Senior Hardware Buyer

At Proton, privacy is a fundamental human right and the cornerstone of democracy. Since 2014, Proton has provided free and open-source technology to millions worldwide, including Proton Mail, Proton VPN, Proton Calendar, Proton Drive, and Proton Pass. The company supports over 100 million user accounts and a growing team of over 500 people from more than 50 countries. Proton values intelligence, learning potential, ambition, adaptability, and a flat structure that empowers employees and avoids unnecessary politics.

The purpose of this role is to lead the hardware sourcing strategy for Proton’s infrastructure, focusing on compute, storage, and network equipment. You will build and scale a procurement function that enables low lead time, high agility, and low CAPEX cost, while ensuring Proton stays ahead of market shifts in component availability, vendor strategy, and technology evolution.

• Lead end-to-end negotiations with ODMs, OEMs, white-box suppliers, Tier-1 semiconductor and hardware vendors to secure volume discounts, favorable terms and conditions, and priority capacity allocation during market shortages.
• Build a robust, diversified supplier network to mitigate geopolitical and logistical risks and develop contingency plans for critical components to ensure uninterrupted operations.
• Move beyond transactional interactions to build deep, strategic partnerships at senior vendor level and act as the primary liaison between Proton’s engineering needs and vendor roadmaps.
• Audit and overhaul existing procurement workflows, implementing data-driven models on cost, availability, and quality to optimize purchasing efficiency and velocity.
• Collaborate closely with Engineering, Finance, and Legal teams to define hardware specifications, validate technical requirements, and ensure compliance with Proton’s processes and strict security and privacy standards.