Commodity Manager

About Neuralink: We are creating devices that enable a bi-directional interface with the brain. These devices allow us to restore movement to the paralyzed, restore sight to the blind, and revolutionize how humans interact with their digital world. About the Team The Supply Chain organization owns the external manufacturing and supplier network behind every component of our products. Global Supply Managers (GSMs) own the commercial relationship with our supplier base — from supplier identification and selection, through contract negotiation, cost management, capacity commitments, and ongoing business performance. GSMs partner day-to-day with Supplier Industrialization Engineering (SIE), Quality, Design Engineering, Manufacturing, Planning, and Finance to make sure Neuralink has the right suppliers, on the right terms, delivering the right parts, on the right schedule. About the Role As a Global Supply Manager, you will own the commercial strategy and performance of a portfolio of suppliers spanning the full breadth of what goes into the Implant and the Robot. This is explicitly a generalist role: rather than specializing in a single commodity, you will move across machined parts, molded plastics, electromechanical assemblies, PCBAs, raw materials, optics, hermetic packaging, coatings, and biocompatible materials — going wherever the business needs the most commercial leverage. You will drive sourcing strategy, negotiate contracts and pricing, manage supplier performance, and be the single point of accountability for the commercial health of your portfolio. We expect generalists to be biased toward learning new categories rapidly, comfortable owning commodities they have not personally sourced before, and willing to develop the technical fluency required to negotiate credibly with engineering-led suppliers. We are hiring across multiple levels. Early-career GSMs will own a focused portfolio under mentorship; senior and staff GSMs will own multi-commodity strategy across both programs, lead the most complex negotiations, and shape Neuralink’s long-term supply-base architecture. What You’ll Do Sourcing Strategy & Supplier Selection Own end-to-end sourcing strategy for a portfolio of categories spanning mechanical, electromechanical, electronic, optical, raw-material, and biocompatible-material commodities used in the Implant and Robot. Drive technical and commercial requirement definition, supplier evaluation, scoring, and award recommendation. Identify, qualify, and onboard new suppliers; build a global, resilient supplier base with deliberate dual-sourcing and geographic-risk strategies. Contracts & Cost Management Negotiate contracts, MSAs, statements of work, NDAs, quality agreements, and IP terms in partnership with Legal and Finance — in a way that protects Neuralink’s IP and regulatory position without strangling supplier flexibility. Build should-cost models and total-cost-of-ownership analyses; lead year-over-year cost reduction (VAVE, resourcing, redesign, payment-term, freight, and yield levers). Own pricing negotiation for material and services impacting the manufacturing of Neuralink’s products Partner with Design and SIE teams on Design for Manufacturability, Design for Cost, and make/buy decisions early in the development cycle — not after the design is frozen. Supplier Performance & Capacity Manage supplier performance against quality, delivery, cost, and responsiveness scorecards; lead quarterly business reviews (QBRs) and drive corrective action when performance slips. Own capacity planning and capacity commitments with suppliers; align supplier capacity to Neuralink’s clinical-build and commercial-ramp forecasts, including upside scenarios. Be the commercial single point of accountability when a supply issue threatens a clinical or commercial build — from first escalation through closed recovery. Risk & Continuity Management Drive supply-risk management: map sub-tier dependencies, monitor geopolitical and financial-health risk, and build mitigation plans (inventory buffers, dual-source, alternate qualifications). Manage end-of-life and obsolescence for sourced components; ensure transitions to replacement parts are planned, qualified, and commercially closed before supply gaps occur. Required Qualifications Background & Experience Bachelor’s degree in a technical or business discipline — Engineering (Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, Manufacturing, Materials, Chemical, Biomedical, or Aerospace), Supply Chain Management, Operations, Business, Finance, or Economics — or equivalent practical experience demonstrating the same analytical depth. Generalist track record: demonstrated experience moving across at least two distinct commodities or categories, learning new technical and commercial domains quickly rather than specializing in a single category throughout your career. Sourcing and supplier management experience in one or more of: hardware manufacturing, medical devices, aerospace, automotive, consumer electronics, semiconductor, robotics, industrial OEM, or military/government/consulting environments that develop the same skill set. Sourcing & Negotiation Hands-on experience running full RFI/RFQ/RFP cycles end-to-end — from requirements definition and supplier scorecarding through award, contract execution, and supplier onboarding. Demonstrated commercial negotiation experience across piece-price, tooling, NRE, payment terms, lead time, MOQ, capacity commitments, and IP/liability terms; comfortable holding the line with suppliers without burning the relationship. Strong should-cost and total-cost-of-ownership analytical skills, including the ability to build a cost model from material, process, labor, overhead, yield, and margin inputs and use it to drive negotiation outcomes. Supplier Quality & Industrialization Working familiarity with the supplier-quality and industrialization toolkit (PPAP, APQP, FAI, PFMEA, FMEA, control plans, SPC, MSA, 8D/RCCA) — enough to operate credibly with SIE and Quality counterparts and to read a supplier’s process documents. Working familiarity with at least one Quality Management System framework — ISO 13485, 21 CFR Part 820, AS9100, IATF 16949, or ISO 9001 — and how it shapes change control, documentation, and supplier qualification. Technical & Commercial Literacy Solid technical literacy: able to read engineering drawings, basic GD&T, BOMs, and bills of process; able to translate between engineering and commercial language without losing fidelity in either direction. Contract literacy: practical experience reading and redlining MSAs, supply agreements, quality agreements, NDAs, and statements of work in partnership with Legal — with a clear sense of what matters commercially and what matters legally. Familiarity with ERP and procurement systems (e.g., NetSuite, SAP, Oracle, Coupa, Ariba, Zip) and an understanding of how data flows from BOM to PO to receipt to payment. Execution & Communication Strong project-management skills: able to run a parallel portfolio of sourcing initiatives against aggressive dates, sequence dependencies, elevate cleanly, and communicate status to stakeholders without being chased. Strong written and verbal communication: able to run a supplier negotiation, walk an engineering team through a make-vs.-buy tradeoff, and write a one-page recommendation for leadership — all in the same day. Strong financial and data fluency: comfortable in Excel/Google Sheets for cost modeling and scenario analysis. Comfortable in a hands-on, fast-moving, ambiguity-tolerant environment where you are expected to own commercial outcomes, not just process — and to make sound decisions with incomplete information. Logistics Willingness to travel up to 25–50% to supplier sites, including international travel; valid passport (or ability to obtain one) required. Must be able to work on-site in Austin, TX or South San Francisco, CA. Preferred Qualifications Advanced Education MBA, MS in Supply Chain/Operations, or equivalent advanced education. Regulated & Complex Hardware Experience Sourcing experience in a regulated medical-device environment (ISO 13485/21 CFR Part 820), implantable hardware, or precision medical instruments. Direct experience scaling a complex hardware product from clinical/pre-production builds through commercial volume — i.e., the full Design → Qualify → Scale → Sustain → End-of-Life lifecycle. Prior experience at a high-growth, fast-paced hardware company. Experience structuring dual-source and second-source qualifications, including the commercial choreography of running them in parallel with engineering qualification. Experience with supplier-development and supplier-financial-health monitoring (D&B, RapidRatings, supplier audits) and with managing distressed-supplier situations. International & Cross-Cultural Experience Experience negotiating with suppliers internationally (APAC, EU, MX) and managing cross-cultural commercial relationships; second-language ability (Mandarin, German, Japanese, Spanish) a plus. Certifications & Compliance Lean/Six Sigma certification (Green Belt or higher), CPSM, CSCP, or equivalent. Familiarity with U.S. export-control regimes (ITAR, EAR) and medical-device-specific regulatory frameworks (FDA QSR, EU MDR) as they touch the supply chain. Expected Compensation: The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the following range. Your actual base pay will be determined by your job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. We also believe in aligning our employees’ success with the company’s long-term growth. As such, in addition to base salary, Neuralink offers equity compensation (in the form of Restricted Stock Units (RSU)) for all full-time employees. Base Salary Range: $68,000—$177,000 USD What We Offer: Full-time employees are eligible for the following benefits listed below. An opportunity to change the world and work with some of the smartest and most talented experts from different fields Growth potential; we rapidly advance team members who have an outsized impact Excellent medical, dental, and vision insurance through a PPO plan Paid holidays Commuter benefits Meals provided Equity (RSUs) *Temporary Employees & Interns excluded 401(k) plan *Interns initially excluded until they work 1,000 hours Parental leave *Temporary Employees & Interns excluded Flexible time off *Temporary Employees & Interns excluded #J-18808-Ljbffr