Senior Specialist - Value Engineering & Automation

Job Description

Become part of a team at the forefront of digital procurement innovation, advancing value engineering and automation to further strengthen how Procurement manages risk, operations, and supplier performance. You will lead two high‑impact automation initiatives - risk management and operations automation - while evolving a value engineering framework to improve cost transparency, track supplier performance, and ensure value realization. This is an ideal role for a technically savvy self‑starter who wants to leverage their technical background to drive direct, measurable business impact while expanding their influence and accelerating personal growth.

What you’ll do:

• Lead and deliver automation initiatives across Procurement, translating complex problems into scalable solutions from design through value realization.

• Design, build, and advance automation solutions using data and technology to reduce manual effort, improve decision‑making, and scale digital ways of working across Procurement.

• Establish and evolve a value engineering framework to improve cost transparency, understand spend drivers, and assess whether the business is receiving the value it pays for.

• Partner closely with business stakeholders, IT, and Category Management to systematically track supplier performance, surface value leakage or overpayment, and drive timely commercial or operational interventions.

• Act as a technically savvy, self‑driven change agent, managing stakeholders effectively, introducing new ideas, learning emerging technologies, and translating complexity into direct, measurable business impact.

 

What you’ll bring:

• Hands‑on technical capability, including strong SQL skills and the ability to work directly with data to support automation, analytics, and performance measurement

• Proven experience designing and building workflow and automation solutions (e.g., Power Automate, ServiceNow, Pega), with a clear bias toward delivery rather than pure project management

• Working understanding of BI and dashboards (e.g., Power BI), including how data models, metrics, and visuals are built to support decision‑making

• Strong business and financial acumen, with the ability to understand cost drivers, supplier performance, and value realization—and to link technical solutions to measurable business outcomes

• Ability to abstract complexity for business audiences, effectively translating technical concepts into clear insights and actions while managing stakeholders across Procurement, IT, and Finance

Education and experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, Business Analytics, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience).

• 5+ years of experience building data‑driven or automation solutions in a business environment (e.g., procurement, operations, finance, IT).

• Demonstrated experience with data and automation technologies, including SQL and workflow/process automation platforms (e.g., Power Automate, ServiceNow, Pega).

• Proven track record of linking technical work to financial outcomes, such as cost reduction, efficiency gains, risk mitigation, savings tracking, or value realization.

• Experience working with business and finance stakeholders to define success metrics, quantify impact, and ensure solutions deliver measurable business value.

Required Skills:

Automation, Business Intelligence (BI), Process Automations, Procurement, Program Execution, Program Management, Supplier Negotiations, Supplier Performance Management (PM), Supplier Strategy, Value Engineering (VE)

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

EEOC Know Your Rights

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

U.S. Hybrid Work Model

Effective September 5, 2023, employees in office-based positions in the U.S. will be working a Hybrid work consisting of three total days on-site per week, Monday - Thursday, although the specific days may vary by site or organization, with Friday designated as a remote-working day, unless business critical tasks require an on-site presence.This Hybrid work model does not apply to, and daily in-person attendance is required for, field-based positions; facility-based, manufacturing-based, or research-based positions where the work to be performed is located at a Company site; positions covered by a collective-bargaining agreement (unless the agreement provides for hybrid work); or any other position for which the Company has determined the job requirements cannot be reasonably met working remotely. Please note, this Hybrid work model guidance also does not apply to roles that have been designated as “remote”.

The salary range for this role is

$96,200.00 - $151,400.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits.  Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

No relocation

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

25%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

1st - Day

Valid Driving License:

Yes

Hazardous Material(s):

N/A

Job Posting End Date:

05/8/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.