Vice President of Supply Chain

Company: Highland Electric Fleets
Location: Beverly
Posted on: May 12, 2025

Job Description:

About Us

Highland Electric Fleets' electrification-as-a-service (EaaS) model aims to make electric school buses and other clean heavy duty vehicles attainable for every district across the US and Canada. Our turnkey solution tackles financing, vehicle procurement, infrastructure upgrade and maintenance to create a reliable and affordable fleet for our customers.

We know that cleaner buses create healthier communities and it's our mission to eliminate the barriers to better student health and cleaner air - just 10 electric buses will reduce the pediatric asthma risk for 1,500 students!*

We are looking for candidates that want to help support this mission---

• Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Based on estimates for Highland customer with large fleet
  
  Summary
  
  As the Vice President of Supply Chain and Procurement, you will lead Highland's global planning, sourcing, purchasing, logistics, and inventory strategy teams. You'll oversee relationships with vehicle OEMs and dealers, EV charging suppliers, and infrastructure providers, and play a critical role in supporting project execution and ongoing contractual relationships by ensuring timely delivery of vehicles, charging systems, and parts.
  
  This executive role will shape Highland's long-term supply chain strategy to ensure reliability, cost-effectiveness, and scalability across new product lines, vehicle categories (e.g., transit vans, municipal fleets), and geographies. You'll also build and lead a high-performing team that delivers operational excellence from procurement through project fulfillment through ongoing project support.
  
  Strategic Leadership
  
  
  • Define and execute Highland's end-to-end supply chain and procurement strategy, aligned with supporting ongoing growth in its school bus market and expansion into new vehicle categories, geographic markets, and service offerings
  • Lead sourcing and supply partnerships across vehicles, chargers, infrastructure, and third-party logistics (3PL) providers
  • Lead strategic sourcing initiatives for new "white fleet" verticals across light, medium, and heavy-duty vehicle categories, partnering with Business Development and Fleet Operations to deliver competitive value to customers.
  • Design scalable procurement processes and supplier strategies to support long-term growth
    
    Vendor Management and Negotiations
    
    
    • Build and manage relationships with OEMs, medium and heavy-duty dealer networks, EV charging manufacturers, and other power infrastructure suppliers to secure favorable commercial terms and ensure long-term supply continuity
    • Oversee sourcing and contracting for both turnkey fleet and charging infrastructure deployments
    • Manage RFIs, RFPs, and strategic sourcing events for major equipment and service categories
    • Develop long-term MSAs, multi-year purchasing commitments, and other strategies to drive down the cost of electric vehicles
      
      Project Logistics & On-Time Delivery
      
      
      • Develop and manage logistics plans that align supplier production schedules, charger installations, and vehicle deliveries with project timelines
      • Collaborate across Highland's entire organization to ensure coordinated execution and communication
      • Optimize freight, warehousing, and delivery strategies to minimize cost and risk
        
        Inventory, Parts & Aftermarket Management
        
        
        • Establish policies and systems for forecasting, inventory control, and aftermarket parts availability to support fleet uptime
        • Partner with Fleet Operations to implement a new enterprise asset management system, integrating procurement, operations, and engineering functions to drive process efficiency and system standardization
        • Develop a parts supply network in collaboration with OEMs and service partners
        • Monitor and manage Highland's inventory to meet customer demand while minimizing holding costs
          
          Operational Excellence
          
          
          • Define KPIs and lead continuous improvement initiatives in procurement efficiency, cost savings, lead times, quality, and service performance
          • Lead supply risk assessments and business continuity planning, including vendor diversification and mitigation strategies
          • Build and manage a high-performance team across supply chain, procurement, logistics, and vendor relations functions.
            
            Desired Qualifications
            
            
            • Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree (MBA, MS Supply Chain/Engineering) strongly preferred.
            • 10+ years of leadership experience in procurement, supply chain, or logistics-preferably in automotive, EV, energy, or fleet sectors
            • Experience scaling supply chain and procurement functions in high-growth or startup environments, in particular in industries deploying new technology
            • Demonstrated success negotiating complex agreements with medium and heavy-duty OEMs, dealers, and EV charger manufacturers
            • Strong experience with vehicle supply chains, capital equipment procurement, and/or infrastructure projects
            • Deep understanding of supply chain risk mitigation, logistics optimization, and vendor performance tracking
            • Experience with people management; fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, curiosity, and continuous improvement with a team of all levels of professional experience
            • Proven ability to align cross-functional stakeholders and manage across a matrixed organization
            • Familiarity with ERP and procurement software platforms (e.g., NetSuite, Hexagon)
            • Executive presence, excellent communication skills, and strong financial acumen
            • Willingness to travel as needed to visit suppliers, OEMs, and project sites
              
              $245,000 - $275,000 a year
              
              What You Can Expect From Highland
              
              
              • Competitive base salary and performance-based bonus program
              • A supportive, highly collaborative, team-oriented environment
              • Opportunities to make a difference, be heard, add value, and be recognized
              • Growth and development with a leader in this new and exciting industry
              • Ability to work with bright, innovative, and forward-thinking colleagues
              • Health, Vision, and Dental coverage for employees & their dependents
              • Life insurance, public transportation assistance
              • Generous Paid Time Off
              • 401(k) program and company match
                
                Highland Electric Fleets provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, Highland Electric Fleets complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.
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Keywords: Highland Electric Fleets, Chelsea , Vice President of Supply Chain, Professions , Beverly, Massachusetts