Strategic Procurement Manager

Who we are

Our mission at FHLBank Chicago: To partner with our members in Illinois and Wisconsin to provide them competitively priced funding, a reasonable return on their investment, and support for their community investment activities.

Simply said, we’re a bank for banks and other financial institutions, focused on being a strategic partner for our members and working together to reinvest in our communities, from urban centers to rural areas. Created by Congress in 1932, FHLBank Chicago is one of 11 Federal Home Loan Banks, government sponsored in support of mortgage lending and community investment.

What it’s like to work here

At FHLBank Chicago, we bring people together. We are committed to a high‑performing, engaged workforce and to supporting the communities we serve across Illinois and Wisconsin. Our Buddy Program pairs new hires with tenured employees to guide their onboarding. Our professional development and training opportunities—through upskilling, mentorship programs, and tuition reimbursement—allow employees to grow their careers with us. Our collaborative, in‑office operating model brings teams together to foster innovation, connection, and shared success. To support balance and flexibility, employees are provided an allocation of remote days to use as needed throughout the year.

What you’ll do

The Strategic Procurement Manager plays a critical role in advancing the Bank’s Strategic Sourcing and Vendor Management (SSVM) objectives by translating enterprise and category strategy into consistent, executable sourcing outcomes. This role provides strategic oversight of sourcing activities, including RFPs and complex negotiations, while guiding Business Partners to apply standards, commercial judgment, and best practices across engagements.

Serving as a bridge between strategy and execution, the Strategic Procurement Manager ensures sourcing decisions reinforce preferred supplier programs, strategic cost management goals, and risk‑aligned standards. This role manages and coaches direct reports, sets priorities, and ensures consistent application of sourcing standards across engagements, while partnering closely with SSVM leadership on strategy, escalation, and continuous improvement.

How you’ll make an impact

• Bring sourcing strategy to life — Partner with leaders and stakeholders to guide RFPs, negotiations, and supplier selection that deliver strong value and support preferred supplier relationships.

• Make complex sourcing easier to navigate — Provide thoughtful commercial leadership on high‑impact engagements, helping balance cost, risk, and business needs.

• Grow people and practices together — Lead, coach, and develop a sourcing team while building consistent frameworks and scalable ways of working across the organization.

What you can expect

• Define and evolve strategic sourcing approaches by category, including when to leverage preferred suppliers versus competitive sourcing.

• Lead, coach, and develop a team responsible for sourcing execution, ensuring consistent application of standards, tools, and best practices.

• Provide strategic oversight of RFPs and major sourcing events to ensure alignment with category strategy, evaluation standards, and commercial intent.

• Translate sourcing strategy into reusable standards, including RFP frameworks, evaluation criteria, commercial guardrails, and negotiation posture.

• Lead and support the Bank’s most complex and high‑impact negotiations where spend, risk, or strategic importance warrants senior commercial judgment.

• Set priorities, allocate work, and remove obstacles for the sourcing team to enable efficient execution and timely decisions.

• Use spend, contract, and sourcing data to identify consolidation opportunities, leverage, and improvements to sourcing models.

• Partner with SSVM leadership to align sourcing thresholds, capacity, and engagement models to focus effort where it delivers the greatest value.

What you’ll bring

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Supply Chain, or a related field, or equivalent work experience.

• 8+ years of experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, or commercial negotiation within a regulated or complex enterprise environment.

• 3+ years of experience leading or managing professionals, including setting priorities, coaching performance, and developing talent.

• Demonstrated experience leading complex sourcing events and negotiations, including RFP development, evaluation, and vendor selection.

• Strong commercial and contract judgment with the ability to balance cost, risk, and execution considerations.

• Proven ability to translate strategy into practical standards and guide others in applying them consistently.

• Excellent stakeholder management, communication, and influencing skills across business, legal, risk, and executive audiences.

• Strong analytical skills and comfort using data to inform sourcing and negotiation decisions.

• High degree of professionalism, judgment, and commitment to ethical and regulatory standards.

The Perks

At FHLBank Chicago, we believe in rewarding our high‑performing workforce. We offer a competitive compensation and bonus program, along with a comprehensive benefits package designed to meet the needs of our employees. Our retirement program includes both a 401(k) and a pension plan. Our wellbeing program supports employees at work and in their personal lives, including generous paid time off, paid holidays, a Lifestyle Spending Account to support wellbeing activities, and a centrally located downtown office at the Old Post Office with easy access to public transportation and breathtaking rooftop views. Visit FHLBCbenefits.com for additional details.

Salary Range:

The above represents the expected salary range for this job requisition.  Ultimately, in determining your pay, we may also consider your experience, and other job-related factors. In addition to the base salary, we offer a comprehensive benefits package which can be found here: https://hrportal.ehr.com/fhlbc