Director, Vendor Management

Director, Vendor Management National Retail Remodel Program - 6,000-Store Rollout Position Summary The Director, Vendor Management leads the end-to-end vendor strategy and day-to-day management of the supplier base powering a national 6,000-store remodel program. This is a high-volume, high-velocity role accountable for onboarding, contracting, performance, and cost control across hundreds of vendors - general contractors, fixture and millwork suppliers, signage, lighting, flooring, HVAC/MEP trades, logistics, and specialty installers - delivering remodels at a sustained pace of dozens of stores per week. The Director owns the data backbone of the program. This is a heavily analytical, Excel-intensive position: the successful candidate builds and maintains the vendor scorecards, cost models, capacity plans, and rollout trackers that keep thousands of concurrent work orders on schedule and on budget. They translate a sprawling vendor landscape into a controlled, measurable, repeatable machine. Key Responsibilities Vendor Strategy & Portfolio Management • Own the overall vendor management strategy for the remodel program, segmenting the supplier base by trade, region, spend, criticality, and risk. • Build and maintain a scaled, qualified vendor network capable of supporting a sustained remodel cadence across all regions and store formats. • Establish vendor tiering and capacity models to match supplier throughput to the weekly/monthly rollout schedule and prevent bottlenecks. • Lead sourcing events (RFPs/RFQs), negotiate master service agreements, rate cards, and volume-based pricing across high-spend categories. High-Volume Vendor Operations • Manage onboarding, qualification, insurance/compliance verification, and activation for hundreds of vendors at program scale. • Coordinate concurrent vendor activity across thousands of active and upcoming store work orders, ensuring no site is under- or over-resourced. • Stand up and enforce standardized vendor playbooks, scopes of work, and service-level agreements (SLAs) to drive consistency across 6,000 locations. • Serve as the senior escalation point for vendor performance, capacity, quality, and delivery issues that threaten the rollout schedule. Data, Analytics & Excel Modeling • Design and maintain advanced Excel models for vendor scorecards, cost-to-complete, capacity planning, rate-card analysis, and rollout forecasting. • Build dynamic dashboards and trackers (pivot tables, Power Query, XLOOKUP/INDEX-MATCH, complex nested logic, what-if scenario modeling) to manage thousands of concurrent work orders. • Consolidate disparate vendor, cost, and schedule data into a single source of truth; produce executive-ready reporting on spend, performance, and program health. • Run cost variance, budget-vs-actual, and savings-tracking analyses; identify and quantify cost-reduction and consolidation opportunities. • Partner with PMO/IT to graduate critical models into scalable systems (e.g., procurement/PM platforms, BI tools) as the program matures. Performance, Compliance & Risk • Define and govern vendor KPIs and SLAs; run regular business reviews (QBRs) and performance scorecarding across the supplier base. • Ensure vendor compliance with contractual, insurance, safety, licensing, and regulatory requirements across all jurisdictions. • Proactively manage supply, capacity, and single-source risk; build contingency and backup-vendor plans to protect the schedule. Cross-Functional Leadership • Partner closely with Construction, Facilities, Store Operations, Finance, Legal, and the PMO to align vendor activity with the master remodel schedule. • Lead, coach, and develop a team of vendor managers, analysts, and coordinators; set workload allocation and performance standards. • Communicate program status, risks, and recommendations to senior leadership with clear, data-driven narratives. Qualifications Required • 10+ years of progressive vendor management, procurement, or supplier-program experience, with 5+ years leading teams. • Proven experience managing a high-volume vendor portfolio (hundreds of suppliers) on a large, multi-site program - retail rollout, construction/remodel, facilities, or comparable. • Expert-level Excel skills - advanced formulas, pivot tables, Power Query, scenario/what-if modeling, and large-dataset management. This will be assessed in the interview process. • Demonstrated success negotiating MSAs, rate cards, and volume pricing across multiple trade/spend categories. • Strong command of vendor KPIs, SLAs, scorecarding, and performance governance. • Excellent stakeholder management and executive communication skills. • Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Business, Construction Management, Finance, or related field (or equivalent experience). Preferred • Direct experience supporting a national retail remodel, new-store rollout, or multi-site construction program at 1,000+ locations. • Familiarity with construction/facilities trades (fixtures, millwork, signage, lighting, flooring, MEP/HVAC) and general-contractor management. • Proficiency with procurement/PM platforms (e.g., Coupa, SAP Ariba, Procore, Service Channel) and BI tools (Power BI, Tableau). • Professional certification: CPSM, CPM, PMP, or equivalent. • Master's degree or MBA. Success Metrics (First 12 Months) Performance in this role will be measured against the program outcomes the vendor base directly drives: This job description describes the general nature and level of work expected. It is not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required. Responsibilities may evolve as the program scales.