Regional Vp - Strategic Sourcing (Raw Materials) - Business Leader Career Path Job

Arkema in the Americas is actively seeking a Regional VP – Strategic Sourcing for Raw Materials, energy, and packaging. This position will be instrumental in shaping the vision and strategy for Raw Materials, energy, and packaging sourcing and procurement across the Americas including Mexico and Brazil.

The Regional VP has overall responsibility for people, processes, and results within the region, ensuring alignment with corporate, business unit, and global functional stakeholders. The direct reports to this position include 2 Procurement Directors, Systems and Processes Manager, 2 Strategic Sourcing Managers, and an Executive Assistant with a total team of approximately 25. 

The preferred candidate has a business management background in manufacturing, familiarity with direct goods sourcing and procurement, and business management future career interests. The VP will leverage existing negotiation skills, team leadership, and diverse stakeholder management, among other skills and capabilities, which will be amplified for application in a future Business Unit leadership role. 

This position reports to the President and CEO, Arkema, Inc with a Matrix Manager as well, the Global VP Raw Materials & Energy Purchasing and is based out of the North American Corporate Headquarters in King of Prussia, PA

KEY ACTIVITIES:

  Deliver financial results, manage and reduce risk

• Develop and implement regional procurement strategies and tactical processes to support the competitiveness of the Americas businesses and drive sustainable year on year structural cost reductions to improve variable margin.
• Working capital: Drive improvements in supplier payment terms & consignment. Control inventories at agreed targets.
• Responsible for conducting exceptionally difficult negotiations with all levels of U.S. and global supplier management.
• Insure uninterrupted supplies to Arkema Group facilities.
• Systematically reduce supply risk to Arkema Group facilities in the Americas. Eliminate single sources.

  Build Competitive Advantage

• Develop and maintain in-depth regional and global knowledge of the markets and the supplier base for entire Raw Materials and energy portfolio. Understand and anticipate market trends.
• Advise businesses of key market trends, risks & opportunities. Monitor strategic activity of key suppliers & competitors.
• Prioritize and support internal customers through business planning and development of customized procurement strategies.
• Develop and execute creative sourcing strategies and purchase agreements to secure supply and build value and sustainable competitive advantage for the Group.
• Ensure regional strategies are aligned with BU needs and with global purchasing strategies for materials and suppliers and ensure strong ongoing communication with peers outside of AMAS.
• Actively support the Arkema Climate Plan in the Americas. For Scope 1 and 2 reductions, negotiate and execute electricity decarbonization projects and heat decarbonization projects with suppliers. For Scope 3 emissions, on-board our suppliers to reduce their Scope 1 and 2 emissions and develop a sustainable offer.

  Supplier and Customer Relationships

• Build strong relationships with Arkema Group businesses in the Americas. Ensure team has deep engagement and clear understanding of BU strategies and plans for growth, innovation and variable cost/margin improvement. Ensure that raw material & packaging strategies are well aligned with these plans. Support global purchasing framework for BU coordination.  
• Develop and support all internal reporting requirements as required (functional, BU and corporate).
• Build good working relationships with all functional partners (Supply Chain, Legal, Operations, GASP).
• Build high, wide and deep relationships with key suppliers. Sell Arkema as a preferred customer.
• Support and align with global purchasing transverse processes for Key Vendor Management.
• Monitor supplier performance and quality.   

  People and organization

• Recruit, develop, manage, recognize and reward staff. Plan organizational evolution to adapt to internal/external context and design/implement succession paths for individuals in the function/company.
• Build and maintain an organizational environment that cultivates the broad development of a best in class, engaged and effective regional procurement team.
• Serve as an active contributor to Management Committee and Global Purchasing Leadership Team as well as other regional and global teams as assigned or requested.  

Improve Systems and Processes

• Ensure the function’s compliance with code of conduct and global regulatory frameworks.
• Drive & support Arkema Inc. and Group initiatives for CSR (Climate Plan, Together for Sustainability, DEI, et.al.)
• Contribute expertise to special projects as necessary (acquisitions and divestitures, purchasing digitization, ERP integrations).
• Drive and enable continuous improvement of digital tools.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

•  Bachelor’s Degree required, preferably in chemistry, chemical engineering, or relevant technical equivalent. MBA strongly preferred.
• 15 years relevant experience:
• Experience in the chemical industry
• International experience in a matrix organization
• Previous business experience with P&L responsibility
• Management and responsibility for financial performance including profit and loss, working capital, variable margin
• Strategy development and implementation
• Experience managing and developing teams in support of a multi-regional or global environment preferred
• In-depth experience with financial KPIs and purchasing impact on P/L, budget

NECESSARY COMPETENCIES:

•  Ability to learn Arkema, products, BUs
• Proven strategic thinker with strong financial and business acumen, in addition to strong execution.
• Advanced interpersonal, communication, and presentation skills. Open, objective and transparent communication, listening, proactive,
• Demonstrated experience in building and leading high-performing teams,  with effective talent management, pipelining and building of partnership across sub-teams
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities.
• Ability to manage multiple and diverse stakeholders and multi-cultural skills, with proven ability to foster a collaborative partnership with the various business functions
• Skilled at influencing and negotiating with parts of the organization where formal authority is not held
• Track record of acting as a change agent and of transforming organizations (evolution, restructure, etc.), as well as integrating teams created through mergers and acquisitions. 
• Ability to recognize inefficient or redundant processes, and establish, implement, and manage new or revised procedures.
• Excellent commercial negotiation skills and track record of delivering results through innovative procurement programs and tactics
• Possesses unquestioned integrity and strong business ethics and leads by example. Demonstrates a firm commitment to the company’s values (Solidarity, Performance, Simplicity, Empowerment and Inclusion) and culture.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS / WORKING CONDITIONS:

• Work is conducted primarily within an office environment. Domestic travel is expected in this role, approximately 10-15%, and occasional international travel as needed.