Hearthside Food Solutions · 1 week ago
Procurement Category Manager - Ingredients
Downers Grove, 3333 Finley Rd, Downers Grove, Illinois, United States of America
Full-time
Hybrid
Mid, Senior Level
$97K/yr - $146K/yr
5+ years expHearthside Food Solutions is seeking a Procurement Category Manager – Ingredients responsible for creating and implementing sourcing strategies to reduce costs and ensure supply continuity. This role involves collaboration with various internal teams and suppliers to drive procurement initiatives and promote long-term strategic thinking.
Food DeliveryFood ProcessingPackaging Services
Responsibilities
Analyze spend data, conduct market research, and understand trends in customer and business priorities to build and execute category procurement strategies for key ingredient categories
Negotiate contracts, pricing, and supply agreements that balance cost competitiveness, quality, and reliability to ensure Makers Pride is paying the Lowest Total Cost
Rationalize ingredient supplier base for cost efficiency, lead-time, quality, regionalization, standardization, supply assurance, and compliance with customer, regulatory, and internal requirements
Build cross functional stakeholder alignment and manage the approval of supplier and ingredient changes
Understand Maker’s Pride quality and regulatory guidelines for supplier and ingredient evaluation. Evaluate and recommend changes based on those guidelines
Lead contracting process in collaboration with Legal department; ensure compliance post contract execution
Deliver YOY sustainable total cost savings to drive business growth
Improve cash flow and working capital by negotiating extended payment terms
Conduct monthly spend and PPV analysis to communicate on risk management, contracting balances, and economic forecasts
Create and present supplier scorecards to measure, track, and improve supplier performance
Lead supplier business reviews to discuss best practices and issues and to ultimately improve supplier performance and strengthen business partnerships
Innovate within the procurement space by automating and/or improving tools or processes, and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) to better support the Procurement Lifecycle
Qualification
Required
5-7+ years of experience in a procurement organization performing category/vendor management, contract management, negotiating complex purchases, and bidding
Bachelor's Degree from an accredited university or equivalent combination of education and experience
Strong leader with a demonstrated track record of driving Total Cost of Ownership category strategies, developing pricing models, negotiating and can influence across all levels of an organization
Demonstrated track record of managing multiple projects and driving them to completion to meet business objectives
Highly proficient in Microsoft Excel. Must have a strong understanding of the VLOOKUP function and pivot tables
Solid financial acumen with experience in budgeting and analyzing PPV (Purchase Price Variance) and explaining logic when setting standards
Ability to leverage data to make fact-based decisions that support company's initiative for lowest total cost of ownership
Excellent communication and influencing skills, both verbal and written
Thrives to work within fast paced culture and operate with significant autonomy
Ability to travel within the US or Canada (<10%)
Preferred
CPM or CPIM certification is a plus
Experience with incorporating AI into daily procurement responsibilities is a plus
Benefits
Health
Dental
401k
Wellness benefits beginning on the first day of employment
Company
Hearthside Food Solutions
Hearthside Food Solutions is the industry’s largest food contract manufacturer, and also the largest private bakery in the US.
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
Hearthside Food Solutions has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (3)
2024 (2)
2023 (1)
2022 (1)
2021 (5)
2020 (3)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
unknown2018-04-20Acquired
2009-05-03Series Unknown
Leadership Team
Nick Hewitt
Chief Financial Officer
Recent News
FoodProcessing.com
2026-01-16
2025-11-05
Orange County Business Journal
2025-03-22
Company data provided by crunchbase