Strategic Sourcing Leader - Enterprise & Engineering Technology

📋 Description

• • Lead strategic sourcing and execution across enterprise and engineering technology categories including infrastructure software, engineering platforms, security technology, enterprise systems, IT, and hardware.
• • Independently define, prioritize, and lead multiple complex sourcing workstreams with minimal oversight, shaping supplier strategy and commercial decisions in high-stakes environments.
• • Own and execute strategic supplier negotiations for major renewals, enterprise license agreements, infrastructure software commitments, security technology contracts, engineering platform agreements, and hardware procurement.
• • Manage and develop experienced category leads by building clarity, improving commercial judgment, and empowering the team to deliver strategic goals with autonomy and accountability.
• • Design and implement scalable sourcing tools and frameworks such as category cards, negotiation playbooks, supplier segmentation models, renewal calendars, reporting dashboards, and escalation protocols.
• • Partner directly with senior leaders including the CTO, CISO, IT, Finance, Legal, and Privacy teams to translate technical roadmaps, security requirements, platform dependencies, adoption patterns, and operational priorities into actionable sourcing strategies.
• • Advise executive leadership on major supplier decisions by presenting clear deal narratives that articulate financial impact, risk exposure, supplier context, tradeoffs, and recommended actions.
• • Create innovative cost and commercial structures aligned with OpenAI’s business model, including usage-based pricing, flexible consumption models, pooled commitments, ramp structures, scale protections, and performance-based economics.
• • Set direction for coordinators and category partners handling quick-turn negotiations, ensuring consistent standards, strong documentation, and appropriate escalation paths for routine procurement activities.
• • Establish and maintain supplier governance and portfolio reporting systems covering pipeline health, cost savings, risk exposure, renewal timelines, supplier performance, forecast accuracy, quarterly business reviews, escalation management, and value realization.
• • Influence highly opinionated stakeholders across technical, security, and commercial domains by building trust, clarifying tradeoffs, fostering alignment, and positioning sourcing as a strategic partner in critical decision-making.
• • Drive the integration of AI into sourcing workflows to enhance intake processes, market analysis, negotiation preparation, reporting accuracy, documentation quality, and decision-making efficiency.
• • Build and improve the category operating system by standardizing processes, refining communication rhythms with leadership, and ensuring consistent execution across all sourcing activities.
• • Serve as a recognized expert in enterprise technology sourcing, applying deep knowledge of infrastructure software, engineering tools, security platforms, IT systems, and hardware to solve complex commercial problems.
• • Champion responsible growth, disciplined supplier management, inclusive leadership, and the strategic elevation of sourcing as a core lever for OpenAI’s mission and scalable operations.