Supplier Development Engineer (SDE)

Overall purpose of the Role:

Work in a team environment as a key resource to develop new supply sources to improve cost competitiveness and be the conduit between the company and the supplier. Responsibilities will include cross-functional program management to qualify new vendors, supporting issues with current production, developing new suppliers to reduce cost, increase capacity, and auditing suppliers to ensure process conformance. Work on multiple phases or sub-tasks of projects or entire projects of moderate complexity, with results impacting on project completion.

Duties and Responsibilities:

General and Task Management

• Interface with quality team to prioritize supplier development needs to improve cost competitiveness or supply constraints.
• Research external market information and entrepreneurial companies to identify potential sources and suppliers.
• Drive supplier selection through robust qualification processes.
• Assess new and existing supplier capabilities to meet product, cost, quality, capacity and fulfillment ensuring suppliers are able to meet requirements for performance, quality, cost.
• Drive improvements utilizing supplier scorecards and own supplier audit, ensuring supplier compliance, whilst driving systematic problem solving and process improvement plans to deliver value.
• Track the supplier’s performance indicators, based on their scorecards and rankings, to facilitate and develop the supply base’s ability to consistently meet or exceed defined expectations
• Develop positive relationships and track supplier/engineering, design changes, capacity studies and New Product Introductions, and transfers.
• Deliver results as measured by key metrics, such as supplier yield, field cost, field defect rate, supplier quality plan engagement/effectiveness, and corrective & preventative action closure.
• Carry out new supplier validation audits, with supplier support.
• Assist with new product launch by working with suppliers to ensure that key milestones are achieved
• Work with Engineering team to define process parameters and criteria to ensure supplier process capability is effective to meet product and process requirements.
• Contribute to continuous improvement activities
• Write reports and present progress at project meetings and to clients
• Achieve goals within budget
• Undertake personal continuous training and development
• Perform root cause analysis and resolve problems
• Independently determine approach and assigned tasks

Relationship Management

• Develop and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders to ensure optimal performance
• Communicate efficiently throughout procurement and directly with customer’s/suppliers’ management
• Diplomatic approach to relationships Self-Management
• Comply with the Health, Safety and Environmental Policies
• Assertive, optimistic, resilient and welcomes change
• Engages interest and participation of others and has a collaborative approach to working together
• Proactively contributes to the team
• Is self-aware and ability to work on own initiative
• Shows moral courage, openness and honesty in all dealings