Purchasing Project Leader - Aftermarket Parts and New Product Development

$76,050 - $96,050/Yr

Unclassified - Milwaukee, WI

Full-time - Mid Level

Hybrid - Milwaukee, WI

About the position

The Purchasing Project Leader for Aftermarket Parts and New Product Development at Kohler Energy is responsible for supporting purchasing activities globally for Rehlko entities. This role involves managing complex, multi-location projects while ensuring adherence to timelines, deliverables, and budget constraints. The ideal candidate will leverage their purchasing experience and strong analytical, negotiation, and communication skills to foster collaboration across various functions and drive strategic supplier involvement in new projects.

Responsibilities

• Support purchasing activities for New Product Development projects and Aftermarket Parts globally.
• Manage multi-location complex scope projects while meeting key date deliverables and project cost targets.
• Monitor and track project costs in comparison to the specified budget and business case.
• Proactively identify and communicate supply chain risks and schedule changes.
• Manage the strategic involvement of suppliers at early stages of new projects.
• Support RFQ & analysis for new projects, partnering with Category Leads to determine competitive solutions based on total cost of ownership.
• Create Make Vs. Buy analysis and drive decision execution toward product introduction.
• Collaborate with the legal team to create and execute documents for Intellectual Property protection and supply continuity.
• Report updates to management along with detailed gap analysis and corrective action plans.
• Coordinate with Production, Engineering, Purchasing, Materials, Manufacturing, Sales, and Marketing to ensure project scope and stakeholder expectations are aligned.
• Develop effective communication flow with internal customers and supply base.
• Work with Aftermarket teams globally to identify areas of improvement within the purchasing organization and support the creation/implementation of new processes.
• Create strategies for Aftermarket Parts product categories in collaboration with Category leaders globally.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited Supply Chain, Business or Engineering Program or a related field.
• 3-7 years of previous Purchasing or Project Management experience preferred.
• Familiarity with MRP systems for production planning and inventory control.
• Strong SAP ERP system experience preferred.
• Manufacturing background is a plus.
• Strong analytical, negotiation, and communication skills.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience in product development and production planning.
• Knowledge of intellectual property law.

Benefits

• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• 401(k)
• Vision insurance
• 401(k) matching