Category Manager

• Great opportunity to join the procurement team at Northumbria University


• Owning the Procurement and Category Management Strategy and Plan

About Our Client

Named the University of the Year 2022 at the renowned Times Higher Education (THE) awards, this monumental win celebrates a special journey Northumbria University has been on since 2008, which involved becoming the first research-intensive modern university in the UK. Northumbria is ranked in the top 25 in the UK for research power, according to the results of the latest Research Excellence Framework. Most recently, Northumbria University has been named Research University of the Year and Modern University of the Year in a new league table published by the Daily Mail.

Job Description

Northumbria University are looking for a dynamic and ambitious Category Manager to join the Procurement team and lead the laboratory & engineering category. In his role, you will partner with the research teams in their Health & Life Sciences and Engineering & Environment faculties, providing strategic advice and guidance to the Academic and Technical stakeholders.
The Procurement team plays a key role in supporting the University's research capabilities, including the construction and renovation of laboratories as well as the acquisition of a range of (high spec) equipment. Projects like CHASE and NESST as well as many of the other exciting research programmes provide the Procurement team with opportunities to not only practice their profession, but also to be part of the strategic development of the University's capabilities.
Key Duties and Responsibilities include:

• Setting the strategic direction of the Laboratory & Engineering Category, leading the development and implementation of the Category Plan based on market knowledge and (Category) data analysis in order to enable the University to achieve its strategic goals


• Developing and implementing sourcing strategies for new projects and key renewals ensuring that these strategies deliver clear Value for Money benefits, both through the achievement of direct procurement savings, and through integration into and proactive influencing of finance and other activities across the University


• Providing strategic commercial and procurement advice to key stakeholders as well as procurement process training to such stakeholders and other teams involved in or dependent on procurement activities


• Running tenders and leading supplier commercial and contract negotiations


• Draft, review and negotiate commercial and operational contractual documents with minimal support from Legal Services


• Assisting the Head of Procurement with ensuring that effective arrangements are in place for compliance with both external and internal procurement regulations and achieving sustainability and socio-economic targets.


• Managing and coaching, as appropriate, junior members of the Procurement and Shared Services team

The Successful Applicant

• Substantial experience in developing and leading a strategic category plan, including developing strategic sourcing strategies, and using market knowledge and data analysis to inform the underlying strategy and decisions


• Leading tender and supplier commercial and contract negotiations focused on achieving value for money as well as direct savings


• Effective supplier and contract management


• Demonstrable success in building successful, cooperative, and collaborative relationships and partnerships internally and externally

What's on Offer

Basic salary of �45,584 - �56,021 depending on experience, with 35 days holiday and a generous (LGPS) pension amongst other excellent benefits.

Where specific UK qualifications are required we will take into account overseas equivalents. All third party applications will be forwarded to Michael Page.

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