Senior Manager, Sourcing Category – Produce & Perishables

The Opportunity

As Senior Manager, Sourcing Category – Produce & Perishables, you will lead Sweetgreen’s strategic sourcing initiatives for all produce and perishable categories across national and regional supply chains. In addition to acting as the business owner for these categories and optimizing sourcing strategy, you will directly manage a team of sourcing professionals. You’ll leverage the strengths of both the Supply Chain organization and key suppliers to drive Sweetgreen’s competitive advantage in Safety, Service, Cost, Quality, and Growth, fully aligned with our values and Food Ethos.

Key Responsibilities

Category and Team Leadership

• Directly manage, develop, and inspire a high-performing team of sourcing/category managers and specialists for produce and perishables and categories as assigned.
• Set clear priorities and expectations, guide professional development, and foster a collaborative, mission-driven team culture.
• Leverage the expertise, capacity, and resources of Sweetgreen’s broader Supply Chain team to enable excellence across category planning, process optimization, and execution.
• Cultivate a strong network of supplier partners, using their capabilities and innovation as extensions of the Sweetgreen team to drive results in safety, service, cost, quality, and growth.

Strategic Category Leadership

• Serve as the “business owner” for produce and perishables, leading the complete sourcing lifecycle for food safety, continuity, total cost ownership, quality, and innovation.
• Apply Sweetgreen’s Six Steps of Sourcing process—including analysis, strategy development, implementation, supplier qualification + selection, negotiation + contracting, and SRM—to all category initiatives.
• Lead comprehensive spend and market analysis, risk assessment, and multi-year strategy development to optimize supplier portfolios and achieve business goals.

Supplier Relationship Management

• Build and nurture robust supplier partnerships, classifying suppliers by strategic importance and risk profile.
• Lead joint business planning, Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs), and performance management to ensure all key suppliers contribute to and are engaged in advancing Sweetgreen’s competitive priorities in safety, service, cost, quality, and growth.
• Relentlessly pursue supplier program improvement through data-driven SRM and continuous improvement.

Quality, Compliance & Food Ethos

• Ensure all ingredient specifications, food safety protocols, sustainability, and regulatory requirements are documented, commercialized, and enforced.
• Oversee compliance with Sweetgreen’s FSQA Expectations Manual, HACCP plans, and GFSI food safety audits.
• Champion Sweetgreen’s Food Ethos, driving sustainability, regenerative practices, and animal welfare objectives across the supply chain.

Supply Chain Resiliency & Risk Management

• Proactively identify, assess, and mitigate supply, quality, cost, and regulatory risks through robust risk analysis, risk registers, and contingency planning.
• Drive the development of secondary supply strategies and optimize product flows to minimize inefficiency and inventory risk.

Project & Change Management

• Lead the scoping, design, and delivery of ingredient projects (e.g., innovation, quality upgrades, food ethos improvements) aligned with Sweetgreen’s priorities.
• Oversee project management systems to ensure timelines, milestones, and deliverables are clear and consistently met.

Performance Management & Data Analytics

• Deliver accurate period-end reporting (credits, substitutions, KPIs, COGS).
• Harness analytics and forecasting tools, and utilize both internal and supplier data, to drive continuous improvement and strategic decision-making.
• Surface actionable insights and business trends to inform future strategy.

Cross-Functional & Organizational Leadership

• Collaborate with cross-functional partners (Marketing, Culinary, Quality, Finance, Operations) to support menu innovation, communications, and sustainability messaging.
• Mentor, coach, and develop the next generation of sourcing leaders and contribute to the ongoing expansion of sourcing excellence at Sweetgreen.

What You’ll Bring

• Minimum 5 years of progressive management experience in restaurant or foodservice category management, supply chain, or sourcing within the food industry, preferably supporting high-volume, multi-site, retail/distribution, or meat/produce pe