Job description
Strategic Sourcing Specialist**
Role Description**
As a Strategic Sourcing Specialist at Kimbal, you will play a critical role in building a robust, cost-effective, and reliable supply base for mechanical commodities that power our next-generation smart metering products. You will lead end-to-end sourcing activities covering supplier identification, development, tooling, new product introductions, cost optimization, and supplier performance management.
The role demands a strong blend of technical understanding of manufacturing processes and commercial acumen to drive quality, cost, delivery, and innovation across the supply chain.
Key Responsibilities**
- Drive strategic sourcing and supplier development for mechanical commodities including plastics, sheet metal, fasteners, packaging, and related components.
- Lead supplier selection, qualification, and new supplier development to strengthen Kimbal's supply ecosystem.
- Ensure timely development of new projects by coordinating supplier readiness, tooling, PPAP approvals, and quality validations.
- Drive component re-development and localization initiatives while ensuring uninterrupted mass production supplies.
- Identify and execute cost optimization opportunities through value engineering, supplier negotiations, and commercial excellence.
- Manage tooling development, tooling investments, lifecycle tracking, and tooling cost optimization.
- Build strong supplier relationships while continuously improving supplier performance on quality, delivery, responsiveness, and cost competitiveness.
- Collaborate closely with Engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, and New Product Development teams to ensure successful product launches and sustained production.
Current Challenges**
At Kimbal, we're scaling rapidly to become one of India's leading energy technology companies. This role offers the opportunity to solve complex sourcing challenges such as:
- Building a scalable supplier ecosystem capable of supporting rapid business growth.
- Reducing product costs while maintaining world-class quality and delivery performance.
- Accelerating new product development timelines through faster supplier readiness and tooling development.
- Driving localization and alternate source development to improve supply chain resilience.
- Managing high-value sourcing spends across multiple mechanical commodity categories.
- Developing strategic supplier partnerships that foster innovation and long-term competitiveness.
Job Requirements**
Experience**
- 5–8 years of experience in Strategic Sourcing, Direct Procurement, or Supplier Development.
- Experience in the Metering, Automotive, Consumer Durables/FMCD, or related manufacturing industries.
Technical Skills**
- Strong understanding of Injection Moulding manufacturing processes.
- Hands-on experience in tooling development and tooling lifecycle management.
- Expertise in ZBC (Zero-Based Costing) for mechanical commodities.
- Strong supplier development and supplier quality management experience.
- Excellent commercial negotiation and cost management capabilities.
- Understanding of PPAP processes and new product development.
- Knowledge of plastics, sheet metal, fasteners, packaging, and other mechanical commodity sourcing.
Behavioural Competencies**
- Strong analytical and logical reasoning skills.
- Excellent negotiation and influencing abilities.
- Ownership mindset with strong execution capability.
- Effective stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration.
- Problem-solving orientation with attention to detail.
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, high-growth environment.
Why Kimbal?**
At Kimbal, you'll work on sourcing the components that power millions of smart energy devices across India. This role offers significantly more than traditional procurement.
You'll get the opportunity to:
- Own and manage high-value sourcing spends with significant business impact.
- Build strategic supplier partnerships across India's manufacturing ecosystem.
- Gain deep technical exposure to mechanical commodities, manufacturing processes, and new product development.
- Work closely with Engineering, R&D, Manufacturing, and Leadership on next-generation energy technology products.
- Drive meaningful cost optimization and localization initiatives that directly improve business competitiveness.
- Be part of a high-talent-density team that's building one of India's fastest-growing energy technology companies.