Vp, Direct Purchasing Operations

Job Description

**Overview**:
The Vice President, Direct Purchasing Operations is key to its success and with procurement spend over $5 Billion dollars, the strategic impact of this business function is significant & requires innovation to be successful. This position reports to the Chief Procurement Officer.
**The Role**
The mission of the Vice President, Direct Purchasing Operations is to support the business execution for product manufacturing and delivery, by leading an organization that is excellent in materials management and purchasing execution. This role requires close collaboration with Western Digital Supply Chain Planning, Direct Materials Sourcing, and Factory Execution teams.
With direct responsibility for the Western Digital's direct material planning and purchasing functions, this senior leader is expected to strengthen the Global Purchasing organization and its capabilities to become an indispensable business partner on innovation, supply and inventory initiatives.
This individual will develop actionable steps to improve operational performance, while ensuring best purchasing value and competitive advantage through the purchasing of direct materials and contract manufacturing services to support Western Digital businesses worldwide.

Key areas of responsibility for this leader include the following:

- Lead all direct materials and external manufacturing services material planning and purchasing activities
- Ensure supply availability to support required business flexibility and production execution requirement
- Accountable for component inventory metrics
- Responsible for talent development within organization
- Provide thought leadership and vision to support the organizational objectives
- Seen as a key strategic partner across all functions within the business
**Specific accountabilities are**:
Purchasing Organization
- Responsible for escalation to suppliers to address supply pull in or push out requirements
- Responsible for the E2E Purchasing processes (systems, policies and processes, P2P )
- Responsible for cross business component supply coordination as required
- Align business groups around the supply flexibility and inventory strategy
- Support commodity sourcing strategy development

Optimize Purchasing performance
- Ensure the optimum Purchasing performance to achieve quality, cost, timing, environmental, safety, sustainability and technology requirements in line with business objectives
- Deliver committed Key Performance Indicators
- Roll out global materials forecasts and drive material lead-time reduction programs

Develop Purchasing organization
- Improve knowledge management systems and materials
- Continue enhancing the skill sets of the Direct Purchasing Operations organization
- Coach and develop key individuals
- Lead the cross sector Purchasing Operations talent process

**Qualifications**:
Experienced Purchasing VP
This individual will have at least 15 years of experience in Procurement and Supply Chain, and ideally will have already served as the top Purchasing Operations leader for a global electronicscompany for at least three years' time. With a proven track record of forming win-win partnerships with internal operations stakeholders and suppliers, this leader should bring both a strategic and 'hands on' mindset and a proven track record in change management.
Global experience
A globally-minded leader, this executive will be at home doing business across Europe, the Americas and Asia. This person will be comfortable with diverse teams of people and should be culturally attuned to succeeding in a complexglobal environment.

Business acumen
Must have the strategic capability to devise short-and long
- term Purchasing Operations strategies, balanced by the operational capability to implement them. It is critical that this individual has stronggeneral business acumen and can play a key role on the broader global operations leadership team. This leader must also be highly analytical, process-driven and results-oriented, with a bias for action.
Executing for results
Leading teams
Strong Communicator/Influencer
This individual must be highly collaborative and able to work effectively outside the sphere of direct influence, have strong leadership skills and be able to communicate clearly with a wide range of constituents in a highly matrix organization. In addition, the VP of Direct Purchasing Operations must have a sharp business mind and be capable of interacting with senior leaders throughout global operations to ensure credibility and collaboration between the Purchasing Operations organization and the business and have a reputation for unimpeachable integrity.
Bachelor's degree required, preferably in engineering, supply chain or related business field.
MBA or master's degree preffered

Additional Information

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.
Western Digital thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global