Senior Category Manager

Guardian Jobs; Stratford; Hybrid; CAD 104,000 - 118,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading charity organisation is seeking a Senior Category Manager to oversee procurement activities within Technology. This role involves leading sourcing strategies, engaging stakeholders, and managing compliance to deliver optimal value from technology investments. The ideal candidate should have strong procurement and negotiation skills, with a robust background in managing complex IT categories. A generous benefits package and high flexibility are offered, contributing to impactful work in the fight against cancer.

Benefits

Generous benefits package

Flexible leave allowance

Discounts on travel and gym membership

Qualifications

• Experience owning Technology categories in large organizations.
• Proven ability to build strategic relationships with stakeholders.
• Experience in change management for IT categories.
• Deep expertise in managing complex IT contracts.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage procurement activities across Technology.
• Develop and deliver category strategies aligned with organisational objectives.
• Engage and influence senior stakeholders across Technology.
• Lead IT sourcing activities to ensure optimal service outcomes.
• Negotiate and draft commercial contracts.
• Monitor and report on category performance.

Skills

Procurement experience

Stakeholder management

Negotiation skills

IT category management

Communication skills

Job description

Overview

Senior Category Manager (Technology) – £56,000 - £63,000. Grade: P3. Reports to: Head of Procurement. Department: Chief Operating Office. Contract: 12 month fixed-term contract. Hours: Full time 35 hours per week. Location: Stratford, London. Office-based with high flexibility (1-2 days per week in the office).

Visa sponsorship: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.

Closing date: 28 January 2026 23:55. This vacancy may close earlier if a high volume of applications is received or once a suitable candidate is found. If you require more time to apply as part of a reasonable adjustment, please contact as soon as possible.

Recruitment process: Two competency-based interviews (potentially with an exercise). Interview date: From the week commencing 02 February 2026.

How do I apply? We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won’t be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to fully complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you quickly, fairly, and objectively.

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer. We are professionals with purpose, beating cancer every day. We’re looking for someone talented, determined, and like you to join us. Cancer Research UK's Procurement team plays a critical role in ensuring the charity has the resources it needs to operate and deliver on our mission. Managing around £200m of annual spend, we are driving an ambitious transformation to create a strategic, data-driven procurement function that delivers value, mitigates risk, and fosters innovation. By embedding procurement best practice across the organisation, we aim to maximise value for money, enhance quality, improve efficiency, and uphold our promise to direct 80p of every £1 donated towards beating cancer.

What will I be doing?

• Leading and managing procurement activities across Technology, ensuring value for money, compliance, and alignment with Cancer Research UK's mission to beat cancer. This includes managed services, SaaS, cloud, and infrastructure.
• Developing and delivering category strategies that align with the organisation's objectives, using market insights, risk analysis, and stakeholder input to drive value and efficiency.
• Engaging and influencing senior stakeholders across Technology and the wider charity to ensure procurement strategies are understood, supported, and embedded in business planning.
• Leading IT sourcing activities (including supplier evaluation, selection, and competitive tendering) to ensure optimal quality, cost, and service outcomes.
• Negotiating and drafting commercial contracts that secure robust terms, mitigate risk, and maximise value for Cancer Research UK.
• Collaborating with stakeholders to manage supplier relationships, ensuring delivery against KPIs and continuous improvement.
• Identifying and mitigating supplier risks to protect the charity's operational and reputational interests.
• Monitoring and reporting on category performance to ensure delivery of savings, value, and alignment with Cancer Research UK's strategic goals.

What are we looking for?

• Procurement professional with experience owning Technology categories in large, complex organisations.
• Proven ability to build and manage strategic relationships with internal and external stakeholders at all levels to drive collaboration and innovation.
• Strong influencing and communication skills, with experience in securing stakeholder buy-in for complex technology procurement strategies.
• Extensive experience in leading change IT categories, identifying opportunities for digital and operational improvement and delivering measurable benefits.
• Deep expertise in managing complex IT contracts and supplier relationships, including managed services, SaaS, cloud, and infrastructure, ensuring compliance, performance, and value delivery.
• In-depth knowledge of category management principles, with a track record of developing and executing IT category strategies that align with organisational goals and technology roadmaps.
• Comprehensive experience in end-to-end sourcing within IT categories, including tendering, supplier evaluation, and delivering excellent stakeholder experiences across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Advanced negotiation skills, with a history of securing favourable commercial terms and drafting robust IT contract schedules, including SLAs, KPIs, and exit strategies.

What will I gain?

Each and every one of our employees contributes to our progress and is supporting our work to beat cancer. We think that's impressive. In return, we offer a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities, and high-quality tools, policies and processes to enable you to do your job well. Our benefits package includes a substantial retirement plan, a generous and flexible leave allowance, discounts on travel, technology, gym membership, and more. We actively encourage a flexible working culture.

Our work—from funding cutting-edge research to developing public policy—will change the world. It’s exciting to be part of our team.

Additional Information

For more information on this career opportunity please visit our website or contact us. For updates on our work and careers, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.