Category Manager

City Facilities Management; Newcastle upon Tyne; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A facilities management company is seeking a Category Manager to enhance procurement strategies and manage supplier relationships. This remote position involves some travel to the Glasgow Head Office. Candidates should have at least 5 years in category management, strong negotiation skills, and the ability to collaborate effectively with diverse stakeholders. The role offers a competitive salary and benefits including a car allowance and bonuses.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Car / Car Allowance

Annual Bonus

33 Days Holiday

Private Health Care

Employee Discounts

Qualifications

• 5 years’ experience of working within a procurement or category management position.
• CIPS qualification or equivalent experience.
• Knowledge of FM, retail, and hospitality or customer service industry preferred.

Responsibilities

• Manage all supplier relationships and contract delivery for allocated contractors.
• Build strong engagement and trust with City’s customers.
• Lead on Procurement savings and efficiencies delivery for the business.
• Create and oversee a regular supplier audit regime.

Skills

Strong commercial and supplier management experience

Confidence to deliver through negotiations

Ability to collaborate with multiple stakeholders

Strategic and Procurement Process mindset

Strong analytical and problem-solving skills

Education

CIPS qualification or equivalent experience

5 years’ experience in procurement or category management

Job description

Job Title: Category Manager (FM)

Location: Remote (Some travel expected to Glasgow Head Office, few times per month, company funded travel)

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Hours: 40 Hours Per Week

Salary: Competitive salary range depending on experience + Car / Car Allowance + Annual Bonus, 33 Days Holiday, Private Pension & Benefits - Including Private Health Care, Life Insurance, Employee Discounts!

An exciting opportunity has emerged for an experienced Category Manager to join our company, working with some of the biggest UK retail clients. The function has recently restructured to support a more strategic approach to how we procure and contract with our contractors and supply chain, putting strategic category management at the heart of what we will deliver.

The role will see you responsible for the management of City Groups’ (UK & Ireland) contractor relationships, this includes all PPM and reactive suppliers within a given customer contract. Through category management you will be able to leverage our wider market coverage on dedicated categories where you can build you own strategy, efficiencies plan and overall pipeline helping us deliver for our major customers and City itself.

The successful candidate will need to be strategically minded and will support in the development and implementation of procurement strategies ensuring cost efficiency, quality and supplier reliability. The role involves managing supplier relationships, negotiating contracts, driving innovation and collaborating with internal stakeholders to meet City and our Client’s objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage all supplier relationships and contract delivery for allocated contractors and supply chain
• Build strong engagement and trust with City’s customers, responding promptly to client requests and using performance scorecards to demonstrate achievement of delivery targets and contractual compliance
• Lead on Procurement savings and efficiencies delivery for the business
• Support category strategy development.
• Create and oversee a regular supplier audit regime to assure City and its customers of suppliers’ compliance regarding health and safety, and other key compliance aspects.
• Work with customers to set annual budgets and ensure alignment within wider procurement team to deliver schedule of services in line with budget
• Act as an escalation point for all supplier related issues

Financial Responsibility

• The Category Manager will work with the wider procurement team to ensuring contract charges are accurate and aligned to the services delivered. In addition, the Category Managers will work with finance and the wider procurement team to review and over or under spend, supporting preparation of budgets where required.
• The Category Manager will also be expected to positively impact the P&L of the company through the delivery of in contract savings.

People Responsibility

• The Category Manager will not have any direct reports but will be expected to collaborate positively with a wide group of stakeholders including the client, wider procurement team and field operations.

Qualifications / Experience

• 5 years’ experience of working within a procurement or category management position.
• CIPS qualification or equivalent experience
• Knowledge of FM, retail and hospitality or customer service industry, preferred, but not essential
• A working knowledge of the maintenance service within the FM industry is preferrable, with previous working knowledge of a multi-site contracted environment being desirable.

Key Skills required

• Strong commercial and supplier management experience and capability
• Confidence to deliver through negotiations
• Ability to collaborate with multiple stakeholders
• Strategic and Procurement Process mindset
• Ability to build, nurture and grow relationships with suppliers and customers
• Credibility to deliver a successful SRM programme
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Ability to critically challenge
• Understanding of contracts and the key service deliverables within contracts