Plant Manager

Job Description

Job Description

DIRECTOR OF PROCUREMENT

Senior Leadership | Agribusiness | Confidential Client

The Company

Our client is a multi-plant agribusiness manufacturer serving commercial cattle producers across the central United States. For more than five decades, the organization has built its reputation on disciplined execution, long-term producer relationships, and science-based nutrition solutions.

The company operates within the cattle feeding corridor and sources a complex mix of liquid and dry ingredients to support plant manufacturing operations. Leadership is deeply involved, performance-driven, and committed to long-term growth.

This role reports directly to the CEO and carries enterprise-level responsibility.

The Mission

Within 24 months, build and lead a procurement function that:

• Reduces total ingredient cost volatility exposure
• Improves inventory turns and working capital efficiency
• Expands strategic supplier partnerships
• Enhances pricing visibility for executive decision making
• Positions the business for scalable growth

This is not a buyer role. It is a leadership and risk management role.

The Scorecard

(What You Will Be Accountable For)

First 6 Months

• Conduct full risk assessment of ingredient exposure and supply chain dependencies
• Implement clear commodity risk reporting to CEO
• Improve short-term price projection accuracy (1–4 month horizon)
• Strengthen communication cadence between procurement, operations, and finance

6–12 Months

• Improve procurement discipline across all ingredient categories
• Increase supplier leverage through contract optimization
• Improve inventory forecasting accuracy and reduce stock-out exposure
• Standardize urea position management and dispatch planning

12–24 Months

• Reduce total cost of procurement through strategic sourcing initiatives
• Improve inventory turns and working capital deployment
• Identify and onboard new strategic ingredient sources
• Develop and elevate procurement team capability

Key Outcomes This Leader Will Drive

• Enterprise-level commodities risk management
• Best-total-cost sourcing strategy
• Accurate forward visibility on ingredient pricing
• Cross-functional alignment with finance, operations, and executive leadership
• Development of a high-performance procurement team

Competencies That Matter

We are not hiring based on years alone. We are hiring based on demonstrated performance.

The right candidate will have:

• Proven success managing commodity purchasing in volatile markets
• Experience negotiating long-term supplier contracts
• Strong inventory management and forecasting capability
• Deep understanding of logistics: rail, truck, and bulk movement
• Ability to communicate risk clearly to executive leadership
• Demonstrated ability to build and lead teams

Industry experience in feed, dairy, grain, fertilizer, or related commodity-driven manufacturing environments is strongly preferred.

Culture Fit

This is a performance-oriented, direct, no-politics organization.

The CEO values:

• Transparency
• Speed
• Data-driven decision making
• Accountability
• Long-term relationships

If you prefer excessive bureaucracy or indirect communication, this is not the environment.

Compensation

• Competitive base salary
• Performance incentive
• Leadership visibility and long-term growth opportunity

Relocation support available for the right candidate.

Why This Role Matters

Procurement in this business directly impacts EBITDA.

This position is a lever for margin expansion, risk mitigation, and growth.

You will not sit on the sidelines. You will shape outcomes.