About the Role

Apple IS&T is seeking a senior Vendor Manager to drive the strategic partnerships and relationships with our IS&T vendors and IT Service Providers. This position involves working with senior leaders across IS&T and also working collaboratively with many teams across Apple such as Corporate Procurement, Finance, Legal, People, and many engineering teams. The role requires strong analytical skills, critical thinking, the ability to drive through ambiguity, and manage multiple projects and key strategic initiatives. The successful candidate will have a strong track record in initiating and leading transformational change, have excellent negotiation, influencing, and contract management skills as well as the ability to keep pace with and understand our evolving technology landscape.

Join our Global IS&T Vendor Management Organization (VMO) in a role that marries project management, analytical, and negotiation skills. The IS&T VMO manages strategic outsourcing partnerships with IS&T vendors globally to maximize value, manage and mitigate risk, and ensure compliance.

In this pivotal role, you will lead IS&T VMO strategic programs - from further optimizing relationships with our vendors by helping teams to implement managed service solutions, delivering vendor management solutions and best practices, and ensuring our vendor operations are robust, performance-driven, and aligned with strategic objectives.

Responsibilities

As a Vendor Manager adept in program and relationship management, and business transformation, you play a leadership role in vendor operations, performance, life-cycle management, and contract negotiations. You provide guidance, direction, and deep subject matter expertise for all vendor-related topics and foster strong business and cross-functional relationships. Additionally, you will:

• Develop a deep, detailed understanding of the VMO and vendor landscape, forecast relevant trends, and assess impacts and opportunities posed by emerging competitive forces.
• Manage VMO initiatives, ensuring vendors excel in performance metrics and driving compliance through diligent management and continuous improvement strategies.
• Provide leaders with key strategic insights. Rapidly synthesize and communicate findings to senior leaders and actively identify potential issues that can affect business strategy.
• Optimize vendor performance through detailed analysis, data modeling, and benchmarking.
• Devise innovative solutions to solve complex issues - "innovate from the detail."
• Develop an in-depth understanding of various processes across Apple, industry, and market intelligence and apply this knowledge to influence IS&T's future vendor requirements.
• Work closely with all internal stakeholders and teams across Apple to meet business objectives - from all levels of leadership to Finance, Legal, People, and Corporate Procurement teams - to ensure our vendor management practices are efficient, effective, and can adapt to changing needs.

Minimum Qualifications

• 7-10+ years of experience with a BA/BS Degree
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills
• Ability to operate independently and lead without authority

Preferred Qualifications

• Masters degree or MBA preferred
• Experience working in Finance, Business Operations, Procurement, or related field
• Excellent influencing and negotiation skills
• Track record of building, growing, and developing key cross-functional relationships
• Ability to deal with ambiguity
• Ability to think strategically and work the details
• Experience in vendor/supplier management and operations
• Presenting and leading Executive communications
• End-to-end ownership of contract negotiations.

Equal Opportunity

Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant.