Procurement Assistant Jobs in Racine, WI (NOW HIRING)

POS I T ION SUMMA R Y
The Procurement Manager is a critical operations role responsible for managing QuickCable's sourcing,
supplier relationships, and purchasing activities across all raw materials, components, and indirect spend
categories. This individual will own the full procurement lifecycle - from supplier identification and
qualification through negotiation, purchase order management, and performance monitoring - ensuring
QuickCable maintains a reliable, cost-competitive supply chain that supports our manufacturing and
product development operations.
This is a hands-on leadership role for a procurement professional who is equally comfortable negotiating
with copper rod suppliers and building internal processes from scratch. The ideal candidate brings
manufacturing industry experience, strong analytical skills, and a bias for building long-term supplier
relationships grounded in quality, reliability, and value.
K E Y R E S PON S IB I L I T I E S
Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Management
• Develop and execute sourcing strategies for all direct materials including copper, lead, connectors,
lugs, terminals, and packaging
• Identify, evaluate, and qualify new suppliers; maintain an approved vendor list aligned with quality,
delivery, cost, and compliance requirements
• Lead supplier negotiations for pricing, payment terms, lead times, and contractual agreements -
targeting year-over-year cost reductions without compromising quality
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key suppliers; conduct regular business reviews and
performance assessments
• Develop dual-source or alternate-source strategies for critical materials to reduce single-source risk
• Monitor commodity market trends and provide proactive guidance to leadership on pricing exposure
and hedging opportunities
Purchasing & Order Management
• Own the purchase order process end-to-end: requisition review, PO issuance, confirmation,
expediting, and receipt coordination
• Manage inventory replenishment in partnership with Operations to maintain appropriate safety stock
levels without excess
• Resolve invoice discrepancies, delivery issues, and supplier disputes in a timely and professional
manner
• Implement and enforce purchasing policies, approval thresholds, and compliance standards
• Leverage ERP system to manage procurement workflows, track orders, and report on spend and
supplier performance
Supply Chain Resilience & Risk Management
• Proactively identify supply chain risks - geopolitical, logistical, capacity, or financial - and develop
contingency plans
• Lead qualification of domestic and allied-nation suppliers in support of defense and government
contract requirements (BAA/DFARS compliance)
• Coordinate with Engineering and Quality on supplier corrective actions, material non-conformances,
and first article inspections
• Track supplier lead times and capacity; communicate proactively with internal stakeholders when
supply risks are identified
Cross-Functional Collaboration
• Partner with Engineering and Product Development on new product introductions - sourcing
components, issuing RFQs, and managing sample qualification timelines
• Work closely with Operations, Planning, and Finance to align procurement decisions with production
schedules, inventory targets, and cash flow objectives
• Support Sales and Customer Service with lead time information and supply availability for key
customer commitments
• Report on procurement KPIs - cost savings, supplier on-time delivery, purchase price variance,
and spend analytics - to senior leadership
R EQU IR ED QU A L I F IC A T ION S
• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, or related field
• 5+ years of procurement or purchasing experience in a manufacturing environment
• Demonstrated experience managing direct material sourcing (raw materials, components,
assemblies)
• Strong negotiation skills with a track record of achieving cost savings and improved supplier terms
• Proficiency with ERP purchasing modules (Epicor or similar)
• Solid understanding of supply chain risk management, supplier qualification, and dual-sourcing
strategies
• Excellent analytical skills - comfortable working with spend data, cost models, and commodity
price indices
• Strong communication skills - able to manage supplier relationships and present to senior
leadership
• Highly organized, detail-oriented, and capable of managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced
environment
Preferred Qualifications
• Experience sourcing copper, wire, cable, electrical components, or industrial MRO materials
• Familiarity with defense/government procurement requirements - DFARS, BAA, ITAR awareness
• CPSM, CIPS, or equivalent professional certification
• Experience with commodity hedging or price index-linked purchasing contracts
• Background working with both domestic and international supplier bases