In her role as Director of Purchasing & Logistics at CenterPoint Energy, Cindi Salas is responsible for supply chain operations including the procurement (strategic sourcing, procurement planning and purchasing of direct and indirect goods and services), supply/demand planning, logistics, warehousing, material distribution and inventory and supplier management. This responsibility is relative to both electric and gas distribution and transmission, as well as all supporting and corporate aspects for operations across a geographic area that spans six states. In addition, she is organizationally responsible for the company’s supplier diversity program, chair of the Supplier Diversity Advisory Council, and on the Board of Directors for Houston Minority Supplier Diversity Council since 2015.
Salas has 36 years of experience at CenterPoint Energy, performing in various leadership capacities, including geospatial information technology, underground line locating, land and right-of-way and street lighting. In these diverse positions she has exemplified stellar work ethics and has been committed to enabling and elevating all those she works with. Throughout her career, she has been a mentor and an enabler for various minority suppliers, and she has worked with innumerable agencies to help influence and raise the bar. She has held various board positions such as the Texas One Call Board, President of Geospatial Information Technology Association of North America and numerous other officer positions.
A very notable accomplishment for Salas was being appointed to the National Geospatial Advisory Committee by the secretary of the Department of the Interior. This committee provides advice and recommendations related to management of federal and national geospatial programs, development of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure and implementation of Office of Management and Budget Circular A-16 and Executive Order 12906. The group also provides a forum to convey views representative of non-federal stakeholders in the community.
Salas started her early career in Pennsylvania, working for a predecessor company to First Energy as an engineering technician, Once at CenterPoint, she attained a bachelor’s degree in business management from LeTourneau University.
In her spare time, Salas enjoys traveling abroad. You will also find her and her husband John at local broadway musical performances, as well as, Texan football games.
Cindi Salas
Director, Purchasing & Logistics
CenterPoint Energy
