Wärtsilä
Strategic Purchaser
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Wärtsilä
Wärtsilä is an innovative technology company known for being a forerunner in the Marine and Energy markets. Every day, we – Wärtsilians - put our hearts and minds into turning Wärtsilä's purpose of enabling sustainable societies through innovation in technology and services into reality. Our ultimate aim is to provide increased value to both our customers and society. New, game-changing ideas and continuous improvement have been part of our DNA since 1834. Together, we can create new business opportunities and a more sustainable future that we can all be proud of. We want to transition the world towards a decarbonised and sustainable future. By pushing the boundaries of engineering and technology, we can make it work. We are always on the lookout for future-oriented talent – want to join the ride?
We are now looking for a Strategic Buyer to join our team working for a better future.
The position is permanent and the location is Havant.
What you will be doing:
As Strategic Buyer, you will play a key role in sourcing goods and services that support the organisation’s long-term objectives, and to develop and execute sourcing strategies that deliver value, reduce risk, and support business growth by building strong supplier partnerships, resulting in a competitive supply chain. You will work closely with the local team and wider business Operations and Sales teams, and you will report to the Supply and Demand manager, for whom you will deputise.
As Strategic Buyer, your work will focus on these responsibilities:
- Manage and develop supplier base, performance, relationships, and negotiations.
- Drive future supply capacity in cooperation with the needed functions in your area of responsibility.
- Lead/support/participate in developing supply chain strategy, securing supplier capacity, and long-term forecasting.
- Create and update agreements with suppliers and maintain supplier master data.
- Ensure Quality, Delivery, Lead Time, and Cost development and Compliance of materials and services.
- Gather and analyse spend and supplier data, execute benchmarking, provide data to the relevant functions.
- Support non-conformity/warranty process management in escalated issues.
- Secure compliance to Supply Management processes/procedures, tools, strategies, and agreements.
- Execute/support material/services for cost budgeting and follow-up.
- Execute/support supplier life cycle management process.
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To be successful in this role, we expect you to have:
Required qualifications:
- Education: Bachelor's degree or equivalent
- Experience: Experience in a strategic purchasing role within a highly regulated industry
- Skills: Strong negotiation and influencing skills, commercial acumen, good understanding of cost analysis, supplier relationship management.
- Certifications: CIPS
- Other Requirements: Ability to travel in the UK and internationally. Ability to attain SC clearance.
Preferred qualifications:
- Education: Bachelor’s degree in a supply chain related subject or CPPS L6
- Experience: Experience in a high precision, low volume, engineering company. Experience with Continuous Improvement processes of ERP / MRP systems.
- Skills: Knowledge using SAP and Power BI;
- Certifications: Continuous Improvement.
In this role, some travel is required to meet with our customers and suppliers within the UK and around the world. Thus, we hope you to be ready to travel approximately 10%, even though most of the meetings are held virtually.
Why you and us?
We at Wärtsilä believe in empowerment, ownership, and taking responsibility of our work. We support each other’s growth, and co-creation is the true basis of our innovation. We have courage to see opportunities and take initiative.
We are authentic and honest, and we strongly believe in that by being your own true self you can accomplish so much more. We don’t always get it right the first time, and if mistakes are made, we make sure to learn and grow from them. We want everyone to voice their opinions freely. That is why we have built an environment that empowers you and everyone around you, and where you can feel safe and cared for. Are you eager to be part of this ambition?
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We have an amazing team and we are excited about our work and the impact it has on building sustainable societies. We are looking to find a colleague with this shared passion for smart technologies and a sustainable future.
Contact & next steps
We hope to hear from you soon, by submitting your application through our careers portal. We aim to keep you updated on the process throughout.
Please reach out to Richard Budd at Richard.Budd@wartsiladefence.com, with any questions related to this position (only for questions from direct job applicants; applications through email will not be recorded or responded to).
Welcome to join us in shaping the decarbonisation of marine and energy!
Last application date: 08/09/2026
At Wärtsilä we value, respect, and embrace all our differences, and are committed to diversity, inclusion, and equal employment opportunities; everyone can be their true self and succeed based on their job-relevant merits and abilities. Please note that according to Wärtsilä policy, voluntary consent for a security check may be required from candidates being considered for this position, depending on the applicable country.
This is Wärtsilä
Wärtsilä is a global leader in innovative technologies and lifecycle solutions for the marine and energy markets. Our team of 18,300 professionals, in more than 230 locations in 77 countries, shape the decarbonisation transformation of our industries across the globe. Read more on www.wartsila.com.
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