Supply Chain Manager

About the role

About LUMILENS At Lumilens we are building the critical photonics infrastructure that powers tomorrow’s AI supercomputing. From chip-to-chip optical interconnects to scalable photonic engines, Lumilens is unlocking a new era of computing - faster, cooler, and massively more efficient. We’re a well-funded startup backed by Mayfield and led by veterans who’ve built and scaled some of the most transformative technologies in the industry. At Lumilens, we’re developing high-speed photonics products purpose-built to power the future of AI infrastructure and high-performance computing. This isn’t incremental innovation, it’s a ground-floor opportunity to rethink the optical layer from the silicon up. You’ll work alongside a team of world-class engineers solving some of the hardest challenges in scaling optical systems. If you're looking for mission, momentum, and the chance to make an outsized impact, jump on the rocket ship. We’re just getting started. Role Overview We are seeking an experienced Supply Chain Manager to lead sourcing strategy and end-to-end supply chain management for optical and photonic components — including lasers, photonic integrated circuits (PICs), photodetectors (PDs), fiber array units (FAUs), This role owns supplier identification, qualification, negotiation, and relationship management across a global supply base, while also ensuring supplier capacity, lead times, and allocations stay aligned with build schedules and ramp requirements. The ideal candidate combines strong sourcing/negotiation expertise with supply chain planning fluency and enough technical grounding in optics/photonics to evaluate supplier capability and de-risk single-source dependencies. Key Responsibilities Supply Chain Planning & Allocation - Translate plans and forecasts into supplier capacity requirements and allocation requests for sourced commodities. - Monitor supplier lead times, allocation cycles, and delivery commitments, and flag gaps against build schedules early. - Coordinate with planning and production teams to align supplier capacity and delivery commitments with prototype, pilot, and production build schedules. - Develop and manage supply plans, balancing demand forecasts, inventory targets, and manufacturing capabilities across global partners - Establish planning processes, metrics, and governance to enable consistent, data-driven decision making - Lead continuous improvement initiatives to enhance supply chain agility, efficiency, a responsiveness in a fast-scale environment Supplier Identification & Qualification - Lead supplier qualification activities in partnership with engineering and quality teams (technical audits, sample evaluation, process capability review). - Assess supplier financial health, manufacturing capacity, and technology roadmap alignment. - Support commercial negotiations for pricing, capacity commitments, and supply agreements with optics/photonics suppliers - Partner with engineering and product teams to translate technology roadmaps into sourcing plans, well ahead of production needs. - Own cost-reduction roadmaps for key commodities, tracking savings against targets. Supply Risk Management - Maintain visibility of long-lead and critical-path optical components across the supply base. - Proactively identify and mitigate supply risks: allocation constraints, single-source exposure, geopolitical/export-control exposure, and capacity shortfalls. - Build contingency and dual-source plans for critical components identified as at-risk. Cross-Functional Collaboration - Partner cross-functionally with engineering, operations, and program management to translate product requirements into scalable supply chain strategies - Work closely with engineering on component specifications, alternate part qualification, and second-source enablement. - Support contract manufacturing (CM) partners with supplier introductions and component allocation, where components are consigned or CM-managed. Analytics & Reporting - Track supplier performance: on-time delivery, quality (PPM/yield), cost trends, and capacity utilization. - Maintain a sourcing and supply roadmap and risk dashboard for optics/photonics commodities, reporting regularly to supply chain and engineering leadership. Qualifications - Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Materials Science, Supply Chain, or related field - 5+ years of sourcing/procurement and supply chain experience - Proven track record negotiating supply agreements and managing supplier relationships across Asia and other global regions. - Excellent analytical and cross-functional stakeholder management skills.