Supplier Development Lead

Are you passionate about developing high-performing supply chains and building strong supplier partnerships?

We're partnering with a leading UK engineering and manufacturing organisation operating within a highly regulated sector to recruit a Supplier Development Lead. This is a fantastic opportunity to play a strategic role in strengthening supplier capability, reducing supply chain risk and supporting the delivery of complex engineering programmes.

This is not a traditional procurement role. Instead, you'll focus on supplier capability, resilience and continuous improvement, helping to ensure suppliers are fully prepared to support current and future business requirements.

The Role

Reporting into the Head of Procurement, you'll be responsible for driving supplier development activities across the business, ensuring suppliers meet the required quality, capability, compliance and capacity standards before joining the approved supply chain.

Working collaboratively with Procurement, Manufacturing, Engineering, Quality and Programme teams, you'll play a key role in developing a robust and resilient supplier network., * Lead supplier onboarding and approval activities

• Conduct supplier capability and capacity assessments
• Develop and implement supplier improvement plans
• Coordinate supplier audits and due diligence processes
• Identify and mitigate supplier risks
• Improve supplier performance through continuous improvement initiatives
• Support outsourced manufacturing and supplier readiness
• Contribute supplier capability expertise during bids and new programme launches
• Develop long-term supplier partnerships aligned to business strategy
• Maintain supplier governance, reporting and compliance documentation
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure supplier readiness across the organisation

You'll ideally have:

• Previous experience within Supplier Development, Strategic Procurement, Supplier Quality or Supply Chain Development
• Strong understanding of supplier management within an engineering or manufacturing environment
• Experience carrying out supplier capability assessments and supplier audits
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills
• Strong commercial awareness and problem-solving ability
• Experience driving supplier performance and continuous improvement
• Knowledge of MRP/ERP systems
• The ability to influence stakeholders at all levels
• Willingness to travel within the UK (approximately 10%) and occasionally internationally (approximately 5%)

Desirable

• CIPS/MCIPS qualification
• Experience within Defence, Aerospace, Marine, Automotive, Nuclear, Rail or another highly regulated engineering environment, Due to the nature of the work, applicants must have the right to work in the UK and be eligible to obtain the appropriate UK security clearance. Nationality and export control restrictions may apply., If you're looking to take the next step in your supply chain career and want to make a real impact by developing resilient, high-performing supplier networks, we'd love to hear from you.

• Salary up to £60,000 per annum
• 33 days annual leave (including Bank Holidays)
• Flexible working (Flexi Time) with the opportunity to accrue up to an additional 12 days' annual leave each year
• Employer pension contribution of up to 8%
• Death in Service cover of up to 5x basic salary (when enrolled in the pension scheme)
• Healthcare Cash Plan, including reimbursement for dental, physiotherapy and other eligible healthcare appointments
• Excellent long-term career development opportunities
• Work within a collaborative, forward-thinking engineering business
• The opportunity to influence strategic supply chain performance across major engineering programmes