National Manager – Purchasing and Inventory

About the role

Reporting to the Head of Operations, the National Manager – Purchasing and Inventory will lead and transform the inventory and purchasing functions for NZ Safety Blackwoods. You will set strategic direction for procurement, replenishment and logistics, overseeing a team of more than 20 professionals and managing up to $50 million of inventory value.

Key responsibilities

• Define and execute strategy for planning, procurement, inventory, replenishment and logistics.
• Lead the rollout and adoption of a new Advanced Planning System (APS) to improve forecasting and stock availability.
• Support the transition to the consolidated Drury distribution centre.
• Build, lead and develop high‑performing teams across inventory and purchasing.
• Drive process and system improvements to increase productivity, reduce manual effort and enhance cost and service performance.
• Develop strategic supplier relationships to improve reliability and lead times.
• Own KPIs for stock availability, delivery performance, inventory value and working capital efficiency.
• Manage inventory budgets, cost of goods and purchasing spend with auditable controls.

Required profile

• At least five years of senior experience in inventory, procurement and supply chain management.
• Proven leadership of large, cross‑functional teams and projects.
• Demonstrated ability to implement technology and systems, preferably an APS or similar planning tool.
• Strong commercial acumen and strategic thinking.
• Change‑leader comfortable transforming processes, systems and ways of working.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

Required skills

• Advanced Planning System (APS) implementation and usage.