Commodity Buyer Sr
Volkswagen Group of America
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, one of the world’s leading automobile manufacturers and the largest carmaker in Europe. It operates a manufacturing plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee and houses the U.S. operations of a worldwide family of distinguished and exciting brands including Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini and Volkswagen, as well as VW Credit, Inc.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen Group of America brings vehicles to the U.S. that marry the science of engineering and the art of styling, with the goal of offering attractive, safe, and eco-conscious automobiles that are competitive and set world standards in their respective classes. Headquartered in Herndon, Va., the company has approximately 8,000 employees in the United States and sells its vehicles through a 1,000-strong dealer network.
Mission: We offer tailor-made mobility solutions to our customers. We serve our customers' diverse needs with a portfolio of strong brands. We assume responsibility regarding the environment, safety and social issues. We act with integrity and build on reliability, quality and passion as the foundation for our work.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen Group of America brings vehicles to the U.S. that marry the science of engineering and the art of styling, with the goal of offering attractive, safe, and eco-conscious automobiles that are competitive and set world standards in their respective classes. Headquartered in Herndon, Va., the company has approximately 8,000 employees in the United States and sells its vehicles through a 1,000-strong dealer network.
Mission: We offer tailor-made mobility solutions to our customers. We serve our customers' diverse needs with a portfolio of strong brands. We assume responsibility regarding the environment, safety and social issues. We act with integrity and build on reliability, quality and passion as the foundation for our work.
Herndon, Virginia, United States
United States-Tennessee-Chattanooga
Role Summary:
The Commodity Buyer Sr assists the Commodity Manager in leading the Commodity Team. Responsible for leading assigned Buyers in achieving all team business plan commitments. Leads and implements all commodity localization and hidden cost activities. Also responsible for coordinating all Forward and Global Sourcing activities between regions. Identifies PKO opportunities and ensures implementation to reduce material cost. Responsible for ensuring continuous parts supply to VW manufacturing facilities. Represents the Commodity Manager in his absence.
Role Responsibilities:
Business Plan – 35%
- Leads team members is establishing the annual material cost business plan (total spend up to $500M per year).
- Continuously monitors Commodity business plan and performs bi-weekly reconciliation to achieve annual business plan savings and commitments.
- Lead’s team negotiations of annual material cost savings and reports on a monthly basis.
- Lead Global Sourcing activities to reduce material cost.
Sourcing – 20%
- Monitor and track Commodity forward and global sourcing status and report monthly.
- Drives the team’s alignment of VW Group Global strategies and initiatives of strategic material groups into the region.
- Responsible for team future and current series product sourcing, including the negotiation of material cost and tooling investment. Present the results to regional and global sourcing committees for decision.
- Analyze and monitor Global macro-economic, geo-political, and unforeseen events that influence material cost.
- Utilize product knowledge and expertise to evaluate optimal material cost of future vehicle programs.
Localization/FOREX – 20%
- Identify FOREX opportunities and ensure team achievement of commitments.
- Drive and analyze the localization and deep localization rate of the team’s assigned parts. Develop and implement strategies to increase localization and deep localization rate.
PKO Activities – 15%
- Benchmark competitor products and specifications for cost optimization. Participate in cost reduction workshops to identify alternative materials, manufacturing processes, etc.
- Actively participate in all PKO activities to achieve NAR 235M Euro reduction commitment.
Ensure Parts Supply – 10%
- Ensure the team’s contracted capacity is available to meet project requirements.
- Responsible for crisis management of unforeseen supply chain disruptions.
- Oversees the evaluation and negotiation of Engineering Change Requests with suppliers to achieve optimum piece price, investment and timing. Ensures the timely entry and maintenance of purchasing information systems (purchase orders, tooling orders, capacity, etc.)
- Serves as a mentor to assigned buyers to ensure they are trained on VW systems and processes.
Qualifications:
Years of Experience:
- 7+ Years of Automotive Experience
Education:
- Bachelor’s Degree – required
- MBA – desired
Skills:
- 7+ years automotive purchasing experience
- Bachelor degree in Business or Engineering
- Advanced Microsoft Office Skills (PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, etc.)
- Advanced negotiation skills (experience conducting and executing different negotiation strategies and tactics to achieve a goal)
- Leadership Experience, coordinate team efforts
Specialized Skills:
Required:
- Advanced knowledge in VW Purchasing Systems (AIP, EBON, KSRM, TEVON, etc)
- Experience steering the team business plan and supporting colleagues to achieve their targets
- Expert level knowledge in key automotive systems
- Accustomed to a high pressure environment
- Effectively multitasks high priority topics
Desired:
- German language skills
- International business experience
Work Flexibility:
- Up to 25% travel may be required
Volkswagen Group of America is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We welcome and encourage applicants from all backgrounds, and do not discriminate based on race, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, color, gender identity/expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected by applicable laws.