The Executive Leader of Indirect Strategic Procurement will develop and lead the expansion of Whole Food Market’s Global Indirect Procurement program. This position is responsible for the leadership, transformation, strategy and execution of strategic procurement for over $1Billion in indirect purchases and expenditures. This will require the transition of WFM’s 2017 Indirect Cost Optimization project into a formal and structured program—leveraging that work and adapting it (and WFM’s procurement team) for ongoing support and cost execution. This position will integrate closely with WFM functional and regional leadership areas as well as Amazon finance and procurement teams.

Responsibilities:

• Establish and execute a multi-year cost optimization and category review strategy in coordination with GVPs of Finance and Supply Chain
• Cultivate and lead a team of procurement experts addressing over $2 billion in indirect procurement of goods, services and capital.
• Develop and formalize WFM’s Strategic Indirect Procurement methodology. Components include: category strategy template, communication tools, RFx approach, project milestone calendar, stakeholder engagement models, and business review strategy)
• Partner with Amazon procurement leadership to develop joint sourcing strategies for shared categories when appropriate
• Prominent role in WFM’s Cost Leadership Council (which includes Global and Regional executives) to persuade endorsement of tailored category strategies (including supplier consolidation, cost avoidance method and negotiation strategies)
• Co-sponsor the development and global rollout of a Procure-to-Pay system in partnership with finance and tech teams.
• Specify and sponsor a set of analytics and tools to measure performance of this team as well as the programs it launches.
• Partner across multiple teams to access the data and controls to support analytics and execution
• Promote a rigorous standard of excellence and professionalism in terms of analytical acumen, business case justification, supplier management and ethical practice.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• 4-year degree or equivalent experience and at least 8 years of indirect procurement experience on behalf of a global/multinational corporation, including at least 3 years of procurement team leadership
• Demonstrated leadership ability, capable of inspiring engagement, structure and a commitment to excellence in a new organization.
• Strong communication and presentation skills, with ability to influence at all levels of the organization – from Team Members to CxOs.
• Ability to work collaboratively and flexibly with a variety of stakeholders to generate broadly beneficial outcomes.
• Experience as a change agent capable of implementing new procurement processes and cultivating functional partnerships
• Proven in-depth knowledge of indirect sourcing and procurement principles and industry best practices
• Experience with procurement systems and familiarity with procure to pay technical platforms (such as SAP Ariba and Coupa)
• Strong negotiator with proven experience in setting negotiation strategies and conducting negotiations.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in retail or consumer products industries

At Whole Foods Market, we provide a fair and equal employment opportunity for all Team Members and candidates regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, age, marital status, disability, or any other legally protected characteristic. Whole Foods Market hires and promotes individuals solely based on qualifications for the position to be filled and business needs.