Job Description – Procurement Specialist (Products, Bids & Projects)
Location: Herstal, 4 days onsite
Seniority Level: Mid to Senior Level
Reporting To: Head/Director of Procurement Bids, Projects, and Products
Purpose of the Role
Embed procurement expertise within bid, project, and product teams to ensure best-value supply solutions. This includes managing cost, quality, risk, and timely delivery while leveraging supplier innovation from the earliest stages of solution design (pre-Gate 1 / definition phase). The role has direct influence over design decisions and ultimately contributes to margin improvement.
Key Impact Areas
* Spend Under Management: All procurement components of the assigned bid, project, or product.
* Savings Delivered: Through Make/Buy decisions, supplier negotiations, and Design-to-Cost initiatives.
* Business Impact: Contributes directly to project turnover and margin realization.
Core Responsibilities
1. Acquisition Strategy & Planning
* Challenge and refine business requirements.
* Conduct Make/Buy and risk analysis.
* Align procurement planning with customer and regulatory obligations.
* Define and manage the acquisition plan and cost baseline in coordination with Category Managers.
2. Supplier Innovation & Engagement
* Perform market scouting to source cutting-edge supplier solutions.
* Bring supplier innovation into early-phase design discussions.
* Organize and lead Design-to-Value and cost-evaluation workshops with engineering and suppliers.
3. Execution & Procurement Performance
* Place and manage orders to meet Time, Quality, Cost, and Risk KPIs.
* Maintain up-to-date procurement dashboards and reports.
* Coordinate delivery, claims, and change management with operational and category teams.
4. Contract & Compliance Management
* Draft and review supplier contract terms, ensuring compliance with all legal, regulatory, and sustainability obligations (export control, REACH, social and environmental rules, etc.).
5. Governance & Internal Reporting
* Represent procurement in internal project/bid reviews.
* Report on procurement savings, risks, opportunities, and delivery performance.
* Ensure procurement compliance through internal tools and processes (ERP, digital acquisition platforms, etc.)
Profile Requirements
Education & Experience
* Master’s degree or engineering background required.
* Proven experience in procurement—particularly in early design or solution phases—is a plus.
* Familiarity with project-based procurement and product lifecycle management.
Technical Skills
* Make/Buy and risk assessment expertise.
* Understanding of project management and business models.
* Proficiency in Design-to-Cost, Lean, and cost evaluation techniques.
* Regulatory awareness (export control, environmental rules, REACH, etc.).
* Financial literacy: TCO, cash impact, etc.
Soft Skills
* Ability to influence across functions and geographies.
* Strong stakeholder engagement and conflict-resolution abilities.
* Comfortable navigating complex, multicultural environments.
* Proactive, strategic, and solution-oriented mindset.
* Effective communicator (written and verbal).
* Skilled at prioritizing and managing deadlines under pressure.
* Ability to synthesize complex problems and lead cross-functional project teams.
Languages
* Fluent in English (mandatory); additional languages are a plus.