OPT Sourcing Specialist Jobs
Sourcing Specialist roles are a strong fit for F-1 OPT students with supply chain, business, or engineering backgrounds. Most positions qualify as specialty occupations, supporting H-1B visa sponsorship down the line. Your 12-month OPT window, plus a potential 24-month STEM extension, gives you real runway to build experience and secure long-term status.
Find OPT Sourcing Specialist JobsOverview
Showing 5 of 412+ Sourcing Specialist jobs
See all 412+ Sourcing Specialist Jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new Sourcing Specialist roles.
Get Access To All JobsStrategic Sourcing Specialist
Salina, KS
Great Plains Manufacturing is seeking a dynamic Strategic Sourcing Specialist to join our Purchasing team.
This is an on-site position that works Monday through Thursday from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Friday 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. from our Corporate Offices in Salina, KS. Occasional out-of-state overnight travel may be required.
Primary Duties and Responsibilities:
- Lead sourcing projects and participate in cross-functional teams to support projects for product development and project management.
- Collaborate with other internal teams to align strategies, drive project implementation, and support successful supply chain performance.
- Understand cost drivers and develop cost models based on material content, order quantities, tooling, and other factors affecting total cost of ownership. Evaluate specific projects and rate overall supply base using Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) approach.
- Monitor and track commodity costs and other factors that affect pricing to ensure that related cost changes, especially cost reductions, are identified.
- Maintain existing commodity strategies to lead supplier selection and negotiate supplier pricing.
- Utilize supplier scorecards to assess performance of suppliers - conduct business reviews with suppliers to review scorecards, explore opportunities for improvements, develop future business layouts, and drive the implementation of actions identified.
- Monitor, audit, and report performance of suppliers to ensure that supplier performance issues are quickly addressed. Evaluate and manage supply chain risks.
- Work with critical suppliers to ensure they have and/or develop a business continuity strategy to prevent supply interruptions.
- Assist in the development and implementation of procurement plans, policies and procedures.
- Travel to meet with vendors and suppliers on a quarterly basis, or as needed.
- Other duties may be assigned that require other qualifications, physical demands, and/or work environments.
Preferred Skills and Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Supply Chain Engineering or similar.
- 3+ years’ experience in commodity management and/or project management with an emphasis in supply chain management and purchasing.
- Experience in procurement within the construction or Ag industry helpful but not required.
- Strong negotiation skills with a collaborative approach.
- Available for occasional overnight travel (less than 10%).
- Exceptional interpersonal and collaborative problem-solving skills across functional groups.
- Professional certification, such as APICS, or working toward obtaining professional certification is desired.
Great Plains Manufacturing, headquartered in Salina, KS, is a proud subsidiary of Kubota with more than 50 years as a Kansas leader in the design, engineering and manufacturing of agricultural implements, including seeding, tillage, and landscaping equipment. Our new Construction Equipment Division adds Kubota-branded skid steers, compact track loaders, and CE attachments, supported by Kubota Construction R&D Engineering in Salina. Operating in eight Kansas communities with multiple divisions, including Great Plains Ag; Land Pride; Great Plains International; and the Construction Equipment Division, we employ over 2,000 people and are committed to innovation and professional growth. If you are self-motivated, goal-oriented, and collaborative, explore our open opportunities at www.WorkForGPM.com.
Strategic Sourcing Specialist
Salina, KS
Great Plains Manufacturing is seeking a dynamic Strategic Sourcing Specialist to join our Purchasing team.
This is an on-site position that works Monday through Thursday from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Friday 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. from our Corporate Offices in Salina, KS. Occasional out-of-state overnight travel may be required.
Primary Duties and Responsibilities:
- Lead sourcing projects and participate in cross-functional teams to support projects for product development and project management.
- Collaborate with other internal teams to align strategies, drive project implementation, and support successful supply chain performance.
- Understand cost drivers and develop cost models based on material content, order quantities, tooling, and other factors affecting total cost of ownership. Evaluate specific projects and rate overall supply base using Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) approach.
- Monitor and track commodity costs and other factors that affect pricing to ensure that related cost changes, especially cost reductions, are identified.
- Maintain existing commodity strategies to lead supplier selection and negotiate supplier pricing.
- Utilize supplier scorecards to assess performance of suppliers - conduct business reviews with suppliers to review scorecards, explore opportunities for improvements, develop future business layouts, and drive the implementation of actions identified.
- Monitor, audit, and report performance of suppliers to ensure that supplier performance issues are quickly addressed. Evaluate and manage supply chain risks.
- Work with critical suppliers to ensure they have and/or develop a business continuity strategy to prevent supply interruptions.
- Assist in the development and implementation of procurement plans, policies and procedures.
- Travel to meet with vendors and suppliers on a quarterly basis, or as needed.
- Other duties may be assigned that require other qualifications, physical demands, and/or work environments.
Preferred Skills and Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Supply Chain Engineering or similar.
- 3+ years’ experience in commodity management and/or project management with an emphasis in supply chain management and purchasing.
- Experience in procurement within the construction or Ag industry helpful but not required.
- Strong negotiation skills with a collaborative approach.
- Available for occasional overnight travel (less than 10%).
- Exceptional interpersonal and collaborative problem-solving skills across functional groups.
- Professional certification, such as APICS, or working toward obtaining professional certification is desired.
Great Plains Manufacturing, headquartered in Salina, KS, is a proud subsidiary of Kubota with more than 50 years as a Kansas leader in the design, engineering and manufacturing of agricultural implements, including seeding, tillage, and landscaping equipment. Our new Construction Equipment Division adds Kubota-branded skid steers, compact track loaders, and CE attachments, supported by Kubota Construction R&D Engineering in Salina. Operating in eight Kansas communities with multiple divisions, including Great Plains Ag; Land Pride; Great Plains International; and the Construction Equipment Division, we employ over 2,000 people and are committed to innovation and professional growth. If you are self-motivated, goal-oriented, and collaborative, explore our open opportunities at www.WorkForGPM.com.
See all 412+ OPT Sourcing Specialist Jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new OPT Sourcing Specialist Jobs.
Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as a Sourcing Specialist
Target employers with active supply chain teams
Large manufacturers, retailers, and tech companies with dedicated procurement departments are more likely to sponsor visas. They hire sourcing specialists regularly and have established immigration processes, making OPT-to-H-1B visa transitions far more straightforward than at smaller firms.
Highlight your degree field on every application
Sourcing Specialist roles often require a degree in supply chain management, business, or engineering to qualify as a specialty occupation. Explicitly connecting your academic background to the role strengthens your OPT authorization and makes future H-1B sponsorship easier for the employer to justify.
Start your job search early in your OPT window
OPT authorization takes time to process, and employers need lead time to evaluate candidates. Starting your search three to four months before graduation gives you enough runway to land an offer before your program end date creates unnecessary urgency in hiring conversations.
Ask about sponsorship intent before accepting offers
Confirm that the employer is willing to sponsor an H-1B before you commit. Some companies hire OPT students but have no sponsorship history. Checking their prior H-1B filings through public Department of Labor disclosure data helps you avoid wasting your OPT window on a dead end.
Use your STEM extension if your degree qualifies
If you hold a degree in supply chain management, industrial engineering, or a related STEM field, you may qualify for a 24-month OPT extension. That gives you up to three H-1B lottery cycles, significantly improving your odds of securing long-term work authorization through an employer.
Frame your sourcing skills around measurable outcomes
Employers sponsoring visas take on real administrative costs and want confidence in their investment. Quantify your impact where possible: cost savings, supplier lead time reductions, or vendor consolidation results. Concrete metrics make your profile stand out and justify the sponsorship commitment to hiring managers.
Sourcing Specialist OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work as a Sourcing Specialist on F-1 OPT?
Yes. Sourcing Specialist roles generally qualify as specialty occupations under F-1 OPT rules because they require at least a bachelor's degree in a related field such as supply chain management, business administration, or engineering. Your work must be directly related to your degree. If your degree is in an unrelated field, consult your DSO before accepting an offer.
Do Sourcing Specialist jobs typically lead to H-1B sponsorship?
Many do, particularly at mid-size and large employers with established procurement teams. Sourcing Specialist positions routinely qualify as specialty occupations for H-1B purposes, which is one of the primary requirements for sponsorship. The stronger signal is whether the employer has filed H-1B petitions in the past. You can browse OPT-friendly employers on Migrate Mate to identify companies with a documented sponsorship track record.
Does a Sourcing Specialist role qualify for the STEM OPT extension?
It depends on your degree, not the job title. If you hold a qualifying STEM degree, such as industrial engineering, operations research, or supply chain management, and your Sourcing Specialist role is directly related to that field, you likely qualify for the 24-month STEM extension. Confirm the STEM eligibility of your specific degree with your Designated School Official before filing.
What counts as a related degree for a Sourcing Specialist OPT position?
Supply chain management, business administration, operations management, industrial engineering, and logistics are the most common qualifying degrees. Some employers also accept economics or data analytics backgrounds if the role involves significant quantitative sourcing analysis. Your employer and DSO both evaluate this connection, so review your offer letter language carefully to ensure the role description aligns with your field of study.
How do I find Sourcing Specialist jobs that sponsor OPT students?
Migrate Mate is built specifically for F-1 OPT students and filters jobs by sponsorship willingness, saving you from applying to roles where authorization will be a problem. Beyond that, focus your applications on companies in manufacturing, retail, technology, and aerospace, which tend to have large procurement teams and existing immigration infrastructure that makes OPT and eventual H-1B sponsorship routine.