Location: Greater Munich (Hybrid) | Erding
Language: German (Fluent) & English (Fluent)
Compensation: Depending on your experience, qualifications, and performance (60k-100k)
Technical Buyer (f/m/d) - Hardware Procurement & Supplier Management (m/f/d)
Erding
Full-time
Permanent employee
Key Facts
The Mission & Role
Lateration's Mission
Our technologies help police and military forces make better decisions under pressure and operate more effectively in complex situations. Lateration develops next-generation systems that combine field sensors, secure communications, and intelligent data processing to provide reliable operational awareness in modern defense environments.
Your Mission
If you are the kind of technical buyer who enjoys turning engineering requirements into reliable supplier solutions, can navigate between drawings, specifications, lead times and commercial terms, and wants to help build the procurement backbone of a growing hardware business, read on. You will take ownership of the operational procurement of direct hardware materials and components, in particular electronic components, working closely with Engineering, Production, Quality, Supply Chain and Logistics. Your contribution will be visible from the first request for quotation through supplier selection, supplier quality, purchase order, delivery and issue resolution. The goal is simple: the right component, from the right supplier, at the right quality, cost and time.
What You Will Do
• Technical Procurement of Hardware Components: You procure direct materials, components, assemblies and technical services based on production requirements, forecasts, engineering needs and approved specifications. Your focus is on hardware-related items such as mechanical parts, electronics, cables, PCBs, batteries, sensors, fasteners and other production-critical components, including suppliers for Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS).
• Requirements & Specification Alignment: You work with R&D, Engineering, Production, Quality and Supply Chain to understand technical requirements, drawings, bills of materials, specifications, quantities and delivery needs. You clarify open points early and ensure that suppliers receive complete and consistent information.
• RFQs, Supplier Selection & Purchase Orders: You obtain and compare quotations, prepare sourcing decisions, negotiate commercial and technical terms, and process requisitions and purchase orders in the ERP system. You ensure that purchasing decisions are traceable and aligned with internal approval processes.
• Supplier Relationship & Performance Management: You build reliable relationships with existing and potential suppliers, monitor delivery, quality and responsiveness, and support the evaluation and development of supplier performance.
• Delivery, Shortage & Escalation Management: You track order confirmations, delivery schedules and purchase order due dates. Where risks arise, you coordinate escalations and mitigation measures with Production, Supply Chain, Quality and Logistics.
• Continuous Improvement & Procurement Transparency: You help improve procurement workflows, supplier data, lead-time visibility, cost transparency and reporting. You contribute to a scalable purchasing setup rather than relying on individual knowledge or manual workarounds.
Your first 5 months – What You’ll Be Proud to Have Achieved
• Procurement scope mapped: The key hardware components, suppliers, specifications, lead times and current procurement risks are documented and transparent.
• Core suppliers aligned: Relevant suppliers understand our requirements, communication paths, quality expectations and delivery priorities.
• RFQ and PO process stabilized: Requests, quotations, approvals, purchase orders and order confirmations follow a clear and traceable process.
• Delivery risks visible: Critical shortages, long-lead items and supplier risks are identified early and actively managed with the relevant teams.
• ERP procurement basics established: Purchasing master data, supplier information and transaction routines support reliable reporting and operational execution.
Who We Are Looking For
Experience & Education: Degree or vocational qualification in purchasing, supply chain, industrial engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering or a related field. Relevant experience in technical purchasing, procurement or supplier management, ideally in a hardware, manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, robotics or electronics environment.
• Technical Understanding: You can read and interpret technical drawings, bills of materials, specifications and supplier documentation. You do not need to be an engineer, but you can engage confidently with technical stakeholders and suppliers.
• Procurement Expertise: You understand RFQs, quotations, purchase orders, delivery terms, negotiations and supplier performance management. Experience with direct materials and production-related procurement is highly desirable.
• ERP & Data Affinity: You are comfortable working with ERP procurement processes and understand the importance of accurate supplier, material and order data. Experience with SAP or a comparable ERP system is an advantage.
• Ownership & Execution: You are structured, reliable and proactive. You can manage several priorities, follow up consistently and escalate issues early when delivery, quality or cost are at risk.
• Communication: Fluent German and English for daily collaboration with suppliers and internal teams across different departments.
Clearance: Due to the nature of our work, you must be eligible for a German security clearance (SÜ2/Ü2). Generally, this requires German citizenship or long-term residency within EU/NATO countries.
Why Join Us?
• Mission with Real Impact: Your procurement decisions directly support the hardware backbone of technology used in demanding security and defense environments.
• Visible Ownership: You will help shape technical procurement processes, supplier relationships and the hardware supply base during an important growth phase.
• Cross-Functional Leverage: You work at the interface of Engineering, Production, Quality, Supply Chain, Logistics and Finance.
• Strong Team & Collaboration: Close collaboration, pragmatic decision-making and a team culture focused on solving problems rather than passing them on.
• Flexible & Supportive Environment: Remote-friendly setup with flexible working hours and a strong team culture.
Reporting & Coordination: The role is part of the Operations and Supply Chain setup and works closely with the responsible Operations leadership. The exact reporting line will be defined as the organization develops. The position is expected to contribute to a consistent end-to-end process from technical requirement and sourcing through production readiness and delivery.
Contact
- For information and questions: hr@lateration.de
- Direct application: recruiting@hr.lateration.de
About us
Lateration builds technology where failure is not an option.
We don't develop theoretical concept studies: We build field-ready systems that give armed forces an unfair tactical advantage. As a VC-backed defense tech startup headquartered in Munich, we deliver the communications and positioning backbone for critical defense programs. Our hardware and software ecosystems secure operational superiority under intense electronic warfare conditions: from GPS-denied navigation and tactical mesh networks to precise friend-or-foe identification. We are scaling our team from 40 to 70+ specialists and are looking for people who take full ownership at the system level. We don't need seat-fillers — we need builders who solve complex problems and bring uncompromising functional maturity directly to the field.