Associate Director, Strategic Sourcing- Marketing & Professional Services

The College Board is a nonprofit organization that aims to expand educational and career opportunities. The Associate Director, Strategic Sourcing- Marketing & Professional Services will lead enterprise-wide procurement initiatives, develop sourcing strategies, and manage supplier relationships to ensure effective and compliant spending across multiple categories.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the development and execution of sourcing strategies to optimize spend, reduce risk, and enhance value in alignment with organizational objectives
• Identify, evaluate, and make recommendations on selection of suppliers and Marketing & Professional Services related products and services
• Understand the current supplier landscape and identify opportunities to consolidate demand and drive cost savings while maintaining service quality
• Proactively update sourcing strategies based on market analysis and risk assessment, aligning with organizational goals and industry trends
• Lead supplier selection, performance management, and relationship development in partnership with internal stakeholders
• Lead negotiations of commercial terms, service-level agreements (SLAs), and licensing models to achieve favorable cost, risk, and performance outcomes
• Partner with Legal, GRC and Information Security teams to ensure all security and business term requirements are included in contracts
• Manage ongoing supplier relationships, performance reviews, and escalation processes
• Gather and analyze spend data to benchmark and identify opportunities for savings and efficiency
• Create category specific cost models, including TCO analyses, to support data driven sourcing recommendations and track impact against organizational goals and metrics
• Adopt and leverage existing Procurement tools and platforms, as well as enterprise AI tools, to deliver value driven insights and recommendations
• Proactively engage with stakeholders to understand their goals and planned initiatives, translating insights into category sourcing strategies that anticipate needs, align with enterprise objectives, and deliver strategic value
• Serve as a trusted advisor to business units on category related procurement and sourcing matters, delivering market insights, improving supplier performance, and ensuring contract and policy compliance

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree required
• 4+ years of experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, or supplier management, with at least 2 years focused on Marketing & Professional Services category (e.g. Advertising & Media Buying, Creative & Content Services, Print & Production Services, Consulting Services, Legal & Advisory Services sourcing)
• Demonstrated experience negotiating high-value, complex technology contracts
• Familiarity with ERP systems, supplier management systems, and contract lifecycle management tools
• Strong knowledge of Marketing & Professional Services sourcing categories (e.g. Advertising & Media Buying, Creative & Content Services, Print & Production Services, Consulting Services, Legal & Advisory Services) including suppliers, market trends, and regulatory landscape
• Strong analytical, financial, and strategic problem-solving skills, including ability to deliver data-based insights to support strategic recommendations
• Excellent communication and presentation abilities, with experience influencing senior stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain collaborative relationships across diverse teams
• High level of integrity, initiative, curiosity, and organization
• Comfort with fast-paced, cross-functional mission-driven environments
• A passion for expanding educational and career opportunities and mission-driven work
• Authorization to work in the United States for any employer
• Curiosity and enthusiasm for emerging technologies, with a willingness to experiment with and adopt new AI-driven solutions and a comfort learning and applying new digital tools independently and proactively
• Clear and concise communication skills, written and verbal
• A learner's mindset and a commitment to growth: welcoming diverse perspectives, giving and receiving timely, respectful feedback, and continuously improving through iterative learning and user input
• A drive for impact and excellence: solving complex problems, making data-informed decisions, prioritizing what matters most, and continuously improving through learning, user input, and external benchmarking
• A collaborative and empathetic approach: working across differences, fostering trust, and contributing to a culture of shared success
• CPSM, PMP, Lean/Six Sigma, or ISM certification preferred