Senior Global Supply Manager - Critical Minerals

SUPPLY CHAIN 
Rocket Lab’s Supply Chain team is responsible for the flow of all materials, products, and components through the business. With many of our own products functioning as critical components to our own and our customers’ missions, the Supply Chain team has a direct impact on the success of our rocket and satellite programs. They set up the assembly kits that enables our technicians to put together our Electron & Neutron rockets, manage inventory, look after shipping and receiving, manage direct and indirect procurement, and inspect and ensure that all of our materials and products are compliant and up to standard. They are the chain that links our teams together, and are critical to our success.

SENIOR GLOBAL SUPPLY MANAGER II – CRITICAL MINERALS (GERMANIUM)

Based on site at Rocket Lab's global headquarters in Long Beach, CA, the Senior Global Supply Manager, Critical Minerals (Germanium) will play a pivotal role in ensuring the success of Rocket Lab's rocket and satellite programs. In this role, you'll serve as the domain expert and single leader for Germanium, a strategic critical mineral essential to our products, securing the raw materials that power our missions.

You'll lead sourcing strategies, build strong supplier partnerships, and drive supply chain resilience from early development to serial production, collaborating across engineering, manufacturing, and quality teams to deliver world-class results. As the lead for Germanium, you'll own the global mandate end-to-end: market intelligence, tiered supply chain mapping, supplier and government relationship management, should-cost modeling, contracting, and stockpiling strategy.

Rocket Lab's Supply Chain team is the backbone of our operations, ensuring the seamless flow of materials, components, and products that power our missions. From managing procurement to ensuring compliance and quality, this team is critical to the success of our Electron & Neutron rockets and Space Systems programs.

WHAT YOU'LL GET TO DO:

• Own the commodity strategy for Germanium, with explicit focus on supply chain resilience, geopolitical risk mitigation (concentration in mining and refinement).
• Identify and mitigate risks in the supply chain, ensuring resilience and reliability.
• Maintain expert-level market intelligence and deliver regular updates on pricing, disruptions, and geopolitical signals.
• Conduct market research and stay ahead of industry trends to inform strategic decisions.
• Host cross-functional tag-ups, lead strategy reviews, and conduct executive briefings on market conditions and mitigation plans.
• Develop and execute sourcing strategies that align with program goals for cost, quality, and delivery.
• Lead RFI/RFQ/RFP processes across miners, refiners, processors, and component suppliers.
• Lead supplier negotiations on a first principles basis to secure best-in-class terms; perform should-cost and TCO analysis and maintain cost models to deliver on competitiveness targets.
• Negotiate key agreements (offtake, pricing, capacity reservations, payment terms) suited to volatile, concentrated markets.
• Evaluate and recommend strategic interventions (stockpiling, prepayments, JVs, equity investments, vertical integration), partnering with Corporate Development and Finance.
• Build and maintain strong supplier relationships, from initial RFIs to contract execution and beyond.
• Build trusted relationships with suppliers, industry associations, and U.S./allied government bodies (DoD, DPA Title III, DLA, DOE); represent Rocket Lab externally for germanium.
• Engage with Legal/Contracts to establish the right contractual framework to support our programs and commodity strateg