Senior Manager, Purchasing

The Regional Administration Division is accepting applications for a Senior Manager, Purchasing.

We are the Metropolitan Council, the regional government for the seven-county Twin Cities metropolitan area. We plan 20 years ahead for the future of the metropolitan area and provide regional parks and trails, transportation, wastewater, and housing services.

More information about us on our website.

We are committed to hiring and supporting a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve.

The Procurement Department supports internal Council units purchasing the goods and services necessary to conduct Council business. In carrying out this purpose, the department complies with Council policies and procedures, as well as the laws of federal, state, and local governments, and the requirements of grants the Council receives.

How your work would contribute to our organization and the Twin Cities Region:

The Senior Manager, Purchasing provides enterprise-wide strategic direction for the Council's procurement function, shapes long-range purchasing strategy, and ensures purchasing needs are met in compliance with legal requirements, Council policies and procedures, and customer service goals. This position leads purchasing supervisors and builds organizational capability in sourcing, contracting, procurement systems, and supplier performance. This position drives initiatives that modernize procurement processes, strengthen compliance, and elevate service delivery across all divisions.

This position includes supervisory, strategic, and administrative responsibility. As the Council's senior procurement authority below the Deputy Chief Procurement Officer, this position influences executive decision-making, represents the Council to internal and external stakeholders, and ensures purchasing strategy supports long-term organizational effectiveness and risk mitigation.

• Provide strategic direction, development, and support to the purchasing supervisors and the full purchasing team to ensure effective, compliant, and enterprise-aligned procurement operations across all divisions. Directly supervise purchasing supervisors, set purchasing goals, benchmarks, and performance metrics, drive performance management, and oversee hiring, onboarding, and succession planning. Serve as the final escalation point for complex procurement decisions, policy exceptions, vendor disputes, and compliance issues elevated by supervisors.
• Develop, implement, and oversee enterprise purchasing policies, procedures, and strategic frameworks to ensure legal compliance, operational effectiveness, and alignment with Council priorities, including the Council's Thrive principles and equity goals. Maintain adherence to state and federal requirements, oversee internal controls, review and approve high-value, high-risk, or policy-sensitive procurement actions, coordinate responses to internal and external audits, and advise divisions on best-practice procurement approaches, specifications, pricing, and contract terms.
• Lead strategic vendor outreach and supplier development initiatives to broaden the Council's qualified vendor base, strengthen competition, and advance equity and sustainability procurement goals. Coordinate with the Office of Civil Rights and Small Business Programs to implement the Council's Underutilized Business Program, track and report vendor participation metrics, and build relationships with businesses, trade organizations, and community partners.
• Collaborate with procurement leadership and the Contracts Management Support Unit to design and deliver procurement training programs that build staff competency, strengthen compliance, and support professional development across the purchasing team and internal customers. Work with the Compliance Manager to ensure training content reflects current legal and policy requirements, and lead curriculum development, facilitation, and ongoing learning initiatives.
• Serve as the procurement business lead for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and procurement systems. Coordinate with the Deputy Chief Procurement Officer to represent procurement business needs, workflows, and policy requirements in Information Services-led system initiatives, including process mapping, user acceptance testing, purchasing team readiness, user guidance, and procurement reporting needs.
• Represent the Procurement Department to internal and external stakeholders to advance organizational priorities and maintain strong, effective procurement relationships. Serve as the primary procurement representative in cross-divisional planning and Council-wide initiatives, build relationships with division directors and senior leadership, respond to data requests and vendor protests in coordination with the Office of General Counsel, and present reports, briefings, and recommendations to senior leadership and advisory bodies.
• Lead or participate in special projects, task forces, or process improvement initiatives as assigned. Assist with Council-wide resource allocation decisions to ensure procurement resources are deployed effectively. Perform other duties as assigned in support of department leadership and organizational initiatives, as directed by the Deputy Chief Procurement Officer.

Education/Experience:

Any of the following combinations of completed education (in Public Administration, Business Administration, Accounting, Supply Chain Management, or closely related field) and progressively responsible experience (in government procurement, or a related field).

• High school diploma/GED with eleven (11) years of work experience, and three (3) years of supervisory/management experience.
• Associate degree with nine (9) years of work experience, and three (3) years of supervisory/management experience.
• Bachelor's degree or higher with seven (7) years of work experience, and three (3) years of supervisory/management experience.

What additional skills and experience would be helpful in this job (desired qualifications):

Apply through the Metropolitan Council careers site.