Principal Supplier Strategist / Small Business Advocate

Looking for an opportunity to make an impact? At Leidos, we deliver innovative solutions through the efforts of our diverse and talented people who are dedicated to our customers’ success. We empower our teams, contribute to our communities, and operate sustainable. Everything we do is built on a commitment to do the right thing for our customers, our people, and our community. Our Mission, Vision, and Values guide the way we do business. Your greatest work is ahead! Leidos’ Defense Sector is seeking a Principal Supplier Strategist / Small Business Advocate to join our team Occasional travel will be required for in-person engagements with internal customers and suppliers across multiple Leidos sites. This high impact role will report directly to the Vice President, Material and Procurement Operations and will serve as an integrated member of the Defense Contracts and Supply Chain organization. If this sounds like the kind of environment where you can thrive, keep reading! Leidos Defense Sector provides a diverse portfolio of systems, solutions, and services covering land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace for customers worldwide. Solutions for Defense include enterprise and mission command and control, and data analytics, cybersecurity, logistics, training, and operations support. Our team is solving the world’s toughest security challenges for customers with “can’t fail” missions. To explore and learn more, click here ! Are you ready to make an impact? Begin your journey of a flourishing and meaningful career, share your resume with us today! Leidos Defense Sector Contracts and Supply Chain is seeking a forward-thinking Principal Supplier Strategist / Small Business Advocate to join a diverse team focused on creating unique solutions for complex programs supporting the Defense Sector. This high-impact role will report directly to the Vice President, Material and Procurement Operations, and will serve as an integrated member of the Defense Contracts and Supply Chain organization. The Principal Supplier Strategist / Small Business Advocate will shape Sector supplier strategy to enable competitive growth across Programs of Record and strategic capture pursuits. This individual will manage strategic supplier relationships, drive long-term agreement negotiations, support supply base optimization, and advance small business utilization goals across the Defense Sector. The successful candidate will lead development and oversight of small business plans, support compliance reporting, and help position the supply base for future program success. This role is ideal for a strategic supply chain leader who thrives in complex, government-regulated environments and understands how supplier ecosystems support mission-critical defense objectives. Key Responsibilities Lead Sector supplier strategy development across priority Defense programs and capture pursuits, aligning sourcing approaches with Sector growth objectives, customer needs, affordability goals, and mission requirements. Develop and maintain an Sector view of supplier/subcontractor spend across Defense programs to identify common product and service categories, duplicated buys, supplier concentration, and opportunities to aggregate demand. Analyze supplier use across Defense programs to identify suppliers with broad Sector reach, including those supporting three or more programs or multiple product and service categories. Segment the Defense supplier base into strategic partners, leverage opportunities, critical/risk suppliers, small business partners, and transactional suppliers based on spend, program reach, product/service diversity, mission criticality, performance, risk, and growth relevance. Drive strategic sourcing actions, including demand consolidation, make/buy recommendations, competitive sourcing strategies, Sector-term negotiations, long-term agreement development, supplier performance governance, and supplier risk mitigation. Lead negotiations and execution of strategic long-term agreements with key suppliers to support supply continuity, affordability, innovation, and long-term procurement savings. Conduct market analysis, supplier landscape reviews, and supply base assessments to identify strategic sourcing opportunities, capability gaps, emerging supplier options, and supplier development priorities. Collaborate with Contracts, Supply Chain, Business Development, Program Management, Engineering, Manufacturing, Finance, and other stakeholders to integrate supplier strategies early in capture, proposal, and program lifecycles. Represent Defense Sector Contracts and Supply Chain leadership in strategic sourcing reviews, program gate reviews, supplier strategy sessions, and business growth campaigns. Serve as the Defense Sector advocate for small business engagement, ensuring supplier strategies support FAR/DFARS requirements, customer commitments, and small business participation goals. Oversee development, coordination, and execution of Small Business Subcontracting Plans for proposals and active programs. Monitor, analyze, and report performance against small business objectives to internal stakeholders, external customers, and applicable government reporting channels. Lead Defense Sector support for Summary Subcontracting Report and Individual Subcontract Report submissions, coordinating with programs, subcontractors, and internal stakeholders to ensure subcontracting plans and reports are submitted in accordance with government requirements and regulations. Promote long-term partnerships with diverse suppliers and support supplier development initiatives that enhance capability, compliance, competitiveness, innovation, and mission readiness. Build executive-level dashboards, heat maps, and supplier analytics that provide leadership with visibility into cross-program spend patterns, supplier concentration, strategic sourcing opportunities, small business performance, savings opportunities, and