Senior Category Specialist

NSW Department of Communities and Justice; Parramatta; Hybrid; AUD 133,000 - 147,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible, autonomous work environment

Competitive pay and conditions

Training and development opportunities

Health & Wellbeing and Employee Assist

Job summary

NSW Department of Communities and Justice in Parramatta (hybrid working) is seeking a Senior Category Specialist to partner with stakeholders to plan, develop, source, and manage procurement activities aligned with organisational objectives.

The role is a Temporary Full time up to 12 months, focusing on procurement planning, contract management and delivering value for money across ICT and Goods & Services categories.

Qualifications

• Experience in strategic sourcing and supplier relationship management.
• Ability to research, interpret and apply legislation and policy.
• Proven track record in contract management and value for money.
• Strong analytical, presentation and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Experience with ICT and Goods and Services procurement is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert procurement advice on policies, procedures, systems and standards.
• Lead procurement planning, sourcing and contract management activities.
• Develop category management plans and strategies to optimise value for money.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to deliver innovative procurement solutions.
• Manage supplier performance and relationships to achieve category outcomes.
• Identify risks and ensure compliance with legislative and reporting requirements.

Skills

Negotiation

Stakeholder engagement

Analytical skills

Presentation skills

Policy interpretation

Job description

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Department/Agency: Department of Communities and Justice

Location: Parramatta, NSW, AU, 2150

Senior Category Specialist

Location: Parramatta (hybrid working)

Employment type: Temporary Full time up to 12 months

Salary: Clerk Grade 9/10 ($133,348 - $146,945 pa), plus employer’s contribution to superannuation and annual leave loading

Your role

The Senior Category Specialist partners with stakeholders on a range of categories to plan, develop, source, and manage procurement activities to effectively meet organisational and business objectives.

What you’ll do

As an integral part of the Strategic Procurement team within Finance and Procurement Services, the Senior Category Specialist provides expert technical procurement advice on policies, procedures, systems, and standards to stakeholders undertaking procurement.

The role focuses on:

• Undertaking procurement planning, sourcing, and contract management activities enabling stakeholders to meet their strategic objectives whilst exercising due diligence and ensuring compliance with policies and processes.
• Collaborating with key business stakeholders to develop innovative procurement and category management strategies to meet specific business needs.
• Engaging with and advising key stakeholders on procurement policies and procedures.
• Managing risks and delivering value for money.
• Develop and implement category management plans and strategies to optimise value for money and meet business objectives.
• P artner with stakeholders on all aspects of procurement, applying extensive knowledge across a range of procurement categories, to deliver desired procurement outcomes.
• Analyse business needs, commercial risks, and supply markets to inform category planning and sourcing.
• Research, develop, implement, and review organisational procurement policy, procedures, systems, and standards to effectively support procurement needs.
• Identify and mitigate procurement risk and meet all legislative and regulatory compliance and reporting requirements.
• Develop contract management plans and manage supplier performance by developing effective supplier relationships to enhance category outcomes.

What we’re looking for

Our ideal candidate is a motivated Senior Category Specialist, with extensive commercial experience in procurement categories such as ICT and Goods and Services.

We’re looking for someone who can contribute to innovative procurement strategies, engage with stakeholders to support delivery of business and policy directions.

Success in this role involves:

• A customer-centric approach.
• Expert knowledge and experience in strategic sourcing, supplier relationship management, and contract management.
• Excellent research, analytical and presentation skills
• Strong influencing and negotiation skills
• Working with minimal supervision in a high-volume environment, managing competing deadlines.
• Ability to research, interpret and apply Legislation and Policy

We focus on hiring people who share our commitment and goals of inclusion, collaboration, adaptability, courage and integrity. If you meet the essential requirements and the role resonates with you, please apply – you do not need to meet every desired requirement for us to want to talk to you.

What We Offer

We offer a variety of benefits, including:

• A challenging and rewarding career
• Flexible, autonomous work environment
• Competitive pay and conditions
• Training and development opportunities to build and maintain capabilities
• Health & Wellbeing and Employee Assistance Programs.

Want more information? Visit our website to see more information on Working for us.

We do work that really matters

Working for the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) provides lots of opportunities to make a real difference. We collaborate with other agencies and community partners, to improve lives and realise the potential of children, adults, families and communities. We're focused on breaking, rather than managing, disadvantage. It’s work that really matters.

Applications close Thursday, 19 November 2026 at 11:59pm AEST.

For more information about the role or what it’s like to work for DCJ, please contact the hiring manager Sharon Mascarenhas, Category Manager at [e-mail]

If you’ve got a question about applying or would benefit from an adjustment in the recruitment process to help you perform at your best (including an alternate method submission of the application), please call Sarah Nguyen on 02 9765 5046 or via [e-mail]

Inclusion and Diversity lies at the heart of how we recruit

We continue to hire great people with a wide variety of skills, experience and backgrounds. This includes people with disability, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, women, people identifying as LGBTIQ+, culturally and linguistically diverse people, carers and other diversity groups.

A talent pool may be created for future ongoing and temporary roles and is valid for a period of up to 18 months.

Thank you for your interest in this role. We look forward to receiving your application.

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