Procurement Operations Manager in Gramercy, Louisiana at Atalco Gramercy Operations

Atlantic Alumina’s (ATALCO) holdings include ATALCO Gramercy, the only US alumina refinery which produces smelter grade alumina for the production of aluminum and chemical grade aluminas for non-metallurgical applications, and Discovery Bauxite, located in St. Ann, Jamaica, which mines and ships bauxite globally for metallurgical and non-metallurgical applications through its partnership with Jamaica Bauxite Mining Limited. Driven by a commitment to safety, operational excellence, and continuous improvement, ATALCO is focused on building a resilient, efficient, and sustainable supply chain that enables long-term business success.

As the company pursues growth and operational performance initiatives, we are seeking talented leaders who are passionate about driving value, developing strategic supplier partnerships, and contributing to the future growth of our organization.

Position Summary

ATALCO is seeking an experienced and results-driven Procurement Operations Manager to lead the daily execution of procurement activities and to manage the Procurement Operations team. This role is accountable for the performance of the operational warehouses, purchase order administration, supplier coordination, expediting, invoice resolution, master data management, and procurement process compliance, and for developing the people who perform that work.

The Procurement Operations Manager sets priorities and allocates workload across the team, owns procurement service levels to the plant, and serves as the primary escalation point between Operations, Maintenance, Engineering, Finance, Warehouse, Logistics, and suppliers to ensure materials and equipment are procured and delivered on time, at the appropriate quality, and in accordance with business requirements. This position plays a key role in supporting plant reliability, maintenance activities, capital projects, turnarounds, and inventory optimization initiatives.

The ideal candidate combines strong procurement execution experience within oil and gas, a manufacturing, metals, chemical, mining, refining, or other industrial environment with demonstrated success leading a team, driving process discipline, and delivering measurable cost and service improvements in a fast-paced operational setting.

Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership & Management

· Manage, coach, and develop the Procurement Operations team responsible for the purchase of materials and equipment — including workload allocation, priority setting, performance management, and professional development.

· Lead warehouse and materials operations setting expectations for staffing levels, schedules, and coverage to meet plant operating and turnaround demands, and developing the Warehouse Supervisor's leadership capability.

· Establish clear expectations, service levels, and standard work for purchase order administration, expediting, invoice resolution, and master data maintenance.

· Serve as the escalation point for complex sourcing events, supplier disputes, delivery failures, and invoice or payment issues.

· Build team capability through training, cross-training, and succession planning to ensure coverage of critical procurement activities.

· Foster a culture of safety, ethics, accountability, and continuous improvement consistent with ATALCO values.

Procurement Operations Management

· Own the day-to-day purchasing process and ensure procurement activities are executed accurately, competitively, and in compliance with ATALCO policies, delegation of authority, and internal controls.

· Monitor procurement workload, backlog, and cycle times; reallocate resources to protect plant-critical requirements.

· Develop, document, and enforce procurement procedures, approval workflows, and process controls.

· Drive adoption and data integrity of ERP and eSourcing systems across the procurement function.

· Report procurement performance, savings, and risk to Supply Chain and operations leadership.

Sourcing & Contracting

· Lead and oversee sourcing activities for materials, equipment, spare parts, consumables, and capital equipment supporting maintenance, operations, engineering, environmental, and capital project requirements.

· Develop and execute sourcing strategies that support ATALCO's operational objectives, supply continuity, cost competitiveness, and long-term value creation.

· Direct the end-to-end sourcing process, including supplier identification, RFIs, RFQs, bid evaluation, purchase order negotiations, award recommendations, and implementation.

· Approve and maintain purchase order bidders lists to ensure qualified, competitive supplier participation in sourcing events.

· Evaluate supplier capabilities, financial strength, safety performance, operational reliability, and overall business risk.

· Oversee purchase order administration activities including revisions, compliance monitoring, and performance evaluations.

· Identify and deliver total cost of ownership reductions through sourcing, standardization, supplier consolidation, scope optimization, and commercial negotiations.

· Build sourcing pipelines and project plans that deliver measurable savings, cost avoidance, and operational improvements.

· Monitor market conditions, industry trends, supplier developments, and economic factors that impact sourcing decisions.

Supplier Performance & Expediting Oversight

· Oversee monitoring of open purchase orders and ensure the team proactively expedites deliveries to meet required dates.

· Establish supplier communication standards covering order status, production schedules, shipment dates, and delivery commitments.

· Assess delivery risk, direct mitigation actions, and escalate to stakeholders and leadership when corrective action is required.

· Own the procurement supplier performance management process, including scorecards, corrective action plans, and improvement initiatives.

· Coordinate with warehouse personnel, maintenance planners, and end users to ensure timely receipt of critical materials.

Warehouse, Inventory & Materials Management

· Partner with Warehouse, Maintenance, and Operations leadership to support material availability and inventory optimization objectives.

· Hold accountability, through the Warehouse Supervisor, for day-to-day warehouse and storeroom operations, including receiving, inspection, put-away, issuing, staging, kitting, and returns.

· Own inventory record accuracy through cycle counting, annual physical inventory programs, and root-cause correction of variances.

· Maintain warehouse layout, bin locations, labeling, and housekeeping standards to support safe and efficient material handling.

· Ensure warehouse activities comply with safety, environmental, and material handling requirements, including proper storage of hazardous and regulated materials.

· Coordinate warehouse support for maintenance outages, turnarounds, and capital projects, including staging areas, laydown yards, and project material control.

· Direct inventory replenishment activities, min/max settings, and stocking strategies for critical spares.

· Oversee vendor-managed inventory programs and other inventory control initiatives.

· Lead excess, obsolete, and slow-moving inventory reduction efforts.

· Ensure material master and procurement data accuracy within ERP systems.

Invoice Resolution & Procurement Controls

· Oversee review of supplier invoices against purchase orders and receipts, and ensure aged discrepancies are resolved.

· Resolve escalated pricing discrepancies, receipt issues, invoice holds, and payment-related concerns with Accounts Payable and suppliers.

· Maintain the integrity of procurement records, documentation, supplier files, and contract information for audit readiness.

· Produce procurement reporting and key performance indicators for leadership review.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

· Partner with Operations, Maintenance, Engineering, Capital Projects, Finance, and EHS leadership to understand business requirements and develop effective sourcing solutions.

· Lead cross-functional sourcing projects and supplier selection efforts.

· Present sourcing recommendations, negotiation outcomes, savings initiatives, and supplier performance updates to leadership.

· Support major maintenance outages, turnarounds, and capital projects through strategic supplier engagement and contract execution.

· Champion continuous improvement initiatives that enhance Supply Chain effectiveness and supplier performance across ATALCO.

Qualifications

Education

· Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Operations Management, Engineering, Technology, or related field preferred.

· Equivalent combination of education and relevant procurement experience will be considered.

Experience

· Minimum 7 years of procurement, purchasing, materials management, supply chain, or procurement operations experience.

· Minimum 5 years of people leadership experience, including experience managing a team of buyers or materials personnel; experience leading through a subordinate supervisor preferred.

· Experience supporting oil & gas, maintenance, manufacturing, industrial, mining, metals, refining, chemical, or other heavy industrial operations preferred.

· Demonstrated experience negotiating and administering purchase orders, service agreements, and supplier contracts.

· Experience leading inventory management and material planning activities.

· Experience managing warehouse, storeroom, or materials handling operations, including oversight of a warehouse supervisor or lead.

Technical Skills

· Experience with SAP, Ariba or other ERP systems.

· Experience with AI, eSourcing, RFQ, supplier management, and contract management tools.

· Strong contract interpretation and negotiation capabilities.

· Strong analytical, problem-solving, and commercial decision-making skills.

· Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and team leadership abilities.

· Working knowledge of commercial contract terms and conditions, including indemnification, limitation of liability, warranty provisions, insurance requirements, confidentiality, and risk allocation clauses, with the ability to negotiate commercial agreements in partnership with ATALCO Legal to achieve business objectives while appropriately managing risk.

Preferred Qualifications

· Experience in oil & gas, aluminum, metals, mining, chemical, refining, manufacturing, or heavy industrial operations.

· APICS/ASCM, CPSM, CPM, or other supply chain certification.

· Experience leading procurement support for maintenance turnarounds and capital projects.

· Knowledge of inventory optimization and warehouse operations.

· Experience with warehouse management systems and barcode or RFID material tracking.

· Experience working within a unionized manufacturing environment.

· Experience developing procurement procedures, controls, and standard work.

Key Performance Indicators

· Purchase order cycle time and procurement backlog.

· On-time delivery performance.

· Savings and cost avoidance delivered.

· Supplier responsiveness and scorecard performance.

· Invoice discrepancy resolution cycle time and aged discrepancy balance.

· Inventory availability and service levels.

· Inventory record accuracy and cycle count completion.

· Receiving and put-away cycle time.

· Procurement compliance and internal control metrics.

· Stakeholder satisfaction.

· Turnaround and capital project procurement support effectiveness.

· Team performance, development, and retention.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

• Ability to read, analyze and interpret information. Ability to write reports and basics business correspondence. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups, managers, clients, customers and the general public.

POST OFFER/ACCEPTANCE

· Must successfully complete Atalco Gramercy’s required post offer/acceptance directly observed drug screening and physical examination.

· TWIC (Transportation Worker Identification Credential) required prior to offer acceptance; MSHA (Mine Safety and Health Administration) training to be completed upon hire.

· Alumina refining experience preferred

WORK ENVIRONMENT

· The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Upon request, reasonable accommodation may be provided to enable individuals with qualified disabilities to perform the essential functions.

· Must be able to support plant operations which are in continuous operation and work outdoors in various types of weather conditions.

· Fast-paced, high-pressure environment requiring flexibility and resilience

· May require travel and on-site presence with affected business units

ATALCO is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.

Education

· Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Operations Management, Engineering, Technology, or related field preferred.

· Equivalent combination of education and relevant procurement experience will be considered.

Experience

· Minimum 7 years of procurement, purchasing, materials management, supply chain, or procurement operations experience.

· Minimum 5 years of people leadership experience, including experience managing a team of buyers or materials personnel; experience leading through a subordinate supervisor preferred.

· Experience supporting oil & gas, maintenance, manufacturing, industrial, mining, metals, refining, chemical, or other heavy industrial operations preferred.

· Demonstrated experience negotiating and administering purchase orders, service agreements, and supplier contracts.

· Experience leading inventory management and material planning activities.

· Experience managing warehouse, storeroom, or materials handling operations, including oversight of a warehouse supervisor or lead.

Technical Skills

· Experience with SAP, Ariba or other ERP systems.

· Experience with AI, eSourcing, RFQ, supplier management, and contract management tools.

· Strong contract interpretation and negotiation capabilities.

· Strong analytical, problem-solving, and commercial decision-making skills.

· Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and team leadership abilities.

· Working knowledge of commercial contract terms and conditions, including indemnification, limitation of liability, warranty provisions, insurance requirements, confidentiality, and risk allocation clauses, with the ability to negotiate commercial agreements in partnership with ATALCO Legal to achieve business objectives while appropriately managing risk.

Preferred Qualifications

· Experience in oil & gas, aluminum, metals, mining, chemical, refining, manufacturing, or heavy industrial operations.

· APICS/ASCM, CPSM, CPM, or other supply chain certification.

· Experience leading procurement support for maintenance turnarounds and capital projects.

· Knowledge of inventory optimization and warehouse operations.

· Experience with warehouse management systems and barcode or RFID material tracking.

· Experience working within a unionized manufacturing environment.

· Experience developing procurement procedures, controls, and standard work.