Strategic Sourcing Category Manager, Packaging

Overview

San Diego, CA or Remote (US)

This position does not offer visa sponsorship

When the market moves, who calls the supplier first?

If your answer is "I do," whether prices are heading up or down, keep reading.

You know the blue and yellow can. Every one of them starts as a can, a valve, a Smart Straw, a bottle, and a corrugated box that somebody had to source, cost, and negotiate. That somebody could be you.

We're looking for a Category Manager to join our Americas Strategic Sourcing team and own real packaging categories: plastics, cans, Smart Straw, and corrugate. This is not a role where you forward emails and wait. You'll build the case, bring the data, and sit across the table, whether prices are heading up or down.

Responsibilities

• Own supplier price management, end to end. Track market and raw material cost drivers so you're not waiting for suppliers to come to you. When a supplier sends an increase letter, you respond, dig into the index data, recommend a position, and go back to negotiate. When costs move the other way, you engage suppliers and their upstream supply chains and negotiate the reduction.
• Stakeholder management. Planning, QA, R&D, and marketing will rely on you daily, and you'll rely on them. You set expectations, build alignment across functions, and bring people together to execute projects and deliver results.
• Support can sourcing, our single biggest savings lever, as we grow across Latin America. You'll work closely with internal teams and suppliers to support our can sourcing strategy.
• Keep the fast lane moving. Corrugate is a small slice of spend but moves weekly, with new promos, configurations, and cost requests from a marketing team with no shortage of ideas.
• Build the models. Cost models, price lists, variance reviews. You'll know the numbers better than the supplier does.
• Help fix a stuck project. We're converting a bottle and need custom molding solutions. Fresh eyes wanted.
• Get out there. Up to 30% travel to suppliers and contract manufacturers in the US, Mexico, and Brazil.

Qualifications

• 3–7 years in strategic sourcing or procurement for direct materials (packaging, components, or raw materials)
• Contract manufacturing experience, on either the client or the supplier side. You will work with contract manufacturers regularly, and this background will help you understand our business model and supply chain
• Hands-on experience with plastics: resin, bottles, injection or blow molding
• A track record of managing supplier pricing with data: pushing back on increases, negotiating reductions, and winning
• Strong Excel skills and the patience to work through detailed cost data
• Critical thinking and curiosity: you challenge assumptions, bring strong ideas, and dig into the numbers rather than accepting what suppliers say
• A collaborative mindset: you are receptive to feedback, willing to work through differences as part of a team, and able to build relationships across functions and bring people along

Bonus points: can or metal packaging, corrugate, Power BI, Microsoft D365, international sourcing.

Why This Role, Why Now:

This is a growth seat. You'll learn our categories from a leader who came up through packaging engineering and knows them deeply. As you build credibility here, there is room to grow into leading the full packaging component portfolio.

We value curiosity over ego. If you describe yourself as "the expert in everything," this probably isn't your place. If you're still hungry to learn, it might be exactly your place.

About Us

At WD-40 Company, we believe that purpose-driven, passionate people guided by our values create amazing outcomes. Our "why" is refreshingly simple - we exist to create positive lasting memories in everything we do.

Why You Should Apply

• A strong values-aligned organization where contributions are acknowledged and rewarded, and where 90% of our employees experience a sense of belonging.
• A learning-based culture where 78% of our team believe they can achieve their career objectives.
• Over 94% employee engagement as of the January 2025 global employee survey results.
• 99% of our people report that they "love to tell people that they work for WD-40 Company!"

Do You Align With Our Values?

Please, only consider employment with WD-40 Company if you feel as strongly about our values as we do: We live, breathe, and play by our values every day.

At WD-40 Company we foster a culture of inclusion where all individuals are recognized, valued, respected, and experience a sense of belonging. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to individual characteristics that make us unique such as our backgrounds, experiences, qualities, talents, traits, beliefs, and preferences.

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