Materials Director

Tennant Company•Eden Prairie, MN

About The Position

With more than $1B in revenue, Tennant Company is a globally recognized leader in the cleaning equipment industry. For the past 150 years, we have been passionate about developing and manufacturing innovative and sustainable solutions for our customers. At Tennant Company, we are committed to stewardship and creating a cleaner, safer and healthier world. With manufacturing, operations and sales, service, and support functions across the globe, your journey at Tennant can take you places you never expected. The Director Materials Management, North America will lead the development and execution of strategy and vision for supply chain planning and material control, and drive execution to enable business value and productivity. This position will be responsible for the establishment, improvement, and execution of: SIOP, Factory Scheduling, Point of Use Availability, Inventory, Material Requirements, On Time Shipment, Plant Logistics, and other supply chain planning and execution processes for Tennant Company in North America. The Director of NA Materials Management will be accountable for meeting NA OPS SQDCI goals at each plant and ensuring that organizational and process changes are embraced and sustained across all North American Operations sites and Distribution centers in accordance with our Global Operations Strategy. As a member of the North American Operations Leadership team, the incumbent will provide input to North America goals and strategy development.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in Mechanical, Industrial, Manufacturing Engineering, Operations Management OR related fields preferred.
10+ years of related management experience in a manufacturing setting, preferably high mix environment preferred.
Must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship.
Experience with low volume, high complexity product preferred.
Advanced knowledge of SAP (S4/ECC) or equivalent ERP system; Track record of optimizing systems
Strong matrix, global organization management demonstrating relationship management skills with excellent written & verbal communication and ability to influence cross-functionally
Experience utilizing LEAN manufacturing and continuous improvement concepts/tools
Strong project management and problem solving skills
Lead and solve complex organizational problems
Expertise on leading / driving change, and mentor for new leaders or peers
Deep expertise in Materials management
10% - 30% travel required
REQUIRED INTERPERSONAL & BEHAVIORAL SKILLS: Demonstrated strategic thinking with strong analytical, process‑oriented, and documentation skills.
Exceptional leadership, communication (verbal, written, and presentation), and team‑building capabilities.
Highly effective at collaboration, influence, and driving change across cross‑functional groups, including engineering and manufacturing, without direct authority.
Action oriented.
Strong emotional intelligence with the ability to build positive relationships, listen openly, resolve conflict, and maintain a customer‑focused mindset.
Ability to concentrate on detail‑oriented tasks, make sound decisions, and work calmly and effectively in high‑pressure, deadline‑driven environments.
Recognizes when urgency is required and adjusts priorities accordingly.
Willingness to be flexible with time and adjust to a changing work environment.
Able to work independently, prioritize effectively, exercise sound judgment in varied situations, and manage confidential information with discretion

Nice To Haves

APICS or ISM certification such as CSCP, CPIM, and or CPSM is preferred
Certified Six Sigma Black Belt is preferred

Responsibilities

Provide vision and strategy for management of materials through product-life cycle by establishing processes that support integrated supply chain planning and execution within manufacturing and distribution
Develop materials management and inventory strategy for North America and deploy dependent business processes in collaboration with Regional Operations, Global Supply, and Business Unit partners.
Lead and develop an organization of professionals that includes Material Control, Inventory, Factory Scheduling, and Plant Logistics for Manufacturing, Distribution, and RECON at North America facilities.
Drive a culture of teamwork and collaboration with Business Unit Partners, Global Supply, Manufacturing/Operations, Product Engineering, Global COE, and Finance to ensure performance meets or exceeds customer expectations.
Develop and utilize MRP and other ERP based systems for managing procurement, planning, and inventory management in line with achieving quality, delivery, and inventory goals.
Manage production scheduling to optimize balance of finished/sub-assembly goods inventory velocity and factory level loading.
Develop inventory scenario and materials labor planning tools to drive optimized point of use availability.
Lead Sales & Operations Inventory Planning (SIOP) process for NA OPS facilities, in collaboration with Business Unit and COE partners in both execution and improvements.
Lead tiered accountability process that ensures proper prioritization, allocation, escalation, and communication of process robustness and material availability to support the NA Ops Facilities.
Providing effective interface between customer service and plant systems to supply timely accurate information on product availability and order status.
Oversees the development, management and monitors Annual Operating Plan (AOP) budget for NA Materials, including ensuring financial performance to meet established targets, improvement projects, inventory planning and forecasting
Lead presentations including Regional Operating Reviews, New Product Readiness Reviews for Materials, and other requirements.
Analyzing industry trends and evolving technology to proactively identify supply base issues, minimize risk, protect continuity of supply, and utilize emerging technologies.
Other duties as assigned