Category Manager

Category Manager

Job Location: Milton Keynes, Remote/Hybrid

Department: Procurement Services

Salary: £37,999 to £45,163

Closing Date: 10 November 2024

Weekly Working Hours: 37

Contract Type: Permanent

Sellick Partnership are recruiting for 2 permanent Category Managers positions to support the Digital Services and STEM categories for our higher education client. The Category Manager role is a key role in the team which provides a professional procurement service including, stakeholder engagement, tendering, commercial negotiation, and supplier management to internal customers, ensuring that value for money is achieved, and procurement decisions consider financial, environmental, health & safety and ethical policies and regulations.

Key responsibilities for the Category Manager role are:

• Working with key stakeholders to develop sourcing strategies for procurement projects providing advice and guidance on potential procurement routes and evaluation approaches, having considered all key commercial and regulatory risks.
• Managing tendering activity in accordance with internal and external policies and regulations.
• Working in collaboration with key stakeholders, develop appropriate tender documentation ensuring sourcing projects are delivered efficiently and effectively.
• Managing post tender clarifications and negotiations with suppliers, taking legal advice where required, securing the best possible terms and conditions.
• Reporting preparation, such as post tender evaluation reports and management information reports to support category plans, pipeline planning and savings reporting.
• Reviewing, managing and actioning purchase requisitions, single source justification, new vendor and low value contract requests to ensure they are processed and executed in line with university policies.
• Liaising with the requisitioner, suppliers and other stakeholders such as legal services and data protection teams where required to ensure appropriate contractual documents are in place for purchases.
• Proactively assessing and resolving procurement queries and issues related to projects or requisitions as required
• Proactively building and maintaining networks and working relationships with stakeholders across the University at multiple levels using appropriate verbal and written communications (e.g. meetings, phone, email, reports).
• Undertaking specific tasks and projects at the request of the Head of Procurement, Deputy Head of Procurement and Senior Category Manager.

Category Manager Skills and experience

• CIPS qualified or commensurate experience
• Experience or knowledge of public sector procurement, PCR 2015 and an awareness of the Procurement Act 2023 (PA23) and / or experience of procuring software, systems, IT related hardware and digital related services or specialist laboratory equipment.
• Excellent communication and commercial negotiation skills, ability to network with stakeholders at all levels of the business.
• Experience of working with staff at all levels to develop project sourcing strategies for key areas of spend.
• Experience of preparing and drafting tender documentation under official PCR 2015 procurement procedures, public sector frameworks and sub-PCR threshold procurements.
• Experience reviewing, drafting and negotiation of commercial contractual documents.

On offer with this excellent role is:

• Flexible working hours and hybrid working options
• Training and development opportunities
• Attractive pension/salary sacrifice scheme
• 33 days holiday plus 8 bank holidays and 3 days over Christmas

We encourage interested candidates to apply immediately for this Category Manager vacancy. If you require further information or wish to discuss your suitability before applying, please contact Daniella Pye in our Derby office for a confidential discussion.

Sellick Partnership is proud to be an inclusive and accessible recruitment business and we support applications from candidates of all backgrounds and circumstances. We can adapt our processes to accommodate everybody, so please let us know how we can help improve your recruitment experience. Please note, our advertisements use years' experience, hourly rates, and salary levels purely as a guide based on the specific skills set out in the advert. We are happy to consider applications from all candidates who can demonstrate the skills necessary to fulfil the role. Our Consultants assess based on the experience and skills evidenced on the CV. If you do not hear from us within 48 hours, please assume that your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion due to the CV not matching the skill set required. For information on how your personal details may be used by Sellick Partnership, please review our data processing notice which can be found in the footer on our website.

Sellick Partnership is proud to be an inclusive and accessible recruitment business and we support applications from candidates of all backgrounds and circumstances. Please note, our advertisements use years' experience, hourly rates, and salary levels purely as a guide and we assess applications based on the experience and skills evidenced on the CV. For information on how your personal details may be used by Sellick Partnership, please review our data processing notice on our website.