Director, Supply Base Management

Company Description

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks® everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
Our vision is a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

Who We Are

We believe collaboration thrives in person. That’s why most of our teams work from the office full time, with flexibility when it’s needed. This model supports real-time problem-solving, stronger relationships, and the kind of precision that drives great outcomes.

Job Description

Your Career

Palo Alto Networks is seeking an experienced and highly motivated Director, Supply Management to join our exciting, fast-growing company. This senior leadership position is responsible for developing and executing the end-to-end strategies for strategic direct sourcing, materials management and cost.

This leader will manage and lead a senior team of Supply Base Managers (SBMs), Materials Managers, and Strategic Cost Analysts. This critical role works closely with cross-functional partners in Engineering, Technical Ops, Product Management, NPI, Risk & Compliance, and Finance to build a resilient, scalable, and cost-effective supply chain. The ideal candidate will have a strong blend of business acumen and deep supply chain expertise, with a proven ability to implement commodity and materials strategies that deliver best-in-class quality, cost, and supply continuity.

Your Impact

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing team of Supply Base Managers and Materials Management and Strategic Cost Analysts

• Partner with Hardware/Software Engineering and Product Management on Technical Design requirements (PRD/PDD) for our hardware products, including ASIC development and component vendor selection on key commodities (CPU, FPGA, Memory, Storage, PCB, etc…)

• Drive strategic initiatives, both within the team and cross-functionally, that contribute to long-term operational excellence and scalability.

• Establish clear departmental goals and KPIs on cost savings, cost avoidance, tariff mitigation, PPV, and OCOGS, holding the team accountable for results.

• Demonstrate a deep blend of business acumen with a strong understanding of supply chain operations and commodity management.

• Incorporate AI into our supply chain, finding opportunities to improve efficiency and scalability and removing tactical, non-value add work from the team’s plate

Strategic Sourcing & Cost Management

• Develop, execute, and manage comprehensive commodity and sourcing strategies that align with technology roadmaps and NPI requirements.

• Lead a relentless cost management program to achieve and exceed cost reduction targets. This includes managing periodical negotiations, developing TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) models, and tracking market/commodity trends.

Materials Management 

• Provide strategic leadership for the end-to-end materials management function, including demand/supply planning, inventory control, and supply continuity…ensuring no material gaps that create line-down situations in our factories.

• Develop and implement inventory optimization strategies (e.g., SMI, VMI, consignment, buffer programs) to improve cash flow and inventory turns while ensuring 100% material availability for production.

• Collaborate closely with suppliers, distributors, and EMS providers to establish and maintain continuity of supply, acting as the primary escalation point for critical material shortages.

• Lead and drive flexibility programs, lead-time reduction initiatives, and other strategic projects to improve material upside availability and mitigate supply risk.

• Ensure all key performance indicators (KPIs)—including cost savings, Inventory Turns, Excess & Obsolete Inventory, and cost avoidance are met or exceeded

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• Partner with Engineering and NPI teams to drive Value Engineering and cost avoidance initiatives, improving product margin and ROI.

• Mitigate tariffs through global rebalancing of our Supply Chain, considering trade-offs by region 

• Drive the implementation and management of Master Purchase Agreements (MSA) and strategic inventory programs (SMI/VMI) with key suppliers.

• Manage executive relationships with suppliers, ensuring continuity of supply, flexibility, and world-class quality and delivery pe