Director of Purchasing

The Director, Purchasing is responsible for ensuring a continuous supply of assigned products at the best cost to the Customer restaurant system, either directly or through direct reporting relationships with Purchasing Managers. Principal accountabilities will include supervising, training and developing the skills of the Purchasing Manager(s), helping to establish priorities, and negotiating with suppliers for assigned products, including developing best overall supply matrices that provide the least landed product cost to each assigned distribution center. It is required to review, evaluate, and recommend suppliers in order to manage the best overall supply base for the restaurant system; develop, propose and implement short- and long-term strategies to ensure the continued success and growth of and its commitment to be “The best Purchasing entity in the industry”. Additionally, the Director, Food & Packaging Purchasing is responsible for various departmental initiatives and projects.RESPONSIBILITIES:Supervising and developing direct reporting Purchasing Manager(s) into independent buyers who can autonomously lead their assigned categories and who can be prepared to step in, if required, for the Director of Food & Packaging Purchasing.Developing and managing relationships with assigned suppliers, including Innovation, QA and Operations.Providing a continuous supply of competitively priced products on a regular and timely basis.Maintain good working relationships with the field Distribution Services Managers (DSM’s)Negotiating with suppliers for each assigned product category.Developing and implementing objectives for assigned product categories.Establishing and monitoring vendor capacity/distribution capabilities to ensure that all quality, cost and service expectations are met.Stay informed about the foundational aspects of the commodity market and price projections to aid in making informed decisions for RFPs. Moreover, supervise the case cost forecasting for finished goods within each team to ensure optimal forecast accuracy.Conducting regular performance, business and financial reviews.Negotiating and executing terms of agreement between and suppliers for new and existing products.Participating, and in some cases leading, development teams to facilitate the introduction of new products to the customer system.Ensuring compliance with contracting protocol and the accuracy of Supply Agreements.Communicating marketing activities to appropriate suppliers.Supervisor responsibilities:Aligning individual performance expectations with organizational goalsDeveloping performance goals collaboratively with their direct reportsEnsuring that performance goals are clearly communicated and currentProviding fair, constructive, and timely feedback towards performance expectations and goalsProviding assistance, guidance, and coaching support as neededEnsuring that staff have professional development plans in placeConducting performance evaluations according to established systems and policiesADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIESPreparing and presenting all purchasing programs to the Board of Directors’ Food & Packaging Committee as may be required per the Food & Packaging and bakery purchasing authorities in the operations manual.Provide support and ensuring the accomplishment of department and company MBO’s, including the facilitation of distributor AR payment reviews with suppliers.Maintaining a good working relationship with the Board of Directors as well as all entities.EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:A four-year degree is required. Masters degree a plus. Must have at least four to six years of direct and relevant work experience.OTHER QUALIFICATIONS:Must have exceptional customer service skills, strong negotiation skills, excellent written and oral communication skills, strong interpersonal skills, ability to work independently, and as a member of a team ability to identify problems and develop solutions, detail oriented and computer literate in the MS Office environment (Excel, Word, and PowerPoint). Must also demonstrate strong leadership skills, a solid business foundation and business acumen, and a commitment to the success of all subordinates.