Responsibilities

• Collaborate with Costing and Category Managers tobuild, implement, and maintain cost models and rate development frameworks
• Direct the planning and execution of supplier Value Analysis and Value Engineering (VAVE) initiatives. Act as thebridge between Engineering, Program Management, and Procurement to identify and implementtechnical cost-reduction opportunities and product enhancements.
• Partner with Engineeringand Category Managers to develop and utilize purchased part preferred solutions.
• Provide expert support to Procurement during supplier cost audits by leveraging market benchmarks and "should-cost" data. Conduct on-site audits as needed to validate supplier overhead, labor rates, and material costs, ensuring total transparency and contract compliance.
• Facilitate proactive cooperation across all YF divisions, in order to leverage category-specific intelligence and benchmarking.
• Act as a bridge with other key functions of the organization to enhance alignment ofProcurement with customer demands, product roadmaps, and innovation priorities.
• Support the development of a Procurement Academy in alignment with procurement leadership.
• Act as astrategic coach, developing and standardizing category playbooks in conjunction with Category Managers.
• Serve as a central resource for market intelligence, providing the greater procurement team with actionable insights on emerging technologies, global market trends, and economic indicators.
• Act as a functional knowledge resource in the development and optimization of procurement systems, driving digital efficiencies to automate workflows and enhance data-driven decision-making
• Assure accurate and timely reporting of key measurables.

Qualifications

• Bachelors level degree; supply chain management or business administration. 
• 7-10+ years strategic sourcing, category management,or procurement operations.
• 3-5+ years of experience within the automotive industry.
• Strong financial/costing knowledge.
• Excellent relational/interpersonal skills.
• Experience with negotiating complex situations.
• Willingness to travel up to 25% and work at customer or supplier sites, including industrial manufacturing plants which may require climbing, lifting, or working in confined spaces. 
• Lean/CI knowledge.
• Knowledge of various manufacturing processes (examples: assemblies, injection molding, electro plating, painting, foam, coverstocks, metal forming)
• CPSM preferred

***This role canbe based in Novi, MI or Holland, MI.

Essential Common Requirements for all Employees: 

• International Operating System (IOS): Understand, apply, and meet all function-related IOS requirements. 
• Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS): Understand, apply, and meet all function-related EHS requirements. 
• Product Safety: Understand, apply, and meet all function-related Product Safety requirements. 
• Compliance: Understand, apply, and meet all function-related IT/ Information Security andconfidentiality of YFAI information requirements. 
• Must comply with all company policies and procedures. 
• Employee must have the ability to work additional hours and/ orovertime as needed or assigned to complete job duties on time. 
• Ability to multitask,interact politely and professionally with customers, suppliers, and vendors, and work cooperativelywith employees at all levels. 
• Ability to maintain predictable and regular attendance, arrive to designated location on time, or be at assigned location ready to work for assignment (plant, cooperate office, or remote).