Sourcing Manager, ODM/OEM Systems

Lambda, The Superintelligence Cloud, is a leader in AI cloud infrastructure serving tens of thousands of customers. Our customers range from AI researchers to enterprises and hyperscalers. Lambda's mission is to make compute as ubiquitous as electricity and give everyone the power of superintelligence. One person, one GPU.

If you'd like to build the world's best AI cloud, join us.

*Note: This position requires presence in our San Jose or San Francisco office location 4 days per week; Lambda’s designated work from home day is currently Tuesday.

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Sourcing Manager to manage the ODM/OEM landscape for Lambda's data center hardware, as part of the team focused on managing our system level ODM/OEM Finished Good Racks & Networking that power our rapidly growing AI cloud footprint.

You will own the end-to-end commercial and sourcing relationship with our ODM and OEM partners: selecting the right partner for each platform, running competitive RFQ/RFP events, negotiating build agreements and finished-goods pricing, driving cost transparency down through the bill of materials, and securing manufacturing capacity and ramp commitments that keep pace with our deployment schedule.

The ideal candidate knows how this hardware actually gets built. You are comfortable evaluating an ODM's integration and test capability, debating a BOM cost roll-up line by line, negotiating NRE and tooling for a new platform, and holding a partner accountable to a ramp schedule — while operating fluidly across global manufacturing footprints.

You will work closely with Engineering, Finance, Legal, and Supply Chain Planning, Global Commodity Managers and Operations to bring new platforms from concept through mass production and scaled deployment.

What You’ll Do

ODM/OEM Sourcing Strategy

Own and execute the ODM/OEM sourcing strategy for your assigned finished-goods portfolio, including full-system integration, rack integration, and factory test.

Map and continuously assess the ODM/OEM landscape — capability, capacity, technology readiness, quality track record, financial health, and manufacturing footprint — and recommend the right partner for each platform and program.

Build multi-partner strategies that create competitive leverage and protect supply: dual-sourcing at the platform level, qualified alternates, and regional footprint diversification.

Develop platform sourcing strategies aligned to the hardware and network architecture roadmaps, deployment forecast, and long-term data center growth plans.

Evaluate build-versus-buy and disaggregation trade-offs — branded OEM versus white-box/ODM, turnkey versus consigned, and vendor-integrated versus Lambda-integrated racks.

Maintain deep market intelligence on the ODM/OEM ecosystem, finished-goods build economics, integration capacity, and how peers and hyperscalers are structuring their build relationships.

Commercial Negotiation & Contracting

Lead system-level commercial negotiations with ODM and OEM partners, including:

Master manufacturing, build, and supply agreements

System and rack-level pricing, conversion/integration cost, and margin structures

Bill of materials cost transparency, should-cost models, and cost-down roadmaps

Capacity reservations, build slot commitments, and ramp/flex terms

Non-recurring engineering (NRE), tooling, and new platform development agreements

Software, firmware, licensing, and support/subscription entitlements bundled with hardware

Buffer, liability, cancellation, and inventory ownership terms

Quality, warranty, RMA, sparing, service, and on-site support terms

Logistics terms, Incoterms, and delivery/lead-time commitments

Build negotiation strategies that balance total landed cost, supply security, and configuration flexibility.

Drive competitive RFQ/RFP events end to end — requirements definition, bid packages, cost analysis, partner selection, and award.

Partner with Legal and Finance to structure and finalize contracts, commercial terms, and pricing mechanisms.

Partner Management

Manage day-to-day and executive-level relationships with strategic ODM and OEM partners.

Lead quarterly business reviews, scorecards, escalation management, and performance improvement plans across cost, quality, delivery, and responsiveness.

Partner with ODMs/OEMs on manufacturing capacity planning, build slot allocation, roadmap alignment, and production readiness.

Serve as the primary commercial point of contact and escalation owner for assigned platforms and partners.

Manage the commercial interface for key components sourced or procured through the ODM/OEM, including pass-through pricing, buy/sell decisions, and consigned versus turnkey structures.

Coordinate with adjacent sourcing owners so cost, capacity, and schedule commitments stay aligned where compute, storage, and networking platforms are deployed together as integrated clusters.

New Product Introduction & Ramp

Support new platform and technology introductions from EVT through PVT to mass production, owning the commercial workstream at each gate.

Align build schedules, qualification timelines, and capacity ramps with deployment commitments.

Drive early sourcing engagement so manufacturability, cost, and capacity are designed in rather than negotiated after the fact.

Manage engineering change commercial impact, cost deltas, and transition/inventory exposure across build phases.

Cross-Functional Partnership

Partner with Hardware, Network, and Data Center Engineering to translate platform, fabric, power, thermal, and rack requirements into sourcing and commercial strategies.

Work with Supply Chain Planning to align partner manufacturing capacity and lead times with demand forecasts.

Partner with Finance on system and rack cost models, budget planning, capex forecasting, and savings tracking.

Provide market insight and recommendations to leadership on partner selection, cost trends, and build strategy.

Risk, Cost & Supply Resilience

Develop and maintain supply continuity plans for the ODM/OEM base that address:

Total landed cost and cost optimization

Manufacturing capacity availability and build slot risk

Lead time, long-lead component exposure, and buffer strategy

Geographic, tariff, trade compliance, and geopolitical risk across manufacturing sites

Partner financial and operational risk

Quality escapes, field failures, and warranty exposure

Proactively identify and mitigate risk across the ODM/OEM partner base and the systems they build for us.

You

8+ years of experience in Strategic Sourcing, Procurement, ODM/OEM Management, or Supply Chain roles, with direct experience sourcing finished goods at the system or rack level — compute, storage, networking, or integrated hardware platforms.

Demonstrated experience negotiating and managing build and supply agreements with ODMs, OEMs, or contract manufacturers (e.g., Taiwan- and China-based ODMs, tier-one server or networking OEMs, or global CMs).

Strong command of system-level cost structure: BOM cost roll-up, should-cost analysis, conversion and integration cost, NRE and tooling, and total landed cost.

Experience owning platform-level partner selection and managing partners through NPI, qualification, and mass production ramp.

Strong understanding of hardware manufacturing operations — integration, system test, rack build, logistics, and the realities of ramping in a global footprint.

Proven track record leading complex commercial negotiations and delivering measurable cost, capacity, and supply outcomes.

Strong analytical, financial, and business acumen.

Experience operating in constrained, long-lead-time, high-growth supply environments.

Ability to build effective relationships with senior partner executives and internal cross-functional stakeholders, including across time zones and cultures.

Nice To Have

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