The Sourcing Leader of the Center of Excellence (COE) leads a team of professionals responsible for delivering sourcing transactional and process support to the Global Sourcing Organization. The COE Leader also oversees the Buy Desk Team, which manages requisition review and approval, purchase order creation and communication, and serves as the first line of defense for supplier inquiries related to purchase orders and payments. This role optimizes supplier relationships, drives cost savings and value creation across all Direct and Indirect spend categories, and establishes and measures efficiency KPIs. Additionally, the leader manages, develops, and engages a high-performing global team, building both functional and leadership capabilities to ensure bench strength for future needs. Responsibilities include deploying resources to meet business priorities and cultivating strong partnerships with Commodity Managers across all regions.
Duties and Responsibilities
Manage, develop, and engage a regional team, who will be responsible for:
- Request for Quotes (RFQs) based on Wabtec s commodity leader s direction and scope definition.
- Collect drawings/specs/BOM for sending RFQs to suppliers on a GCL defined scope of parts to a GCL defined supply base
- Follow up on RFQs, manage questions (with engineering/GCL support) raised by supplier to ensure quotes submitted on a timely manner
- Review/Evaluate quotes from commercial perspective based on defined criteria (price/tooling cost/Leadtime / pay term/ etc.) and provide summary to GCL for decision making
- Manage Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) and supplier onboarding for new to business suppliers
- Initiate PPAP for awarded projects
Supplier Management & Risk Mitigation - Tail Spend
- Manage all of the tail suppliers & items from a commodity sourcing perspective
- Drive cost optimization initiative, dual sourcing and project execution
- Drive Savings and Inflation Mitigation through MOQ Management, Blend management and Cost avoidance
- Manage supplier negotiation, minimize price increase requests
- Data maintenance for tail suppliers/items
- Price Feed
- Blend
- Project tracking (PST)
- PPAP management
- Provide Deflation/inflation forecast for tail items based on Open PO and Actuals and discussion with vendors
- Support preparation on supplier business reviews/supplier performance and compliance.
- HICX Cleanup and other platforms or systems related.
- Support onboarding and extending Business Units (BUs)
- Zycus spends continuous data integrity improvement / cleansing
Transactional Support
- Upload/update supplier quotes in Oracle based or Coupa on GCLs request/direction to drive accuracy
- Upload/update sourcing rules (assignments) in Oracle based on GCLs request/direction to drive accuracy
- Upload/update deflationary projects to PST and iPST based on GCLs request to drive accuracy and project saving
- Provide regular updates on the status of open qualification for GCLs to drive PPAP cycle reduction and expedite project cut in
- Manage Buy Desk Team responsible for requisition review/approval/ purchase order creation and communication as well as first line of defense for supplier purchase order and payment inquiries.
- Assisting Buy Desk Team to help initiate new supplier requests in the HICX platform.
- Provide regular reports to support GCLs efficiency
- FTK Actuals
- Open PO
- PST
- iPST
- PPAP
- PIR
- Blend
- Sourcing Price Feed
- Coupa
- HICX
- Download dwg/spec/BOM from Drawing retrieval upon GCL request
- Request 3D model upon GCL request
- Submit PPAP request upon GCL request
- Setting up MOQ levels in Oracle based on GCL request
Serve as a point of escalation for service issue themes, identifying root cause and path to resolution to ensure continued service improvement.
Managing one-off purchases and ensuring they follow company sourcing and delegation of authority policy.
Deploy team resources to support surge activities (business requirements, heavy volume, short-term regional projects) as identified by Commodity Leaders.
Qualifications/Experience:
- Bachelor s degree. Equivalent work experience in a similar position may be substituted for education requirements.
- Experience in Sourcing preferably in a COE environment, launching a new COE is a plus. (RFQ s, vendor management, cost analysis, procurement negotiation, supplier quality, purchase order management.)
- Engineering experience desired (Drawings specifications, BOMS)
- Experience with Sourcing and systems within a large, complex enterprise, ideally across a range of geographies and multifaceted businesses.
- Experience identifying operational issues and recommending areas for continuous improvement, including executing the recommended changes
- Experience with Project Management in large complex organizations.
- Experience analyzing data and identifying issues, trends, or exceptions to drive improvements.
- 15+ years of team management and development.
- Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite with advanced Excel skills.
- Writing standard work instructions for multiple systems, regions, and businesses.
- Fluent in English
Competencies:
- Strong customer-focus; able to build and maintain effective relationships with customers.
- Continuous-improvement mindset and enthusiasm for problem-solving and improving customer experience.
- Ability to create focus for self and team through rigorous prioritization of activities.
