Senior Strategic Buyer
Location: Bend, OR, USA.
Join Lonza’s global Procurement organization and play a pivotal role in shaping the future of indirect purchasing across our Bend, OR facility and multiple network sites. In this position, you will act as a high-impact sourcing authority—delivering measurable value, ensuring strict business continuity, and influencing key regional initiatives to drive commercial impact across our global supply network.
What you will get:
Performance‑related annual bonus programs
Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance
401(k) matching plan
Company-paid life insurance, as well as short‑term and long‑term disability coverage
Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)
Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) scheme
Our full list of global benefits can be found here: https://www.lonza.com/careers/benefits.
What you will do:
Category Strategy Alignment: Collaborate closely with Central Category Managers to support strategic category development, flawless execution, and continuous optimization across assigned sites.
Sourcing Excellence: Drive end-to-end sourcing initiatives for delegated spend portfolios, providing advanced expertise in competitive tendering, contract negotiations, commercial drafting, and purchasing systems.
Business Continuity Partnering: Partner proactively with site operational leaders and engineering stakeholders in Bend to accurately forecast and secure current and future indirect procurement demands.
Supplier Relationship Management (SRM): Own site‑level supplier performance evaluations and structural risk assessments, designing and implementing robust mitigation plans where critical single-source risks exist.
Digital Procurement Optimization: Champion the adoption and utilization of advanced e‑sourcing tools, including online supplier catalogues, automated work streams, and e‑auctions to maximize cost efficiency.
Standardization & Policy Rollout: Lead the deployment of localized procurement policies and global tool systems, actively supporting standardization, audit compliance, and best‑practice sharing across the Americas region.
Capability & Mentorship: Support team capability building by acting as a system peer resource, onboarding new procurement professionals, and sharing functional expertise in complex sourcing processes.
What we are looking for:
Experience: Extensive experience in Strategic Procurement (ideally 7+ years), with a deep, proven background managing indirect expenditure categories and structuring long-term vendor agreements.
Technical & System Mastery: Highly proficient with SAP ERP and SAP Ariba systems, paired with advanced mastery of Microsoft Office tools (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
Sourcing Acumen: Deep conceptual knowledge of lifecycle category management, operational procurement flows, aggressive negotiation tactics, legal contracting principles, and spend data analysis.
Soft Skills: Outstanding communication, stakeholder‑engagement, and matrix-influencing skills with a demonstrated ability to resolve conflict and balance competing plant priorities.
Attributes: Agility-driven mindset with a sharp business acumen and a track record of driving bottom-line cost savings within fast-paced, highly dynamic corporate environments.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Economics, Engineering, Procurement, Supply Chain, or equivalent professional experience is required; an advanced degree (MBA) or CIPS/ISM certification is a distinct advantage.
About Lonza
At Lonza, our people are our greatest strength. With 30+ sites across five continents, our globally connected teams work together every day to manufacture the medicines of tomorrow. Our core values of Collaboration, Accountability, Excellence, Passion and Integrity reflect who we are and how we work together. Everyone’s ideas, big or small, have the potential to improve millions of lives, and that’s the kind of work we want you to be part of.
Innovation thrives when people from all backgrounds bring their unique perspectives to the table. At Lonza, we offer equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you’re ready to help turn our customers’ breakthrough ideas into viable therapies, we look forward to welcoming you on board.
Ready to shape the future of life sciences? Apply now.
