VP Supply Chain
VP Supply Chain Build the supply chain function of a fast-growing hardware/software scaleup from the ground up. Own the commercial relationship with our contract manufacturer. Run cost-down programs that deliver millions in COGS savings. Sit at the design table with our hardware engineers from concept stage, shaping the next generation of our product before BOM lock. This is a foundational role on the operations leadership team, reporting to the COO. We've grown to ~120 people, gone international across five markets, and built a product farmers love. The next chapter is about scaling the engine behind it, and we're hiring a VP Supply Chain to lead that work. About Nofence We invented virtual fencing for livestock. Farmers draw a fence in our app; our GPS-enabled collars guide animals using audio cues, with a mild pulse only as a last resort. The result: rotational grazing without physical fencing, animals that graze land that would otherwise go unused, and farmers who get their evenings back. We're a Norwegian scaleup, well-funded, growing fast across Norway, Sweden, the UK & Ireland, the US, and Spain. We design our hardware and software in-house, collars, PCBA, battery, plastics, app, backend, the lot, and partner with an EMS for manufacturing. What You'll Own Strategic sourcing. Build direct commercial relationships with Tier 1 suppliers across our top BOM categories, semiconductors, battery cells, plastics, mechanicals. Negotiate pricing and supply commitments. Make should-cost analysis a standing discipline, not a one-off project. The EMS commercial relationship. Renegotiate our manufacturing agreement to drive transparency and unlock cost-down levers. Establish a structured cadence with EMS leadership. Be the senior commercial point of contact; partner with the VP Manufacturing on execution. Design-for-cost with engineering. Embed sourcing intelligence into product development from concept stage. Bring should-cost data, supplier capability insights, and component roadmap visibility to design decisions before BOM lock. Establish DfC gates in the NPI process. Turn design-for-cost from a slogan into a discipline. The operational engine. Run sales and operations planning, logistics, inventory, and flow. Translate the commercial forecast into rolling commitments. Build the planning capability the company needs as we scale. You'll inherit a small, capable team and grow it deliberately, likely adding sourcing, planning, refurb, and buyer roles over the next 6–18 months.
What We're Looking For
- 10–15+ years of supply chain leadership in hardware, with both OEM and EMS exposure. You've sat on both sides of the table.
- A track record of real COGS reduction. You can talk specifically about programs you've led, the savings delivered, and how you got there.
- Direct experience renegotiating EMS commercial agreements, pricing structure, transparency clauses, AVL governance, consignment economics. You know what good looks like because you've done it.
- Strategic sourcing depth in electronics. Relationships with Tier 1 component suppliers, or the credibility to build them quickly.
- Real partnership with engineering. You can hold your own in a technical conversation about component selection, second-source qualification, or DfM/DfC tradeoffs, and engineers respect you for it.
We care more about what you've done than where you did it. If you've delivered real COGS-down in hardware scaleups or EMS-led setups, we want to talk. Practical Details
- Reports to: Axel Lindnér, COO
- Direct reports: 1 (Logistics Manager) at start, growing to ~4 within the first year
- Location: Open across Europe. Regular travel to our Norwegian HQ and to our EMS. Stockholm or Oslo a plus, not required.
- Languages: Our working language is English. Norwegian or Swedish is a bonus, not a requirement
- Process: First conversation with the COO, then interviews with the CEO, CPTO, VP Manufacturing, and a panel. Reference and case discussion in the final stage. We move quickly for the right candidate.
Why This Is Worth Your Time Most VP Supply Chain roles at this stage are about keeping the trains running. This one is different. The mandate is to build, the COGS opportunity is real and quantifiable, and the leadership team, CEO, CPTO, VP Manufacturing, COO, is genuinely aligned on what success looks like. You'll be hired to do strategic work, given the scope to do it, and backed when it gets hard. We're a serious company with a product that works, customers who love it, and a long runway ahead. If that's the role you've been waiting for, we'd like to hear from you.