Global Commodity Manager, Battery Cells & Cell Integration

This position is ONE's primary supply chain liaison for cell and cell-integration availability, coordinating demand, allocation and delivery commitments across programs with Engineering, Manufacturing, Quality, Program Management, ONE's strategic cell and CCS suppliers and in-house cell production. The GCM has full delegated authority within established procurement limits and is expected to operate autonomously, shift priorities on notice and find the path to clear builds.

This is a senior individual contributor role with no direct reports, built for an experienced defense or aerospace supply chain professional who wants direct, hands-on ownership of a commodity portfolio and its results, without the overhead of managing a team.

The GCM ensures every action in the portfolio complies with applicable FAR, DFARS, prime contract flow-downs, NDAA and FEOC battery sourcing restrictions, domestic sourcing, hazardous-materials transport, cybersecurity and export-control requirements.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Commodity Strategy & Strategic Sourcing

• Develop and execute multi-year strategies for cells, CCS, flex circuits, heaters and stack materials aligned to program requirements, chemistry and format roadmaps, production rates and cost targets.

• Identify, evaluate, qualify and develop cell, CCS, flex-circuit, laminate, heater and stack-material suppliers capable of meeting ONE's technical, quality, security, compliance, cost and delivery requirements.

• Run dual and multi-source programs for CCS, flex and heaters, including parallel supplier qualification, volume allocation and supplier transitions.

• Negotiate capacity reservations, allocation commitments, index-based pricing and multi-year supply agreements with strategic cell and CCS suppliers.

• Establish alternate and domestic sources for cells and critical integration materials to reduce single-source and geopolitical exposure.

Government Procurement & Compliance

• Identify applicable prime contract clauses and incorporate mandatory FAR/DFARS flow-downs into every purchase order and subcontract in the portfolio.

• Ensure compliance with NDAA restrictions on battery procurement from foreign entities of concern, FEOC and country-of-origin requirements, and Buy American and other domestic sourcing obligations, including sub-tier material traceability for cells, flex and laminates.

• Ensure cell and module shipments comply with UN 38.3, 49 CFR, IATA and IMDG hazardous-materials requirements.

• Verify supplier CMMC/NIST SP 800-171 posture before releasing CUI or export-controlled data; partner with Export Compliance on ITAR/EAR.

• Execute DPAS-rated orders and maintain complete, audit-ready procurement files supporting competition, source selection, sole-source justification and price reasonableness.

Cost, Pricing & Proposal Support

• Develop RFQs, statements of work and technical data packages; conduct should-cost and total-cost-of-ownership analysis for cells, CCS, flex and heaters, including raw-material indices, tooling, freight, duties and tariffs.

• Negotiate pricing, tooling, payment, warranty, quality, delivery and liability terms; obtain compliant supplier quotations and sourcing assumptions for government RFIs, RFPs and contract modifications.

• Monitor purchase price variance and portfolio cost performance against program budgets; drive cost-reduction and design-to-cost initiatives with Engineering.

Cell Supply, Allocation & Material Readiness

• Forecast cell, CCS and heater demand by program and protect allocation across competing programs in coordination with Manufacturing and Program Management.
• Own material availability for the portfolio from requisition to dock, aligned to program milestones, prototype builds, testing, qualification and production schedules.

• Monitor supplier capacity, yield and commitments; raise capacity or allocation risk early with a documented recovery plan.

• Manage international logistics, Incoterms, customs clearance and freight mode, with customs and hazmat lead times built into every plan.

• Report cell and cell-integration availability, material readiness, supplier risk and required executive actions in program reviews.

Supplier Performance, Quality & NPI

• Establish supplier scorecards and lead quarterly business reviews with strategic cell, CCS, flex and heater suppliers.

• Partner with Engineering and Quality on cell and CCS qualification, first-article inspection (AS9102), PPAP, incoming inspection, lot traceability and supplier corrective actions.

• Drive new product introduction for CCS, flex and heater designs through revisions, ECOs, prototype tooling and production tooling transitions.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, Business, Operations or a related field

• 8+ years of progressive strategic sourcing, commodity management, procurement or subcontract management experience

• 5+ years of commodity management in battery cells, battery modules or packs, cell contacting systems, or flex-circuit and laminated busbar assemblies

• Working knowledge of flex-circuit, laminate and CCS manufacturing processes and cost drivers, with the ability to read assembly drawings and specifications

• Experience managing offshore suppliers in Asia and Europe, including Incoterms, customs, freight and hazardous-materials shipping

• Demonstrated cradle-to-grave ownership of a commodity portfolio, from sourcing strategy, RFQ and negotiation through award, PO/subcontract administration, delivery and closeout, with minimal oversight

• Experience supporting U.S. government, Department of Defense or defense-prime programs, with working knowledge of FAR/DFARS procurement requirements and mandatory flow-downs

• Proven cost and price analysis capability, including should-cost models, cost breakdowns, total cost of ownership and documented price reasonableness

• Track record of re-prioritizing on short notice and recovering material shortages to protect build, test and delivery commitments

• Strong negotiation, analytical, written and executive presentation skills

• Proficiency with ERP/MRP systems (Microsoft Dynamics 365 preferred) and advanced Excel

Preferred

• Direct relationships with lithium-ion cell manufacturers (including LFP chemistry) or CCS and flex-circuit suppliers

• Familiarity with IPC-6013, IPC-2223 and flexible heater manufacturing and qualification

• Knowledge of NDAA and FEOC battery sourcing restrictions, critical-mineral supply chains and domestic content requirements

• Familiarity with UN 38.3, 49 CFR hazmat, and NAVSEA S9310 or other military lithium battery safety requirements
• Senior individual contributor or first-line manager experience in procurement, subcontracts or commodity management at a defense prime or Tier 1 defense supplier; or comparable experience in automotive, aerospace, battery or energy storage manufacturing.
• Experience supporting DoD programs from proposal through prototype, qualification, low-rate initial production and full-rate production.
• Understanding of what it takes to establish and maintain a government-compliant purchasing system, and experience supporting DCMA, DCAA, CPSR or customer audits.
• Knowledge of CMMC, NIST SP 800-171, CUI handling requirements and DFARS cybersecurity clauses as applied to suppliers.
• Knowledge of ITAR and EAR requirements, Buy American, specialty metals and other domestic sourcing requirements.Experience with long-term agreements, capacity reservations, index-based pricing and multi-year sourcing awards.
• CFCM, CPCM, CPSM, CPSD or equivalent professional certification.

Additional Requirements

Due to the nature of ONE's government and defense-related business, this position requires access to export-controlled information. Candidates must be a U.S. person and able to satisfy applicable requirements for access to controlled information.

The position may also require eligibility to access Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), government systems, customer facilities, or other restricted information based on program requirements. Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance is preferred.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS AND EEO:

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

An individual must be able to perform the essential functions of this position with or without reasonable accommodation.

Our Next Energy Inc. (ONE) is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to disability or any other protected status in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws.