials on a global &/or local basis at the lowest overall cost to the corporation.
• Negotiate global contracts &/or local contracts on all domestic raw materials.
• Take ownership and actively manage the specifications, supplier base and contracts for assigned categories.
• Establish, monitor & adjust when necessary standard prices for all assigned raw materials.
• Be accountable for limiting the price variance as it relates to the raw material budget vs. Actual spend.
• Own key supplier relationships and monitor and report supplier performance.
• Provide (monthly) country data – current/forecasted prices per product families - to support the global RM data initiative including monthly reports.
• Develop market intelligence (margin impacts, what if) on key suppliers/materials, as well as own key supplier relationships based on assigned categories and monitor adoption of key strategies and suppliers as well create a market forecast.
• Provide monthly procurement updates.
• Support and provide leadership on resolving sourcing operational issues to ensure on time delivery, being also an active team member of the localization team (when applies).
• Partner with Raw Material Technical Group for upstream interaction on procurement of new Products, strategic and alternative sources and investigate on further simplification opportunities of tier 2 materials.
• Ensure contracts are followed for assigned direct materials (specialties or commodities).
• Continuous development and training of the regional direct procurement team to ensure motivation and growth.
• Drive procurement best practices based on internal and external benchmarking. Key leadership aspects include embracing and engraining Newco culture in the organization by bringing core values to life, encouraging and modeling transparent communication and teamwork to drive change, and coaching and counseling team members.

What are we looking for?

Experience in a similar role leading a raw material procurement team, ideally within the chemical, oil & gas, food, cosmetics, pharma or any other related industry. We are looking for an entrepreneurial spirit with change management leadership skills to champion process improvement aligned to our global strategy.

Safety conscious - Safety is at the core of our culture

What's in it for you?

• Hybrid working arrangement for better work-life balance
• Competitive pay with bonus opportunities
• Health insurance, great pension plan and other additional benefits
• Paid time off buy and sell program
• Company Canteen and parking
• 2 days per year of paid volunteering leave dedicated to the cause of your choice
• Global Giving program with corporate donation matching
• Access to real career growth opportunities
• QH University: Continuous training tools for all seniority levels
• Attractive Wellbeing, Mental Health, Women Inclusion & other DEI programs.

About Us

We are the global leader in industrial process fluids present in 40+ countries continually improving and innovating so the world’s steel, aluminum, automotive, aircraft, machinery and industrial parts manufacturers can stay ahead in a changing world. Throughout our 100+ locations, our chemists, engineers and industry experts partner with our customers to continually improve their operations so they can run even more efficiently, even more effectively, whatever comes next.

Our values: Live Safe, Exceed Customer Expectations, Drive Results, Embrace Diversity, Do Great Things Together, Act with integrity.

Our core values embody who we are as a company, guide our decisions and inspire us. Our commitment to these values, in words and actions, builds a safer, stronger Quaker Houghton. They are the fundamental beliefs that guide our internal conduct and our relationship with the outside world.

Join the team and let's do great things together!