Senior Category Lead

The Role

We are seeking an experienced Senior Purchasing Manager / Senior Procurement professional to join one of our clients on an interim basis.

This is a broad senior procurement role covering a variety of indirect/professional services categories, with a particular focus on providing senior procurement expertise, stakeholder management, and supporting procurement process improvement and transformation.

The successful candidate will be comfortable operating at a senior level, working with stakeholders across the organisation and taking ownership of procurement activity from strategy through to delivery.

• Develop and implement effective procurement strategies that deliver commercial value.
• Provide senior procurement advice and market expertise to key stakeholders.
• Build strong relationships with senior internal stakeholders and act as a trusted procurement adviser.
• Identify and deliver opportunities for procurement process improvement.
• Support wider procurement transformation and change initiatives.
• Review existing processes and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, governance and value.
• Lead complex procurement projects from initial requirements through to contract award and implementation.
• Manage supplier relationships and commercial negotiations where required.
• Ensure procurement activity complies with relevant policies, procedures and public sector requirements.
• Provide support and guidance to procurement colleagues and stakeholders.

We are looking for an experienced procurement professional with:

• Strong senior-level procurement / purchasing experience.
• Proven experience managing complex procurement projects.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.
• Experience of procurement process improvement, transformation or change.
• Strong commercial and negotiation skills.
• The ability to operate independently and quickly establish credibility within a large, complex organisation.

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