Head of Purchasing

Head of Purchasing

• Location: North Rhine Westphalia region or Frankfurt (Germany)
• Hybrid / site-based depending on location - must be happy to travel to sites across locations above
• Languages: German & English

For a well-established international manufacturing group with multiple production sites in Germany, we are looking for a Head of Purchasing to lead and steer procurement activities across five manufacturing / plant facilities.

This is a senior, site-facing leadership role with responsibility for a €200 million indirect, packaging and some direct material but limited spend portfolio, acting as the key interface between local operations and a central procurement organization. The role offers significant autonomy, visibility, and the opportunity to shape procurement performance in a hands-on industrial environment.

Key responsibilities:

• Overall responsibility for regional purchasing activities across 5 manufacturing sites

• Management of an indirect spend portfolio of €200m (e.g. MRO, services, energy, packaging, CapEx, logistics)

• Leadership and development of a team of 5 buyers, ensuring consistent execution and capability growth

• Act as the main point of contact between plant operations and central/group procurement

• Translate central procurement strategies into effective local execution and compliance

• Budget planning and cost control in close cooperation with Operations and Controlling

• Supplier and contract governance, including performance monitoring and framework agreement rollout

• Drive process harmonisation, transparency, and reporting across sites

• Support operational stakeholders with pragmatic, solution-oriented procurement leadership

Your profile:

• Several years of experience in purchasing/procurement within a manufacturing or industrial environment

• Strong background in indirect procurement, ideally with exposure to multi-site operations

• Proven people leadership experience (buyer or procurement team management)

• Comfortable operating in a matrix organisation with central and local stakeholders

• Strong negotiation, supplier management, and stakeholder communication skills

• Hands-on, pragmatic mindset with the ability to balance strategy and operational execution

• Solid experience with ERP systems (e.g. SAP) and MS Office

• Fluent German and English

What's on offer:

• A permanent leadership position within a stable, international industrial group

• High level of autonomy and visibility within the organization

• Flexibility in location (Frankfurt or NRW) based on proximity to production sites

• Attractive, performance-oriented salary package

• 30 days of vacation

• Flexible working arrangements

• Development and career opportunities within a larger group environment

• Open, pragmatic culture with short decision paths and strong operational focus