Customer Program Manager

Position Summary:

The Program Manager is responsible for driving customer value, documented cost savings, and sales growth within an MRO Safety Distribution environment. This role acts as a strategic partner to customers, internal sales teams, and preferred safety vendors by standardizing spend, improving service levels, and expanding share of wallet.

The Program Manager works cross-functionally with internal teams to ensure seamless execution of customer programs, consistent service performance, and measurable business outcomes aligned with customer objectives.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Strategic Sales & Vendor Management

• Collaborate strategically with Preferred MRO Safety Vendors to standardize product usage, reduce SKU complexity, and deliver documented cost savings.
• Develop and execute cost-savings initiatives through product conversions (EB), sourcing strategies, and vendor consolidation.
• Drive share-of-wallet growth by expanding product and service penetration across safety, PPE, and MRO categories.
• Support internal sales teams with data analysis, insights, and project execution to accelerate strategic account growth.
• Serve as a subject-matter expert on safety and MRO programs, aligning vendor capabilities with customer needs.

Monthly Business Reviews (MBRs) & Customer Engagement

• Lead and conduct Monthly Business Reviews (MBRs) with key customer stakeholders, including Purchasing, Safety, Engineering, Maintenance, Operations, and Supply Chain.
• Prepare, analyze, and present performance metrics, including:
  • Year-to-Date (YTD) Spend
  • YTD Documented Cost Savings
  • Status of Ongoing Cost-Savings Projects
  • Accounts Receivable (AR) Status
  • Customer Dedicated Inventory, Vending, and VMI Performance
  • KPI Progress, Trends, and Action Plans
• Identify continuous improvement opportunities and recommend solutions to improve safety outcomes, service levels, and total cost of ownership.
• Act as the primary escalation point for program performance, ensuring timely resolution and customer satisfaction.

Program Execution & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with operations, supply chain, pricing, finance, and customer service teams to ensure program execution aligns with customer commitments.
• Monitor service performance, inventory strategies, and compliance to contractual agreements.
• Ensure all customer programs deliver measurable results and align with agreed-upon KPIs.

Job Qualifications & Experience:

• Bachelor's degree preferred or equivalent professional experience.
• Experience in MRO, safety distribution, industrial supply, or related field.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and communicate insights.
• Proven ability to manage complex customer programs and cross-functional initiatives.
• Proficiency in direct, high stakes negotiation, as well as drafting, interpretation and redlining of commercial contracts.
• Excellent presentation, communication, and relationship-management skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and CRM / reporting tools.

Key Competencies

• Strategic thinking and problem solving
• Customer-centric mindset
• Financial and cost-savings analysis
• Project and program management
• Vendor and stakeholder collaboration