---
title: 'Senior Buyer / Planner at Rapid Micro Biosystems'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-buyer-planner-rapid-micro-biosystems-lowell-tkw3n97fy33d'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-19'
---

# Senior Buyer / Planner at Rapid Micro Biosystems

- **Company:** Rapid Micro Biosystems
- **Location:** Lowell, MA
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-06-09
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-19
- **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/rapidmicrobio/0a379a7e-ac0e-49b9-8ebc-2a75daddfa74

## Job description

Winning the race to bring new healthcare products safely to a waiting world drives Rapid Micro Biosystems (RMB) to combine today’s innovative technologies as never before. Your career at RMB puts you at the center of diverse global teams that span robotics, AI, Machine Learning, imaging, microbiology, and more, re-shaping how urgently needed pharmaceuticals are made, tested, and released for decades to come. The sky’s the limit.

Careers at RMB are fast-moving, with the high growth you’d expect from a world leader in microbiology automation. Advancement at RMB affords an opportunity to achieve your personal goals and develop your passions, in an inclusive environment where every employee has the resources and opportunities to hone their skills. You’ll do more, learn more, and have the ability to make a profound impact on our business.

Position Summary We are seeking an experienced Senior Buyer/Planner to lead the procurement and planning of direct materials, including electrical, mechanical, and consumable components, within a biotech environment. This role is responsible not only for ensuring material availability but for actively driving cost-reduction initiatives, supplier negotiations, and continuous improvement across the supply base. The ideal candidate is hands-on, data-driven, and comfortable owning purchase price variance (PPV), supplier strategy, and cross-functional cost-out efforts while supporting production and growth.

## Key Responsibilities

- Own procurement and planning for materials (electrical, mechanical, and consumables) supporting production
- Lead supplier negotiations focused on purchase price reduction, lead time improvement, and commercial terms
- Develop and execute cost-out initiatives, including should-cost analysis, resourcing, volume leverage, and design-for-cost collaboration
- Actively manage PPV, identify trends, and implement corrective actions
- Establish and maintain planning parameters (lead times, safety stock, MOQ) in the ERP/MRP system
- Partner with Engineering, Manufacturing, and Quality on supplier changes, alternate sourcing, and cost-reduction opportunities
- Drive supplier performance through scorecards, reviews, and corrective action plans
- Identify and mitigate supply risk while balancing inventory, service levels, and cost
- Support compliance and documentation requirements in a regulated manufacturing environment
- Mentor junior buyers/planners and contribute to best practices across the supply chain function

Required Qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Business, Engineering, or a related field
- 7+ years of experience in direct materials procurement and planning
- Demonstrated success driving cost reductions and supplier negotiations
- Strong understanding of MRP/ERP systems and planning logic (SAP)
- Experience managing electrical, mechanical, and/or consumable components
- Proven ability to work cross-functionally and influence without authority
- Strong analytical, negotiation, and communication skills

## Preferred Qualifications

- Experience leading sourcing or resourcing initiatives
- APICS/ASCM certification (CPIM, CSCP)
- Advanced Excel and data analysis capabilities

Rapid Micro Biosystems is proud to offer a competitive total compensation package designed to attract, inspire and retain the best talent in our industry. In addition to base pay, our full-time regular employees are eligible for an attractive benefits package, cash incentive opportunities, and an equity grant. The base annual salary hiring range for this position is $98,000 - $126,000.

## ABOUT RAPID MICRO BIOSYSTEMS:

Rapid Micro Biosystems creates, sells, validates, and services innovative products for fast, accurate, and efficient detection of microbial contamination in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, biologics, biotechnology products, medical devices, and personal care products.

The company’s Growth Direct™—the first and only growth-based system to automate rapid compendial QC Micro testing—ensures data integrity, compliance, and operational efficiencies driven by rapid methods and automation.

Rapid Micro Biosystems is dedicated to providing groundbreaking technology and products to support companies in their journey to achieve greater reliability, efficiency, and better predictability, ultimately providing higher quality products for improved patient outcomes.

Rapid Micro Biosystems is headquartered in Lexington, Massachusetts. Our research & development, and manufacturing operations are located in Lowell, Massachusetts. Additionally, we maintain field offices in Freising, Germany; Switzerland, and Singapore.

Equal Opportunity: Rapid Micro Biosystems is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity. Applicants for employment and employees are reviewed on their individual qualifications for a position. Under no circumstances will Rapid Micro Biosystems discriminate against qualified persons on the basis of race, color, religious creed, retaliation, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, mental illness, genetics, choice of health insurance, marital status, age, veteran status, or any other basis prohibited under applicable law.

## About Rapid Micro Biosystems

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Rapid Micro Biosystems provides automated quality control microbiology testing solutions for pharmaceutical, biologic, and medical device manufacturers to accelerate the detection of microbial contamination.
- **Entity Type**: Public (NASDAQ: RPID)
- **Headquarters**: Lexington, Massachusetts, United States (manufacturing in Lowell, MA)
- **Founded**: 2006
- **Founders**: Not publicly available

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Life sciences technology / Biotechnology Research (SIC 3826 – Laboratory Analytical Instruments)
- **Target customers**: B2B – Enterprise pharmaceutical, biotech, vaccine, cell & gene therapy, sterile injectable, and personal care product manufacturers
- **Mission statement**: “The trusted partner in quality control microbiology automation, enabling our customers to improve and save lives.” [rapidmicrobio.com](https://www.rapidmicrobio.com/company)

## Products & Services
- **[Growth Direct® System](https://www.rapidmicrobio.com/)**: A fully automated, growth-based technology platform that replaces manual, compendial QC microbiology testing for environmental monitoring, water testing, and bioburden testing. It accelerates time-to-results, eliminates 85% of manual testing steps, ensures data integrity, and reduces contamination risk. Type: Hardware + Consumables + Software (automation platform).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: $46.3 million (as of recent data) [linkedin.com](https://linkedin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)
- **Key Metric**: Annual Revenue $33.6 million (FY2025); Q2 FY2026 (quarter ended June 30, 2026) revenue $8.05 million, gross profit $1.21 million, net loss -$12.9 million [linkedin.com](https://linkedin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)
- **Total Funding**: Not applicable (public company; IPO in 2021)
- **Notable Investors / Partners**: Not explicitly listed, but served by talent from PerkinElmer, bioMérieux, Abbott, Thermo Fisher Scientific, BD, and MilliporeSigma.
- **Growth Signals**: 147 employees (+0.5% YoY); 17,137 LinkedIn followers (+18.1% yearly); active job postings increased 42.9% year-over-year (10 current openings); global footprint with offices in Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands, France, UK, Japan, and Australia [linkedin.com](https://linkedin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Proprietary automated platform** – The Growth Direct® System brings QC testing directly to the manufacturing floor, reducing manual steps by 85% and enabling faster, more accurate results.
- **Regulatory compliance & data integrity** – Eliminates manual data entry and transcription errors, reducing risk of warning letters and costly investigations.
- **Deep domain expertise** – 20+ years focused exclusively on QC microbiology automation; trusted partner for large pharmaceutical and biomanufacturing customers globally.
- **High barriers to entry** – Requires deep regulatory knowledge, established customer relationships, and validated hardware/software in mission-critical production environments.

## Strategic Focus
- **Expand global commercial footprint** – Especially across Europe and Asia (existing offices in Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands, Japan, Singapore, Australia).
- **Deepen penetration** in biologics, vaccines, and cell & gene therapy segments.
- **Continue platform innovation** to improve speed, capacity, and integration with manufacturing execution systems.
- **Drive operational efficiency** and path to profitability (currently net loss, aiming to grow revenue while managing costs).

## Why Work Here
- **Culture & values**: Customer Driven, Respect, Grit, One RMB – operating as one team committed to shared purpose [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)
- **Compensation**: Offers company equity; salary examples: Assembly Technician ~$45k, Production Scheduler ~$64k, Validation Specialist ~$94k [linkedin.com](https://linkedin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)
- **Work environment**: On-site roles (e.g., Field Service Engineer, Director, Microbiology); HQ in Lowell, MA with manufacturing; global offices
- **Employee ratings**: 3.6/5.0 overall (77 reviews); Work-Life 3.8, Compensation 3.9, Culture 3.7, Career 3.7 [linkedin.com](https://linkedin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)
- **Headcount & stability**: Small but growing company (147 employees) with a mission-critical niche; exposure to top pharma clients and cutting-edge automation technology.

## Sources
1. [rapidmicrobio.com – Company overview](https://www.rapidmicrobio.com/company)
2. [rapidmicrobio.com – Growth Direct System](https://www.rapidmicrobio.com/)
3. [linkedin.com – Company profile & financials](https://linkedin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)
4. [builtin.com – Careers, perks + culture](https://builtin.com/company/rapid-micro-biosystems)

## Other roles at Rapid Micro Biosystems

- [Production Operator Lead - Full-Time - Weekend](https://feeny.ai/job/production-operator-lead-full-time-weekend-rapid-micro-biosystems-lowell-0ky7j0ga5m3z) — Lowell, MA
- [Production Operator I - Part-Time - Weekend](https://feeny.ai/job/production-operator-i-part-time-weekend-rapid-micro-biosystems-lowell-j4fyddy1273g) — Lowell, MA
- [Field Service Engineer II - Germany](https://feeny.ai/job/field-service-engineer-ii-germany-rapid-micro-biosystems-germany-k4nmy1fyymx6) — Germany
- [Midwest Account Executive](https://feeny.ai/job/midwest-account-executive-rapid-micro-biosystems-illinois-9m9vcaq65h29) — Illinois
- [Global Product Manager – Consumables & Applications](https://feeny.ai/job/global-product-manager-consumables-applications-rapid-micro-biosystems-lexington-18dsqxghgyt9) — Lexington, MA
- [Staff Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-software-engineer-rapid-micro-biosystems-lexington-njxb8c856z0t) — Lexington, MA
- [Digital Marketing Specialist](https://feeny.ai/job/digital-marketing-specialist-rapid-micro-biosystems-lexington-yy1pys5dfz75) — Lexington, MA
- [Northeast Account Executive](https://feeny.ai/job/northeast-account-executive-rapid-micro-biosystems-massachusetts-pembp155x3me) — Massachusetts
- [Senior Field Service Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-field-service-engineer-rapid-micro-biosystems-japan-9xsyat4kdxzn) — Japan