A Day In The Life Of A Global Procurement Manager At Commonwealth Fusion Systems And SpaceX
A day in the life of a Global Procurement Manager involves "maintaining supplier relationships," which is crucial for successful negotiations and partnerships across various industries, from consumer goods to aerospace and fusion energy. This role encompasses diverse responsibilities, from cost negotiations and design discussions with engineering and suppliers to payment coordination and ensuring timely delivery, providing a unique opportunity to interact with many company functions and learn a wide range of skills.
Negotiation, Supplier Relationships, Global Procurement, Engineering Collaboration, Cross-functional Teamwork
Advizer Information
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Grad Programs
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Nihitha Kishore
Global Procurement Manager
Commonwealth Fusion Systems & SpaceX
Rutgers University
UCLA-Anderson MBA
Industrial, Supply Chain Management
Aerospace, Aviation & Defense
Operations and Project Management
Honors Student, Took Out Loans, Immigrant, Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. Maintaining strong supplier relationships is crucial for successful negotiations and partnerships.
2. Buyers play a key role in cost negotiations, design discussions, and payment coordination, bridging the gap between engineering, accounting, and suppliers.
3. The role offers diverse learning opportunities, encompassing various functional areas like engineering, accounting, and logistics, and provides exposure to different industries and supply chain dynamics.
Transcript
What does a day in the life of your current role, or similar previous roles, look like?
I'll be talking about my experience as a buyer. I've had this experience through all my roles in different companies so far, and I'll share what you can expect in a buyer or procurement role.
I'd like to start by highlighting the importance of maintaining supplier relationships. It all starts with the relationship, whether it's an introductory meeting or cost negotiations. Having a mutually beneficial relationship is important for any negotiation or partnership.
A buyer's responsibilities include cost negotiations, whether for a single purchase order, a group of purchase orders, or a long-term contract. This can involve exchange rate agreements and discussions on localization, such as a supplier building a plant closer to your company's location to reduce costs.
There's also a lot of opportunity for design discussions. As a buyer, you'll interact with design and engineering. My experiences, particularly after my internship at Unilever, have been in technical industries like construction and fusion rockets, not just consumer goods.
I had a significant learning curve regarding the engineering side of things. My advice is to ask a lot of questions upfront. As the main point of contact, both internally with engineers and externally with suppliers, you'll help guide conversations and bring different teams together.
There will be many meetings between engineering and suppliers, and the buyer usually serves as the main point of contact, bridging these partnerships. This has been consistent across my experiences, from Caterpillar to SpaceX to Collins Aerospace.
Another important aspect of a buyer role is being responsible for supplier payments. Coordinating with accounts payable is crucial, even for a single invoice. This can significantly impact businesses, especially smaller ones.
You are responsible from the sourcing stage all the way until the goods are delivered and payment is made. This includes everything from engineering discussions and initial releases to the final delivery.
I believe it's a unique opportunity with many different procurement roles across industries. Supply chain has been growing lately, making it a great field to be in. It's a role where you'll learn about various functions, touching on engineering, accounting, and logistics, as well as working with supplier teams.