Executive Director, Strategic Sourcing and Supplier Partnerships

Location: This is a fully remote role. Candidates who live near CB offices have the option of being fully remote or hybrid (Tuesday and Wednesday in office).

Type: This is a full time position. 

About the Team  

The Strategic Sourcing team at College Board supports the purchasing needs of all divisions across the organization. Our category coverage is extensive and encompasses a wide range of areas such as contingent workforce, enterprise software systems, contact centers, custom consulting engagements, cloud services, conferences and events, and building and construction projects. The team of category managers work directly with leaders from all parts of the organization to help define and deliver College Board products and services. College Board is transforming its business at a rapid pace and the strategic sourcing team plays a crucial role in shaping and driving this change. 

About the Opportunity   

As the Executive Director and leader of Strategic Sourcing & Supplier Partnerships, you are ambitious, strategic, and forward-thinking, ready to transform how we source, spend, and partner. You’ll build and lead our Sourcing & Supplier team, a newly envisioned team at the center of how we negotiate, source, and manage our relationships with third-party vendors. You will have strategic oversight of how we source, negotiate, and manage $400 million in annual third-party spending across the organization. One of your first opportunities will be to reorganize the procurement function around strategic categories or divisions, driving greater efficiency, visibility, and alignment across the organization. You'll set a bold vision to evolve procurement from a transactional function to a collaborative, value-generating partner that delivers both operational excellence and enterprise-wide impact. You are a strong manager who enjoys coaching, developing, empowering, and challenging your team. If you are passionate about leading a team and driving strategic change, this is a fantastic opportunity for you to make a lasting impact.  

Set Vision and Strategy  

• Define and execute a multi-year strategic sourcing transformation roadmap that aligns with enterprise priorities. 

• Architect a comprehensive spend management approach that treats different categories according to their strategic importance. 

• Redesign procurement operations in conjunction with Finance Operational Excellence team to reduce complexity and accelerate decision-making through process innovation and AI automation. 

• Develop forward-looking category strategies that anticipate market changes and organizational needs. 

• Create a data-driven framework for identifying consolidation opportunities and spend patterns across the organization. 

• Design a supplier innovation program that taps into vendor expertise to solve business challenges. 

• Pioneer the deployment of AI-powered procurement tools that transform our sourcing capabilities. 

Manage & Influence Key Relationships  

• Partner with senior leaders to understand their programmatic needs and translate them into effective sourcing strategies. 

• Establish procurement as a value-adding function rather than a bureaucratic hurdle.

• Cultivate strong relationships with internal stakeholders, including Finance divisional leadership and leaders across other teams to drive procurement initiatives. 

• Develop a supplier relationship management program that emphasizes strategic partnership, innovation, and mutual growth and ensure effective delivery by vendors. 

• Elevate procurement's role from transaction processor to strategic business enabler across the organization. 

• Leverage AI insights to identify strategic alignment opportunities with key stakeholders. 

• Proactively address issues with vendor performance. 

Provide Team Leadership & Management  

• Lead and develop a team of procurement professionals, fostering a culture of strategic thinking, curiosity, accountability, and continuous improvement.   

• Cultivate and lead a data-driven, high-performance culture that fosters inclusivity, collaboration, and team engagement. 

• Establish performance metrics that encourage innovative thinking and value creation beyond conventional cost cutting. 

• Model effective communication, promote transparency and ensure alignment to organization, division and team priorities. 

• Mentor team members to think beyond transactional procurement toward strategic sourcing and business partnership. 

• Upskill the team in AI-enabled procurement capabilities and next generation sourcing techniques.  

 About You  

You have: 

• Experience and a proven track record leading a high-performing, results-oriented Procurement team.

• A proven track record of leading transformation and identifying innovative sourcing solutions.

• Excellent change management capabilities. You can anticipate and understand dependencies, plan for them and get buy-in from others.

• A deep understanding of Procurement industry best practices.

• Executive presence and the ability to take initiative.

• Experience as a highly collaborative leader with ability to influence others and build strong relationships across internal and external stakeholders.

• The ability to negotiate difficult situations with people coming from different perspectives. 

• The ability to navigate a complex organization and understand the various programs within.

• Strong communication skills. Your verbal and written communications are clear, crisp and detailed. 

• Strong data and analytical skills that allow you to see successes and opportunities based on quant/qual data. 

• A strong sense of accountability for your work, your team, and your impact. 

• Mission-aligned mindset and a commitment to finding solutions that advance organizational goals.

• Bachelor’s degree is required.  

• The ability to travel to in-person events 4-6 times a year. 

About Our Process   

• Application review will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.

• While the hiring process may vary, it generally includes resume and application submission, recruiter phone/video screen, hiring manager interview, performance exercise such as live coding, a panel interview, a conversation with leadership and reference checks.    

About Our Benefits and Compensation 

College Board offers a competitive benefits and compensation program that attracts top talent looking to make a difference in education. As a self-sustaining non-profit, we believe in compensating employees fairly in relation to each other, their qualifications, their impact, and the relevant market.

The hiring range for a new employee in this position is $156,000 to $230,000. College Board differentiates salaries by location so where you live will narrow the portion of this range in which you can expect a salary.  

Your salary will be carefully determined based on your location, relevant experience, the external labor market, and the pay of College Board employees in similar roles. College Board strives to provide our best offer up front based on this criteria.  

Your salary is only one part of all that College Board offers, including but not limited to:    

• A comprehensive package designed to support the well-being of employees and their families and promote education. Our robust benefits package includes health, dental, and vision insurance, generous paid time off, paid parental leave, fertility benefits, pet insurance, tuition assistance, retirement benefits, and more.

• Recognition of exceptional performance through annual bonuses, salary growth over time through market increases, and opportunities for merit raises and promotions based on increased scope of responsibility.

• Once you’ve hit the six-month mark at the College Board, we'll contribute double the amount you put in your TIAA retirement plan each year, up to 10% of your annual salary.

• A job that matters, a team that cares, and a place to learn, innovate and thrive.

You can expect to have transparent conversations about benefits and compensation with our recruiters throughout your application process.