Food Program Manager Jobs in Durham, NC (NOW HIRING)

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Job Description

As part of the Thermo Fisher Scientific team, you’ll discover meaningful work that makes a positive impact on a global scale. Join our colleagues in bringing our Mission to life every single day to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We provide our global teams with the resources needed to achieve individual career goals while helping to take science a step beyond by developing solutions for some of the world’s toughest challenges, like protecting the environment, making sure our food is safe or helping find cures for cancer.
The Program Manager role leads the planning, execution, and governance of multiple strategic procurement initiatives that drive enterprise transformation and business value. This role partners closely with Procurement, Business Units, Finance, IT, and Operations to identify opportunities, design innovative solutions, and deliver complex cross-functional programs from concept through implementation. The Program Manager ensures successful execution through disciplined program management, stakeholder engagement, risk management, and change leadership.

Key Responsibilities

Program & Strategic Leadership

• Lead multiple high-impact procurement programs and strategic initiatives simultaneously, ensuring alignment with enterprise priorities and functional objectives.

• Define program scope, deliverables, governance structure, timelines, success metrics, and resource requirements.

• Partner with procurement and business leaders to develop and implement innovative business solutions that improve operational effectiveness and deliver measurable value.

• Facilitate alignment and decision-making across functional leadership, business units, site operations, and executive stakeholders.

• Develop and execute change management and communication strategies to support successful program adoption and sustained business outcomes.

Program Execution & Governance

• Establish and maintain comprehensive program plans, schedules, budgets, resource plans, and milestone tracking.

• Apply standardized project management methodologies and governance practices to ensure consistent, high-quality execution.

• Monitor program performance against scope, schedule, budget, and objectives, proactively identifying risks, dependencies, and mitigation plans.

• Lead program governance activities, including steering committees, PMO reviews, executive updates, and action tracking.

• Drive issue resolution through effective escalation and cross-functional collaboration to minimize program risk.

• Maintain program documentation, repositories, version control, and governance artifacts to ensure transparency and compliance.

Reporting & Business Insights

• Develop standardized reporting frameworks that provide visibility into project portfolio health, category initiatives, financial performance, pipeline, and Annual Operating Plan (AOP) commitments.

• Coordinate data collection across Procurement to deliver accurate, timely reporting and actionable insights.

• Analyze program performance metrics and identify opportunities for process optimization and operational improvement.

• Leverage business knowledge and system capabilities to improve reporting automation, consistency, and decision support.

Continuous Improvement

• Champion Practical Process Improvement (PPI) methodologies to streamline processes, improve execution efficiency, and enhance program outcomes.

• Identify opportunities to standardize tools, processes, and best practices across the Procurement organization.

• Foster a culture of continuous improvement through data-driven decision making and operational excellence.

Leadership Responsibilities

• Influence and collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders at all organizational levels to achieve program objectives.

• Build trusted partnerships across Procurement, Finance, IT, Supply Chain, Operations, and Business Units.

• Communicate effectively with senior leadership through executive presentations, program updates, and strategic recommendations.

• Drive accountability for program milestones, deliverables, and business outcomes while fostering a collaborative and results-oriented environment.

• Mentor project teams and promote best practices in program management, governance, and stakeholder engagement.

REQUIREMENTS:
• Advanced Degree plus 6 years of experience, OR Bachelor's Degree
• Strong analytical and financial acumen with ability to develop business cases and drive cost savings
• Project management capabilities and experience managing complex, global initiatives
• Proven negotiation skills and ability to influence in matrix environment
• Strong communication and presentation skills for engaging stakeholders at all levels
• Ability to work collaboratively across global, cross-functional teams
• Knowledge of continuous improvement methodologies (Lean, Six Sigma, etc.)
• Travel 10-50% as required by role
• Fluency in English required; additional languages beneficial
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple high-value projects simultaneously
 

Preferred Qualifications:

• Demonstrated expertise in strategic sourcing, category management, and supplier relationship management

• CPSM, CPIM, or equivalent procurement certification

• 6- 8 years of experience in procurement/sourcing in large multinational organizations

• Project Management certification desired

• Advanced proficiency in MS Office suite, particularly Excel, PowerPoint and project management tools

• Preferred Fields of Study: Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, or related field