Materials Lead Jobs
Materials Lead jobs are open across manufacturing, aerospace, construction, and consumer goods, from mid-level to senior and program lead, with specializations in procurement, inventory control, and supply chain coordination. Scan the live roles below and apply to whichever ones fit.
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Showing 5 of 62+ Materials Lead jobs
About Formlabs:
A 3D printer is one of the most demanding machines you can build.
Lasers, optics, precision motion, thermals, airflow, materials handling, chemistry, sensing, controls, and software all have to work at micron-scale precision, for thousands of layers, with almost no tolerance for error. Making that work reliably is an extraordinary engineering problem.
That's what we do.
At Formlabs, we're building 3D printers that are changing the way things get made. We have the smartest minds across every engineering discipline, and the technology they're building is deployed at more than 50,000 industry leaders worldwide, including Apple, Google, Tesla, New Balance, and NASA.
Your Impact:
Our Manufacturing team makes 3D printing materials at scale, and Materials is one of the fastest-growing and most strategically important parts of our product portfolio. Our powders for our SLS printers are produced by a network of contract manufacturers, and we're increasingly looking at ways to make the supply chain more agile.
We're looking for a commercially minded Materials Sourcing Lead to own our powder supply base. You'll manage contract manufacturer relationships, negotiate the agreements that govern them, and keep cost, capacity, and risk in balance as the business grows. You'll also help shape our long-term strategy, including where vertical integration can improve our cost position, supply security, or control over quality.
This is a role for someone who has managed suppliers and contracts at a strategic level and wants to influence how a fast-growing materials business is built.
The Job:
Contract Manufacturer Management
- Own relationships with powder contract manufacturers and key suppliers, serving as the primary commercial point of contact.
- Run quarterly business reviews with scorecards for quality, delivery, cost, capacity, and responsiveness, and hold partners accountable to their commitments.
- Manage volume allocation across contract manufacturers to balance cost, capacity, and supply risk.
- Partner with Quality to resolve supplier quality issues and make sure corrective actions are delivered.
- Own supplier qualification and onboarding for new contract manufacturers, and maintain the Approved Supplier List.
Commercial Strategy & Negotiation
- Lead negotiations for supply agreements, including pricing, volume commitments, capacity reservations, lead times, payment terms, and continuity provisions.
- Build and maintain total-cost and should-cost models to understand cost drivers and support negotiations.
- Drive annual cost reduction targets and report savings and commercial performance to leadership.
- Manage pricebooks and execute price change workflows in partnership with Finance.
Vertical Integration & Network Strategy
- Evaluate make-versus-buy opportunities across the powder value chain, building business cases that weigh cost, capital investment, risk, and strategic control.
- Support execution of vertical integration initiatives, coordinating with Finance, Manufacturing, and R&D, and managing the transition with existing partners.
- Develop a multi-year sourcing strategy for powder that supports growth, new product launches, and supply resilience.
Supply Risk & Continuity
- Maintain a live supply risk tracker covering capacity constraints, concentration risk, partner financial health, and geopolitical exposure.
- Surface emerging risks proactively and lead mitigation planning, including dual-sourcing, capacity agreements, and inventory strategy.
- Monitor market conditions for polymer feedstocks and translate them into commercial recommendations.
New Materials & NPI
- Identify and source new powder materials and partners that expand our product portfolio.
- Support NPI by setting cost targets, securing supply, and ensuring contract manufacturer readiness ahead of launch.
Cost Visibility & Operations
- Build and maintain dashboards tracking current and forward-looking powder COGS.
- Lead process improvement projects that make sourcing and supplier management more scalable.
You:
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Supply Chain Management, Business, or a related field.
- 5+ years of experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, category management, or supplier management, ideally in manufacturing, chemicals, or materials.
- Proven track record managing contract manufacturers or strategic suppliers, including leading complex negotiations with measurable results.
- Experience building business cases and financial models for sourcing, make-versus-buy, or investment decisions.
- Strong analytical skills: advanced Excel/Sheets required; SQL, Python, or Tableau a plus.
- Enough technical fluency to engage credibly with supplier engineers and our R&D team on materials and processes.
- Confident communicator and negotiator with external partners and senior leadership.
Bonus Points
- MBA or graduate degree in business or engineering.
- Experience with polymers, plastics, or powder materials (e.g., nylon, TPU, polypropylene).
- Experience supporting vertical integration, M&A, or new-site projects.
- Background in procurement or operations consulting.
- ERP experience (e.g., NetSuite, SAP, Oracle).
Our Benefits & Perks:
- Unlimited 3D printing with any Formlabs material on any Formlabs printer
- An equity program that will let you build wealth through RSUs
- Healthcare coverage (medical, dental, vision) that includes a totally free employee-only plan, effective starting on your first day on the job
- 401K matching with no vesting or tenure requirement
- Generous parental leave (fully paid up to 16 weeks)
- Flexible time off so you can take time when you need it
- Six-week fully paid sabbatical after hitting tenure milestones (with the option to take an additional six weeks after that)
- Free on-site parking & pre-tax commuter benefits
- Free on-site lunch, snacks, beverages, treats, beer kegs, and employee-favorite local coffee and espresso
- Self-driven professional development opportunities like conferences, trade shows, and hackathons
- One-of-a-kind activities and events like monthly socials, the annual weekend summer camp, a can't-miss company hackathon, and lots of other social opportunities
You don't need to check every box to apply for a role. If you love working with hardware, spending time with smart people, solving hard problems, and winning, we want to hear from you.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
Our Candidate AI Guidelines are available here. Please give them a read.
About Formlabs:
A 3D printer is one of the most demanding machines you can build.
Lasers, optics, precision motion, thermals, airflow, materials handling, chemistry, sensing, controls, and software all have to work at micron-scale precision, for thousands of layers, with almost no tolerance for error. Making that work reliably is an extraordinary engineering problem.
That's what we do.
At Formlabs, we're building 3D printers that are changing the way things get made. We have the smartest minds across every engineering discipline, and the technology they're building is deployed at more than 50,000 industry leaders worldwide, including Apple, Google, Tesla, New Balance, and NASA.
Your Impact:
Our Manufacturing team makes 3D printing materials at scale, and Materials is one of the fastest-growing and most strategically important parts of our product portfolio. Our powders for our SLS printers are produced by a network of contract manufacturers, and we're increasingly looking at ways to make the supply chain more agile.
We're looking for a commercially minded Materials Sourcing Lead to own our powder supply base. You'll manage contract manufacturer relationships, negotiate the agreements that govern them, and keep cost, capacity, and risk in balance as the business grows. You'll also help shape our long-term strategy, including where vertical integration can improve our cost position, supply security, or control over quality.
This is a role for someone who has managed suppliers and contracts at a strategic level and wants to influence how a fast-growing materials business is built.
The Job:
Contract Manufacturer Management
- Own relationships with powder contract manufacturers and key suppliers, serving as the primary commercial point of contact.
- Run quarterly business reviews with scorecards for quality, delivery, cost, capacity, and responsiveness, and hold partners accountable to their commitments.
- Manage volume allocation across contract manufacturers to balance cost, capacity, and supply risk.
- Partner with Quality to resolve supplier quality issues and make sure corrective actions are delivered.
- Own supplier qualification and onboarding for new contract manufacturers, and maintain the Approved Supplier List.
Commercial Strategy & Negotiation
- Lead negotiations for supply agreements, including pricing, volume commitments, capacity reservations, lead times, payment terms, and continuity provisions.
- Build and maintain total-cost and should-cost models to understand cost drivers and support negotiations.
- Drive annual cost reduction targets and report savings and commercial performance to leadership.
- Manage pricebooks and execute price change workflows in partnership with Finance.
Vertical Integration & Network Strategy
- Evaluate make-versus-buy opportunities across the powder value chain, building business cases that weigh cost, capital investment, risk, and strategic control.
- Support execution of vertical integration initiatives, coordinating with Finance, Manufacturing, and R&D, and managing the transition with existing partners.
- Develop a multi-year sourcing strategy for powder that supports growth, new product launches, and supply resilience.
Supply Risk & Continuity
- Maintain a live supply risk tracker covering capacity constraints, concentration risk, partner financial health, and geopolitical exposure.
- Surface emerging risks proactively and lead mitigation planning, including dual-sourcing, capacity agreements, and inventory strategy.
- Monitor market conditions for polymer feedstocks and translate them into commercial recommendations.
New Materials & NPI
- Identify and source new powder materials and partners that expand our product portfolio.
- Support NPI by setting cost targets, securing supply, and ensuring contract manufacturer readiness ahead of launch.
Cost Visibility & Operations
- Build and maintain dashboards tracking current and forward-looking powder COGS.
- Lead process improvement projects that make sourcing and supplier management more scalable.
You:
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Supply Chain Management, Business, or a related field.
- 5+ years of experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, category management, or supplier management, ideally in manufacturing, chemicals, or materials.
- Proven track record managing contract manufacturers or strategic suppliers, including leading complex negotiations with measurable results.
- Experience building business cases and financial models for sourcing, make-versus-buy, or investment decisions.
- Strong analytical skills: advanced Excel/Sheets required; SQL, Python, or Tableau a plus.
- Enough technical fluency to engage credibly with supplier engineers and our R&D team on materials and processes.
- Confident communicator and negotiator with external partners and senior leadership.
Bonus Points
- MBA or graduate degree in business or engineering.
- Experience with polymers, plastics, or powder materials (e.g., nylon, TPU, polypropylene).
- Experience supporting vertical integration, M&A, or new-site projects.
- Background in procurement or operations consulting.
- ERP experience (e.g., NetSuite, SAP, Oracle).
Our Benefits & Perks:
- Unlimited 3D printing with any Formlabs material on any Formlabs printer
- An equity program that will let you build wealth through RSUs
- Healthcare coverage (medical, dental, vision) that includes a totally free employee-only plan, effective starting on your first day on the job
- 401K matching with no vesting or tenure requirement
- Generous parental leave (fully paid up to 16 weeks)
- Flexible time off so you can take time when you need it
- Six-week fully paid sabbatical after hitting tenure milestones (with the option to take an additional six weeks after that)
- Free on-site parking & pre-tax commuter benefits
- Free on-site lunch, snacks, beverages, treats, beer kegs, and employee-favorite local coffee and espresso
- Self-driven professional development opportunities like conferences, trade shows, and hackathons
- One-of-a-kind activities and events like monthly socials, the annual weekend summer camp, a can't-miss company hackathon, and lots of other social opportunities
You don't need to check every box to apply for a role. If you love working with hardware, spending time with smart people, solving hard problems, and winning, we want to hear from you.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
Our Candidate AI Guidelines are available here. Please give them a read.
See All 62 Materials Lead Jobs
Find roles that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Materials Lead JobsMaterials Lead Job Market
Who's Hiring
Top Industries Hiring
- Manufacturing
- Technology & Software
- Electronics & Hardware
- Distribution & Wholesale
- Healthcare & Medical Services
What Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in materials lead jobs.
- 3 to 5 years of experience in materials management, supply chain, or inventory control
- Proficiency with ERP systems such as SAP, Oracle, or similar platforms
- Knowledge of lean manufacturing principles and inventory optimization methods
- Experience coordinating with suppliers, vendors, and internal production teams
- Familiarity with MRP processes and bill of materials management
- Bachelor's degree in supply chain management, operations, engineering, or a related field
Tips for Your Materials Lead Job Search
Quantify inventory and cost improvements
Hiring managers for materials lead roles want numbers, not narratives. Pull actual figures from your work: inventory turnover rates you improved, carrying costs you reduced, or on-time delivery percentages you maintained. Vague claims about 'managing materials' get skipped.
Highlight your ERP system experience
Materials lead postings almost always specify an ERP platform, SAP, Oracle, or similar. List every system you've worked in prominently on your resume, including modules you used, not just the platform name. Generic 'ERP experience' rarely satisfies screeners.
Apply early to roles that fit
Migrate Mate lists materials lead openings from across the United States in one place, so you can find roles that match and apply directly to each listing.
Filter postings by production environment
Materials lead responsibilities shift significantly between discrete manufacturing, process manufacturing, and construction. When searching, refine by industry to surface roles where your specific environment experience, job shop versus high-volume line, matches what the employer actually needs.
Prepare for scenario-based interview questions
Interviewers for materials lead positions typically present a supply disruption scenario and ask how you'd respond. Practice walking through a real example: how you identified the shortage, which suppliers you contacted, and how you kept production on schedule.
Negotiate scope before accepting an offer
Materials lead titles vary widely in authority. Before accepting, clarify whether you'll own vendor relationships, approve purchase orders, and direct materials coordinators, or whether those responsibilities sit with procurement. Scope determines your ability to deliver results and grow.
Materials Lead Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
Which companies are hiring the most materials leads?
The most active employers for materials leads right now are NIKE, WSP, and Tesla, and the most openings are in California, Ohio, and Texas, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Manufacturing-heavy states and aerospace corridors tend to concentrate demand for this role.
How many materials lead jobs are remote?
About 46% of materials lead openings are fully remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting the hands-on nature of most materials environments. Sub-specializations in procurement analysis, demand planning, and supplier relationship management tend to offer the most remote flexibility compared to roles tied to a production floor.
How do you become a materials lead?
Start in an entry-level materials, purchasing, or inventory role to build foundational ERP and supply chain skills. Progress to a coordinator or analyst position where you manage vendor relationships and purchase orders independently. Pursue a CPIM or CSCP certification from APICS to strengthen your credentials, then apply for lead roles once you've overseen a materials function end to end.
Can you get a materials lead job with limited experience?
Some employers will consider candidates who have held a materials coordinator or inventory specialist role for a couple of years, particularly in smaller manufacturers or distributors where the team is lean. Demonstrating fluency with an ERP system, showing you've owned a category of parts or a supplier relationship, and holding a relevant certification can offset a shorter overall work history.
What does the materials lead interview process look like?
Most employers start with a phone screen focused on your ERP experience and familiarity with their industry. A technical interview or panel follows, often including scenario questions about supply disruptions, excess inventory, or production shortfalls. Some roles add a practical exercise such as reviewing a sample bill of materials or walking through how you'd build a supplier scorecard before a final offer conversation.
Where can I find and apply to materials lead jobs?
You can find and apply to materials lead jobs on Migrate Mate, which lists current openings from across the United States. Search for roles that match your experience level and industry background, then apply directly to each listing that fits.
See All 62 Materials Lead Jobs
Find roles that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
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