Purchasing & Procurement Program Manager

Come join one of America’s fastest-growing insurance companies. Since 1848, National Life Group has aimed to keep our promises, providing families with stability in good times and in bad. Throughout that history, we have provided peace of mind to those families as they plan their futures.

Our mission extends beyond the insurance and annuities policies that we offer. We strive to make the world a better place through our grants from our charitable foundation, paid volunteer time for our employees, environmentally sustainable and healthy workplaces, and events that promote the work of nonprofits in our own backyard.

We foster a collaborative environment with opportunities for growth and encourage our associates to live our values: Do good. Be good. Make good.

Please note that we do not offer visa sponsorship for this position.

The Purchasing and Procurement Manage r executes day-to-day purchasing activities across the company, including office supplies, equipment, and marketing sales events. This individual personally handles purchasing requests, obtains quotes, negotiates commercial terms, prepares purchase orders, coordinates supplier onboarding, and resolves purchasing issues.

The role focuses on completing purchasing work accurately and efficiently, helping business partners obtain the goods and services they need while ensuring appropriate approvals and documentation. The manager balances an active purchasing workload with process improvement and reporting.

This position works closely with business owners, Accounts Payable, Finance, Legal, Information Technology, Information Security, and Risk Management. The manager also supports the implementation and ongoing use of Workday procurement processes, including workflow testing, employee training, and day-to-day troubleshooting.

This position currently offers an onsite work schedule, with the expectation that you will be in the office four (4) days per week during onsite core days.  Our current onsite core days are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.  The work schedule type and core days are subject to change with advance notification and manager discretion.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Execute day-to-day purchasing activities , personally managing requests from submission through vendor selection, approval, purchase-order issuance, and order completion.
• Develop, manage, and monitor assigned procurement and purchasing budgets , including tracking expenditures and commitments, analyzing variances, and recommending corrective actions to remain within approved spending levels.
• Build and maintain strong vendor relationships , serving as a primary contact for purchasing matters, establishing clear expectations, addressing concerns, and holding vendors accountable for pricing, quality, delivery, and service commitments.
• Partner with business owners to understand purchasing needs , clarify specifications and timing, evaluate options, and confirm appropriate budget availability and approvals before commitments are made.
• Obtain and evaluate vendor quotes and proposals , comparing total cost, quality, capabilities, service, and business requirements. Conduct competitive sourcing appropriate to the value and complexity of the purchase.
• Negotiate pricing and commercial terms within delegated authority , including payment terms, delivery schedules, service expectations, and renewal provisions. Coordinate legal and other specialized reviews with the appropriate stakeholders.
• Prepare, issue, and maintain requisitions and purchase orders , ensuring accurate pricing, quantities, legal-entity information, accounting details, approvals, and supporting documentation.
• Track open orders and resolve purchasing issues , including delivery delays, pricing discrepancies, incomplete orders, returns, and credits. Coordinate with business owners to obtain confirmation of goods received or services completed.
• Work closely with Accounts Payable to resolve invoice exceptions , including missing purchase orders, incorrect pricing, and incomplete documentation, while identifying recurring issues and reducing avoidable payment delays.
• Coordinate contract reviews and proactively manage renewals , maintaining visibility into expiration dates, cancellation notice periods, pricing changes, and purchasing commitments.
• Identify and implement cost-saving opportunities , including consolidating purchases, improving commercial terms, and eliminating unnecessary spending. Partner with Finance to validate and report realized savings.
• Maintain effective purchasing policies, controls, and records , ensuring appropriate approvals, documented exceptions, and separation among purchasing, vendor banking verification, and payment release.
• Support Workday procurement implementation and ongoing operations , participating in workflow design, testing, troubleshooting, employee training, and improvements that simplify purchasing and reduce manual work.
• Prepare practical procurement reporting on budget performance, spending trends, outstanding orders, vendor performance, upcoming renewals, savings, and policy exceptions.
• All other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible experience in purchasing and procurement, including substantial hands-on experience with sourcing, negotiations (including RFP process), vendor management, and daily purchasing operations.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and manage budgets, forecast spending, monitor commitments, analyze variances, and implement cost-control measures.
• Proven ability to build productive vendor relationships, negotiate effectively, resolve disputes, and maintain accountability for vendor performance.
• Strong working knowledge of purchasing workflows, purchase orders, vendor onboarding, approval requirements, internal controls, and Accounts Payable coordination.
• Experience managing competing priorities and personally completing detailed purchasing work while providing leadership and guidance to others.
• Strong analytical, organizational, communication, and relationship-building skills.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, supply chain management, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

AI Proficiency Expectations:

At National Life Group, we view AI as an enabler of human potential. We use AI to help us work smarter, serve more clients, and keep our promises, while remaining a relationship-driven business where our people are our greatest strength.

All applicants are expected to:

• Leverage approved AI tools, where appropriate, to improve the efficiency, quality, and impact of their work.
• Stay curious and open to new AI-enabled ways of working.
• Exercise sound judgment by reviewing and validating AI-generated content.
• Maintain accountability for the accuracy, quality, fairness, and integrity of work products by adhering to National Life's AI guiding principles.
• Use AI responsibly and in accordance with company policies related to confidentiality, data privacy, security, compliance, retention, and intellectual property.
• Additional Expectations for AI-Forward Roles

Core Competencies:

Service Focus - Demonstrates a client centric focus for satisfying one’s external and/or internal customers; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.

Decision Making - Makes sense of complex information, critically evaluates, and creates solutions.

Results Oriented - Sets performance and personal goals; Driven to meet or exceed goals and objectives.

Plans and Aligns - Plans and prioritizes work to meet commitments aligned with organizational goals; Aligns people and skills to tasks and assignments; Evaluates results of work.

Demonstrates Learning Agility - Enhances skills and knowledge through continuous learning; Focuses on personal results by establishing stretch goals; Seeks feedback and changes accordingly.

Establishes Relationships - Builds partnerships with others to instill trust, collaborate, and meet shared objectives.

Communicates Effectively - Actively listens, conveys messages to meet different audience needs, and remains open to new ideas and opinions.

Fosters Diversity - Values diversity and difference in thought, experience, and perspective; Promotes an environment that embraces diversity, equity, and inclusion; Supports equal and fair treatment for all.

Benefits

• Your benefits start day one and are flexible and customizable to your and your family’s specific needs. Check out the BENEFITS of a Career at National Life !

Base Pay Range .  The base pay range for this position is the range National Life reasonably and in good faith expects to pay for the position taking into account the wide variety of factors, including: prior experience and job-related knowledge; education, training and certificates; current business needs; and market factors.  The final salary or hourly wages offered may be outside of this range based on other reasons and individual circumstances.

Additional Compensation and Benefits . The total compensation package for this position may also include a full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits (including 401(k) eligibility and various paid time off benefits, such as vacation, sick time, and parental leave), dependent on the position offered. The successful candidate may also be eligible to participate in National Life’s discretionary annual incentive programs, subject to the rules governing such programs. If hired, the employee will be in an "at-will position" and National Life reserves the right to modify base salary (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation or benefit program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, company or individual department/team performance, and market factors.

National Life is accepting applications for this role on an ongoing basis and the role remains open until filled.

Salary Pay Range

$86,625—$127,050 USD

National Life Group® is a trade name of National Life Insurance Company, Montpelier, VT – founded in 1848, Life Insurance Company of the Southwest, Addison, TX – chartered in 1955, and their affiliates. Each company of National Life Group is solely responsible for its own financial condition and contractual obligations. Life Insurance Company of the Southwest is not an authorized insurer in New York and does not conduct insurance business in New York. Equity Services, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC, is a Broker/Dealer and Registered Investment Adviser affiliate of National Life Insurance Company. All other entities are independent of the companies of National Life Group.

Fortune 1000 status is based on the consolidated financial results of all National Life Group companies.

National Life Group

1 National Life Dr

Montpelier, VT 05604