Margin Sr Consultant - Supply Chain

Sr Consultant – Supply Chain / Margin Consultant

Duration: 3+ months – may be extended based on performance. Experience: 5+ years. Travel: 50-75% to CHSLI (Long Island, NY). Must be authorized to work.

The Senior Supply Chain Consultant is a critical execution role within Optum’s Supply Chain Advisory Services practice.

This is not a support role — it is a category ownership role.

• You will own end-to-end sourcing waves for healthcare clients — from opportunity identification and spend benchmarking through vendor negotiation, implementation, and validated savings capture.
• Working with guidance from a Manager or Director, you are expected to run your categories independently, engage directly with department heads and supply chain leadership, and deliver results that move the savings pipeline forward.
• You will apply structured sourcing methodology (strategic sourcing, should-cost modeling, total cost of ownership analysis, market basket benchmarking) to drive measurable cost reductions across clinical and non-clinical supply chain categories.
• You will manage your own workstreams, produce client-ready deliverables, and mentor Consultants and Analysts assigned to your categories.
• Candidates should be comfortable operating across a mix of category types and should bring real healthcare supply chain engagement experience.
• During the interview process, you will have the opportunity to discuss your category strengths and preferred operating areas.

Required skills

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Healthcare Administration, Business, or related field.
• 4+ years of healthcare supply chain experience with direct involvement in sourcing, benchmarking, contracting, or cost reduction initiatives.
• 3+ years of experience executing end-to-end sourcing engagements — from opportunity identification through negotiation and savings validation.
• Demonstrated proficiency with structured sourcing methodology (strategic sourcing, should-cost modeling, total cost of ownership, market basket benchmarking).
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUPs, INDEX/MATCH, data modeling) with the ability to work with large-scale AP and spend datasets.
• Ability to develop client-ready presentations and present complex financial analyses to department heads and supply chain leadership.
• Experience managing multiple concurrent sourcing categories with competing timelines.
• Comfortable navigating healthcare supply chain contracts, GPO pricing structures, and vendor dynamics.
• Willingness to travel approximately 25-50% depending on client engagement (typically 1 week per month on-site).

Desired skills

• Experience with health system supply chain consulting (advisory, gainshare, or managed services engagements).
• Familiarity across both clinical (med/surg, surgical, PPI, lab) and non-clinical (purchased services, facilities, capital) categories.
• Experience with Value Analysis Committee processes, physician preference item reviews, and product standardization programs.
• Understanding of GPO contracting structures, tier compliance, committed volume programs, and regional purchasing coalition models.
• Experience with supply chain analytics platforms, ERP systems (Workday, Oracle, Infor), or BI tools (Tableau, Power BI).
• Lean/Six Sigma certification or process improvement methodology experience.
• Prior consulting experience at a healthcare advisory firm (e.g., Huron, Vizient, Premier, Deloitte, or similar).

Primary Responsibilities

• Own assigned sourcing categories through the full sourcing lifecycle: opportunity identification, spend analysis, benchmarking, RFP/RFI execution, negotiation support, implementation, and savings validation.
• Apply structured sourcing methodology including strategic sourcing frameworks, should-cost modeling, total cost of ownership analysis, and market basket benchmarking to size and capture savings.
• Conduct detailed spend analysis, utilization benchmarking, and pricing comparisons using AP data, item masters, and contract databases.
• Develop sourcing recommendations supported by data‑driven business cases, competitive bid analyses, and market intelligence.
• Lead or support vendor negotiations and contract structuring alongside Managers and Directors.
• Drive product standardization, SKU rationalization, and vendor consolidation initiatives across assigned categories.
• Track and validate savings through implementation, ensuring projected value is captured, documented, and reported accurately.
• Manage GPO contract compliance, tier optimization, and committed volume program analysis for assigned categories.

This is a remote position.