About Epirus
Epirus is a high-growth technology company dedicated to overcoming the asymmetric challenges inherent to the future of national security. Epirus' flagship product, Leonidas, is a software-defined system built using intelligent power management techniques which allow power-hungry systems to do more with less.
Job Summary:
This is an exciting role in a growing company. The ideal candidate for the Principal Category Manager position is someone who is a skilled negotiator, has a strong strategic supplier vision, and has experience setting supplier strategies for long-term success. You will be responsible for source selection from proposal to execution phases, including negotiating strong positions for Epirus and building and maintaining strong supplier relationships. You will work with engineering to develop specifications, work statements, and terms and conditions for the procurement of specialized materials, equipment, and/or services by preparing bid packages, ensuring competition, negotiating key provisions, select suppliers, and executing the award. This individual may be required to provide input and/or share their experience in establishing internal PCBA manufacturing, including capital equipment selection, preventative maintenance schedules, process flow, and identifying potential supplier needed working with production, advanced electronics, industrial and manufacturing engineering teams.
Duties
- Act as the sourcing and supplier expert in the PCBA space (specifically custom Epirus designs), but able to flex into multiple areas
- Collaborate across business functions to identify supplier needs and negotiate strong pricing, terms & schedules with suppliers for development and production programs
- Own and manage the full sourcing and procurement activities from development through production and final contract close out, including managing and avoiding cost & schedule scope creep
- Review cross-team capabilities and ensure the supply base has appropriate manufacturing capacity and quality yield to enable aggressive ramp up of production
- Manages the spend and supplier spend distribution for assigned mechanical commodities, including adding new suppliers as required
- Head supplier relationship by ensuring alignment to Epirus needs, define escalation protocol, and audit and inspect supplier’s facilities to accurately assess technical capability, equipment, and capacity for rapid deployment of new product development and long-term production
- Conduct comprehensive supplier analysis to inform ‘Make vs. Buy’ decisions, down select an optimal sourcing plan taking short term NPI requirements and long term production rates, technology replacement, price trend, market and industry position, and risk assessments into account
- Deliver a seamless transition of viable new technologies into the product development process managing risks while meeting quality, schedule, and cost goals.
- Collaborate across multiple functions to identify business needs, negotiate the right tradeoffs, solicit cooperation and resolve problems, and advance new supplier or product offerings.
- Mentor other supply chain team members in developing skills.
- Support other efforts, such as supply chain compliance, ERP development and other key company projects
Required Qualifications
- BS degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Business, Supply Chain, Operations Management or related field
- Minimum of 12 years of subcontract, commodity or supplier management experience OR minimum 8 years with a Master’s degree
- Understanding of supplier risk identification, mitigation and contingency planning
- Direct design for manufacturing or design for quality experience
- Previous experience in TCO analysis
- Previous experience in negotiation of price and terms and conditions, as well as awarding and managing supplier owned IP products or products designed from a statement of work
- Direct experience and understanding of the end to end PCB/PCBA manufacturing process flow
- Experience managing a program and working with cross-functional teams
- US Citizen and/or Permanent Resident (future security clearance may be required)
Desired Qualifications
- MBA preferred
- Aerospace/Defense experience and/or military experience
- Experience working with FAR/DFAR Experience in Earned Value Management or related financial management experience
- Component electronics manufacturing experience
- Good written and oral communication skills
- Collaborative; capable of working across all levels of the organization
- Organized; comfortable working in a fast-paced, ever-changing environment
ITAR REQUIREMENTS:
To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
At Epirus, you’ll work with technical peers and great people—and get first crack at some of the defining technology challenges of our time. Here, “impossible” is just a challenge. We're a diverse, fast-growing team of change-makers fueling the future of energy with revolutionary solutions. Join us and rewrite the rules.
Skills Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Business, Supply Chain, Operations Management, or a related field
- At least 12 years of subcontract, commodity, or supplier management experience, or at least 8 years with a master’s degree
- Supplier risk identification, mitigation, and contingency planning experience
- Direct design for manufacturing or design for quality experience
- Total cost of ownership analysis experience
- Experience negotiating price, terms, and conditions and managing supplier-owned intellectual property or statement-of-work-designed products
- End-to-end PCB/PCBA manufacturing process knowledge and experience
- Program management and cross-functional team experience
- U.S. citizenship and/or permanent resident status
- MBA
- Aerospace, defense, and/or military experience
- FAR/DFAR experience
- Earned Value Management or related financial management experience
- Component electronics manufacturing experience
- Strong written and oral communication skills
- Ability to collaborate across organizational levels
- Organization and comfort working in a fast-paced, changing environment
Epirus Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Epirus and has not been reviewed or approved by Epirus.
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Affordable Benefits — Medical coverage is presented as up to 100% employer‑paid on some plans, with dental/vision and mental‑health support included. Bundled wellness access (Calm, gyms) and no‑cost onsite meals further increase perceived total value without added employee expense.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time away is framed as generous, with unlimited PTO and 19 paid holidays including a winter break. Parental leave is also highlighted, signaling broad coverage for different life events.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) match of 6% is explicitly offered. This is positioned as competitive and contributes meaningful long‑term value.
Epirus Insights
What We Do
Epirus is a high-growth technology company developing solid-state, software-defined directed energy systems that enable unprecedented counter-electronics effects and power management solutions to optimize power efficiency in defense and commercial applications. With a constant emphasis on innovation, we are redefining the future of power to bring tomorrow’s capabilities to life, today. To deliver on our mission, we are always looking for problem solvers, changemakers and innovators to join our fast-growing team. People are the most important part of Epirus – and always come first. We don’t believe in the word impossible and are always asking “why not” as work to usher in a new paradigm of power efficiency. Our fast-growing team is agile, creative, and innovative. We support a culture of constant learning and sense of belonging among our team members and know that mentorship matters. We embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace and beyond. Visit our website to learn more. www.epirusinc.com
Why Work With Us
We're a people-first culture that ensures every employee is heard and has the opportunity to grow. At Epirus, we're using cutting edge technology and provide the ability to work with passionate team members. We truly believe that failure is not a setback, but an opportunity. We move fast and build cool things, come join us!
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