Background
The world around us is experiencing significant change, the greatest in generations.
At Motion Applied, we’re accelerating the response to that change. Our vision is that our people and technologies will pioneer a better future. Our mission is to achieve breakthroughs in performance.
We’re at the cutting edge of innovation in industries including automotive transportation and motorsport. We create solutions that drive efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
We want to help to reduce the carbon footprint and become more sustainable.
Our focus is on electrification and telemetry, control and analytics.
To deliver efficient lightweight electric powertrain and vehicle development; motorsport solutions that make series more sustainable and efficient; reliable connectivity solutions for transportation and insightful analytics and monitoring of transport fleets.
By applying our expertise, we deliver real benefits and pioneer a better future.
Role Summary
The Purchasing Team Lead is responsible for leading the purchasing function at an operational level while delivering strategic sourcing and commercial value. The role combines hands-on senior buying responsibility with people leadership, ensuring supply continuity, cost control, and supplier performance in line with business objectives.
Key Accountabilities
- Provide day-to-day leadership, coaching, and guidance to the purchasing team
- Plan and prioritise workload to meet operational, programme, and production requirements
- Lead sourcing, supplier selection, and negotiations for high-value or high-risk categories
- Develop and maintain long-term supplier agreements and pricing structures
- Drive cost reduction, cost avoidance, and total cost of ownership improvement initiatives
- Own strategic supplier relationships, including performance reviews and corrective actions
- Manage supplier escalations, shortages, and recovery plans to protect supply continuity
- Oversee purchase order accuracy, material availability, and delivery performance
- Ensure compliance with procurement policies, contractual requirements, and audit standards
- Contribute to supply chain risk identification and mitigation planning
- Support continuous improvement of purchasing processes, systems, and data quality
Decision Making & Authority
Has authority to select suppliers, approve sourcing strategies, and lead commercial negotiations within delegated limits. Provides recommendations and escalates decisions relating to high-value contracts, supply risk, or strategic impact.
Knowledge, Skills & Experience
Essential: Proven experience in a senior purchasing or strategic buying role within a manufacturing or engineering environment. Demonstrated ability to lead, coach, or mentor purchasing professionals. Strong commercial and negotiation capability. Experience using ERP/MRP systems and advanced Excel for analysis and reporting.
Desirable: Category management experience, exposure to regulated or ISO-certified environments, and professional procurement qualification (e.g. CIPS).
Key Interfaces
Internal: Engineering, Operations, Programmes, Quality, Finance.
External: Strategic, critical, and development suppliers.
Job Evaluation Indicators
Complexity: Medium–High
Autonomy: Moderate with defined escalation thresholds
People Responsibility: Direct team leadership
Financial Impact: Direct influence over cost, working capital, and supplier commercial terms
Risk Exposure: Supply continuity, supplier performance, and contractual risk
What we can offer you
In return for everything you bring to the table, we can ensure an exciting, challenging role in a dynamic business surrounded by some of the best people in their respective fields.
At Motion Applied we firmly believe it’s the relationships and friendships we create while working that make us special. We’re also aware that the world is changing and we are part of that change. We all want and need different things from our work and home lives, so, if you have commitments outside of work, we’re open to talking through flexible working options that work for you and us.
- Annual leave (25 days + bank holidays, pro-rated for part time colleagues).
- Enhanced Company Maternity, Paternity and Adoption leave and pay.
- Flexible working policies, including Hybrid Working.
- Life assurance to the value of 4 times base salary
- Opportunity to join the Motion Applied Pension Plan
- Company funded individual private healthcare with the opportunity to extend to partner or spouse and/or dependents at a discounted rate.
- Electric car scheme – opportunity to drive a brand-new car in a more affordable way through this salary sacrifice scheme. Employees are eligible to join the scheme after successful competition of their probationary period.
Who we are
Motion Applied are a medium-sized tech firm spun out of McLaren Group. We’re looking for people who will thrive in a non-hierarchical, growth-orientated company, self-starters who are flexible and somewhat entrepreneurial in their approach.
Motion Applied are committed to Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI) and promote DEI in all we do. Motion Applied are also members of the UK Government Disability Confident Scheme.