Director, Procurement - Houston - Nouryon

Description

Director, Procurement - Indirect (Plants & Capital)

If you want to know about the requirements for this role, read on for all the relevant information.

At Nouryon, our global team of Changemakers takes positive action every day, to reach higher collectively and individually. We create innovative and sustainable solutions for our customers to answer society's needs – today and in the future.

We are looking for team members who bring ideas forward, champion others and work together to do better. Does that sound like you?

In your future role as a Director, Procurement - Indirect (Plants & Capital), you will

The Director, Procurement - Indirect (Plants & Capital) is a senior strategic leadership role responsible for overseeing the company's indirect procurement activities covering 60+ global manufacturing plants, with an annual spend oversight of >$500MM. Based in Houston, the leader will oversee a global team of ~50 procurement professionals. The role is responsible to deliver enterprise-wide value creation through category strategy development, sourcing leadership, supplier relationship management, cost optimization, operational excellence, and strong cross-functional collaboration with Operations, Engineering, Finance, R&D and regional plant leadership.

A key mandate of the role is to transform the Indirect Procurement organization into a high-performing, stakeholder-facing function. This includes organizational design, capability building, implementation of global buying channels, digital enablement and significantly elevating stakeholder experience. The scope includes categories such as MRO, facilities, equipment and transport, QHSE, Lab supplies and all capital project procurement activities. The role ensures alignment to business needs, enhances operational effectiveness, manages risk and maximizes Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) value across the global network.

Main Responsibilities and Accountabilities

• Strategy & Leadership: Develop and execute global strategies for all plant indirect categories and CapEx procurement, ensuring alignment with business, operational, and financial objectives. Build a multi-quarter transformation roadmap to evolve the team into a high-performing, digitally enabled organization. Establish governance, KPIs, and performance management frameworks for global indirect procurement.
• Organizational Transformation: Lead global organization design, capability mapping, talent development, and role clarity across ~50 team members. Implement procurement process harmonization and global operating model improvements. Champion cultural and behavioral change focused on performance, accountability, and stakeholder partnership.
• Buying Channels & Digital Enablement: Design and implement global buying channels (guided buying, catalogs, P2P workflows, automation). Drive adoption of digital procurement tools and analytics platforms. Partner with IT and Global Process Owners to simplify processes, improve usability, and enable data-driven decision-making.
• Sourcing & Negotiation: Lead global sourcing events (RFIs/RFPs), supplier selection, and major contract negotiations. Drive TCO improvements and annual value delivery across indirect and CapEx spend, supported by market intelligence, benchmarking, and risk assessments.
• Supplier Management: Manage global SRM frameworks, lead executive supplier reviews, and drive strategic partnerships. Ensure supply continuity, quality, compliance, and supplier-led innovation.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Act as primary liaison with Operations, Engineering, Plant Leadership, Finance, Supply Chain, and Legal. Convert business needs into category strategies and sourcing plans while improving planning, budgeting, compliance, and project execution.
• Team Leadership & Development: Lead a global team across four regions, build talent pipelines, mentor high-potential staff, and enhance category capabilities. Promote a culture of collaboration, transparency, diversity, and continuous improvement.

We believe you bring

• 12+ years of progressive procurement leadership experience in manufacturing, chemicals or heavy-industry environments.
• 5+ years in global indirect procurement leadership in relevant categories; experience with CapEx sourcing strongly preferred.
• Proven success leading global teams and driving large-scale transformation.
• Strong experience in manufacturing or industrial environments.
• Strong negotiation, analytical, and strategic thinking capabilities.
• Ability to influence senior executives and drive change in a matrixed organization.
• Deep understanding of procurement processes, category management and digital procurement tools.
• Bachelor's degree required; MBA preferred.
• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Engineering, Business, Finance, or related field.

Great if you have:

• Experience implementing procurement technologies (e.g., SAP Ariba, Coupa, Jaggaer, Ivalua).
• Expertise in designing global procurement operating models and buying channels.

Good to know

Please apply via our online recruitment system. We will not accept applications via e-mail. Once it's with us we will review to see if we have a match between your skills and the role For more information about our hiring process, visit: /careers/how-we-hire/

We look forward to receiving your application

We kindly ask our internal candidates to apply with your Nouryon email via Success Factors.

We encourage you as a valued Nouryon employee to share talents from your network to help us to bring in new Changemakers through our new Employee Referral Program Bringing new, skilled people with a great mindset is beneficial for both you and Nouryon. All info you need to make a referral is here. Join us in growing Nouryon

About Nouryon

We're looking for tomorrow's Changemakers, today.

If you're looking for your next career move, apply today and join Nouryon's worldwide team of Changemakers in providing essential solutions that our customers use to manufacture everyday products such as personal care, cleaning, paints and coatings, agriculture and food, pharmaceuticals, and building products. Our employees are driven by the wish to make an impact and actively drive positive change. If that describes you, we will gladly make way for your ambitions. From day one we support you with your personal growth, through challenging positions and comprehensive learning and development opportunities, in a dynamic, international, diverse, and proactive working environment.

Visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn.

#WeAreNouryon #Changemakers

We have already chosen our sourcing channels for this recruitment and kindly ask not to be contacted by any advertisement agents, recruitment agencies or staffing companies. xhmxlyz

Nouryon is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law.