Category Manager

Sovereign Network Group; Basingstoke, Wembley; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days holiday

Private pension

Healthcare support

Flexible working

Team days at Basingstoke

Wellbeing days

Job summary

Sovereign Network Group is seeking a Category Manager to lead strategic procurement across property services. Based at our Basingstoke or Wembley offices, with hybrid working and occasional travel, you will deliver end-to-end sourcing projects, ensure value for money, and maintain compliance with public sector rules.

Join a team focused on asset management, building compliance and hard FM, delivering measurable value and strong stakeholder engagement while guiding procurement strategy with

Qualifications

• Experience in procurement, ideally with knowledge of property services - repairs and maintenance, asset management, building compliance or hard FM.
• Strategic procurement category management with data/analysis-driven decision making.
• Practical experience carrying out tenders and competitions in line with public sector procurement rules.
• Excellent stakeholder management with ability to engage and influence.
• Experience in supplier relationship management; delivering value-for-money deals and performance management.
• Agile approach with high attention to detail and ability to manage multiple projects.
• Understanding of the Procurement Act 2023 and PCR 2015 is relevant and beneficial.
• Experience with public sector bodies (registered social housing/local authority) or providers of repair/facility management would be advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Overseeing nominated category areas, suppliers and contracts to deliver strategic procurement solutions.
• Delivering an end-to-end portfolio of sourcing projects with value for money, timelines and quality.
• Maintaining compliance with public procurement rules across projects and portfolio.
• Leading supplier engagement and sourcing throughout tender processes and contract life cycle.
• Building strong relationships with internal stakeholders to understand plans, challenges, risks.
• Undertaking market research on suppliers, markets and frameworks to support projects.
• Ensuring expenditure has defined routes to market.
• Identifying areas where procurement adds measurable value.

Skills

Category management

Procurement strategy

Tendering

Stakeholder management

Supplier management

Public sector procurement

Data-driven decision making

Risk management

Job description

Salary: £55,000.00 - £65,000.00 Per year

Are you an experienced Procurement Manager or Category Manager with proven procurement experience in property services? We have a fantastic opportunity for an experienced Category Manager to join our Procurement team at SNG (Sovereign Network Group). Based from our offices in Basingstoke or Wembley, this is a great opportunity to combine home and office working to ensure a positive work / life balance. Occasional travel to other offices may be required, and there will be a requirement to attend our Basingstoke office once a week for team days.

Role

As a Category Manager, you’ll play a pivotal role within our team, delivering a number of strategic and priority sourcing projects, collaborating with stakeholders to develop category plans and identify opportunities, supporting occasional operational procurement requirements, and maintaining procurement compliance. You’ll support our teams across property services - asset management and estate services.

Main Responsibilities

• Overseeing nominated category areas, suppliers and contracts to develop strategic procurement solutions to deliver efficiencies and benefits to the business.
• Delivering an agreed portfolio of sourcing projects from end-to-end, ensuring outcomes represent value for money, meet timelines and facilitate high standards.
• Maintaining compliance with the public procurement rules on individual projects and throughout the overall category portfolio.
• Leading supplier engagement and sourcing activity throughout the tender process, during the contract life cycle and for the overall category.
• Building strong relationships with internal stakeholders to understand business plans and objectives as well as any challenges, opportunities and identifying any risks.
• Undertaking market research, on suppliers, markets, frameworks, etc. to actively support own procurement projects.
• Ensuring all expenditure is identified with routes to market being clearly defined.
• Identifying areas where procurement can add measurable value in terms of sourcing exercises, onward effective supplier management and strategic procurement.

What we’re looking for

You should have demonstrable experience within a similar role in procurement, ideally with knowledge of relevant category areas, such as property services - repairs and maintenance, asset management, building compliance or hard FM.

You'll also need:

• Strategic procurement category management expertise, evidencing the use of data and analysis to drive decision making.
• Practical experience of carrying out tenders and competitions in accordance with the public sector procurement rules.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with proven ability to engage and influence others to deliver the best outcomes.
• Experience in supplier relationship management, ensuring value for money deals with suppliers who are committed to delivering a high service to SNG, and managing the commercial performance of procurement contracts.
• An agile approach with high attention to details and ability to work successfully on multiple projects at different stages, effectively prioritising tasks.
• An understanding of the Procurement Act 2023 and PCR 2015 is relevant and beneficial to this role.
• Experience of working for a registered social housing provider, local authority or similar public sector body, and/or a provider of repair, maintenance or facility management services, or a developer of new homes, would be advantageous.

Benefits

• 25 Days Holiday + Bank Holidays (with an extra day every year up to 30 days)
• Chance to buy or sell holiday as part of our flexible benefits package
• 3 additional wellbeing days and 2 paid volunteering days
• Generous matched pension scheme up to 12% and Life cover at 4x salary
• Enhanced maternity/paternity/adoption pay
• Options for private medical insurance, dental insurance and critical illness cover
• Wellbeing discounts, including Gym Memberships and access to a 24/7 virtual GP service

Company Culture & Values

At Sovereign Network Group, we are passionate about inclusion for all and creating a workplace where everyone can thrive. We are committed to our Equality Diversity and Inclusion strategy and believe that you can truly be yourself at SNG.

Take a look at our careers site to learn more about us and our values.

Our purpose is to provide good, affordable homes that are the foundation for a better life - and our vision is thriving communities, over generations.

We provide over 85,000 homes and invest in communities across London, the South East, South West and East of England, as well as aiming to create thousands of new affordable homes every year.

Working for us is so much more than just a job. Whatever your role, you'll help us provide homes and services for those who need them - and make a real difference to people’s lives.