Category Manager- Chemicals & Sizings

The Category Manager for Chemicals & Sizings is a critical role supporting Johns Manville’s Engineered Products and Insulation Systems businesses. Managing upwards of $50M+ spend across distributed chemicals and sizings, you will shape sourcing strategy, supplier partnerships, and cost competitiveness for some of JM’s largest manufacturing facilities . This role is ideal for a strategic, analytical professional who can turn data into decisions, influence stakeholders, and build resilient supply solutions.

What Success Looks Like (and What You’ll Do to Achieve It)

Strategic Sourcing & Category Leadership

Outcome: JM maintains a cost-competitive, high-quality, and secure supply base across two business units.

Actions: Build and execute multi-year sourcing strategies; conduct market and cost-driver analyses; proactively identify risk and dual/multi-source opportunities; manage RFPs/RFQs and TCO-based award recommendations.

Measurable Value Creation & Cost Reduction

Outcome: You deliver trackable savings and productivity improvements without compromising quality or supply assurance.

Actions: Lead cost-reduction initiatives; conduct supplier workshops and should-cost reviews; standardize specifications where feasible; implement monthly scorecards and savings pipelines; drive continuous improvement.

Supplier Relationship & Performance Management

Outcome: Suppliers are collaborative, innovative, and accountable—supporting JM’s operational reliability and growth.

Actions: Negotiate high-impact contracts and SLAs; manage performance through KPIs (OTIF, quality, lead time, service, ESG metrics); escalate and resolve issues; qualify and onboard new suppliers.

Supply Assurance & Risk Mitigation

Outcome: Materials flow uninterrupted, even during volatility.

Actions: Implement risk-mitigation strategies (e.g., safety stocks, dual sourcing, alternates); monitor market shifts (feedstocks, logistics, regulatory); partner with plants and planning to maintain continuity.

Innovation, Alternatives & New Product Development (NPD) Enablement

Outcome: JM leverages supplier innovation and alternative materials/processes to improve cost, performance, and sustainability.

Actions: Partner with suppliers, R&D, and operations to evaluate alternates; support trials and qualifications; contribute to NPD gates with sourcing plans and risk assessments.

Cross-Functional Influence & Stakeholder Alignment

Outcome: The business trusts your recommendations and acts on them.

Actions: Collaborate with manufacturing, engineering, quality, finance, legal, EHS, and sustainability; communicate complex sourcing topics to non-experts; lead projects that span plants and functions.

Contracting Excellence & Compliance

Outcome: JM’s contracts protect value and reduce risk.

Actions: Draft, negotiate, and manage contracts; ensure compliance with terms (pricing, indices, quality, service, confidentiality); partner with Legal on T&Cs, IP, warranties, and change management.

Data-Driven Insights & Tools

Outcome: Clear visibility to spend, performance, risks, and opportunities.

Actions: Own category analytics (spend, PPV, usage, freight, working capital); maintain dashboards and scorecards; leverage ERP (SAP or similar) and e-sourcing tools to enable decisions.

Why You’ll Want This Role

You’ll own a high-impact category at enterprise scale, influence two core business units, negotiate with strategic suppliers, and see your work translate into plant reliability, cost leadership, and product innovation. It’s the perfect blend of strategy, analytics, leadership, and relationship-building.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree (Supply Chain, Engineering, Chemistry/Chemical Engineering, Business, Finance, or related field).
• 5+ years of supply chain or related experience with 3 years of sourcing experience (chemicals/raw materials strongly preferred).
• Proven supplier relationship management and contract negotiation experience (price mechanisms, indices, SLAs, risk and liability terms).
• Analytical strength with demonstrated ability to interpret spend data, cost drivers, and usage trends; convert insights into actionable strategies.
• Financial acumen : understand TCO, PPV, working capital/levers (payment terms, inventory), and basic cost modeling/should-cost logic.
• Communication excellence : able to present recommendations to stakeholders who may be non-technical; concise written and verbal communication.
• ERP proficiency (SAP or similar) and strong skills in Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook .
• Willingness to travel ~15% (JM plants, supplier sites, industry events).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with chemicals and sizings categories.
• Working knowledge of contract law , including commercial terms, confidentiality/IP, warranties, remedies, and governance.
• Background partnering with R&D/Engineering/Quality to qualify alternatives and support NPD .
• Experience implementing risk mitigation (dual sourcing, safety stock strategies, business continuity plans) and sustainability/ESG criteria in sourcing decisions.

Success Traits

• Strategic thinker with a bias for action; comfortable setting direction and executing.
• Influential collaborator who builds trust and alignment across plants, functions, and leadership levels.
• Curious and improvement-oriented , seeking better ways to buy, measure, and partner.
• Calm under pressure , especially in volatile markets or supply disruptions.