Interim Category Specialist - Professional Services £450pd

1st Executive Ltd; Reading; Hybrid; GBP 14,945,000 - 19,096,000; Full time

Job summary

1st Executive Ltd. is seeking an Interim Category Specialist for Professional Services in Reading to own end-to-end procurement and tendering for indirect and professional services, including engineering and project-management consultancy.

The role requires 5+ years in procurement, strong stakeholder management, and solid knowledge of public sector procurement rules (PCR 2015/UCR and the Procurement Act 2023). Reading with a minimum of two days on site.

Qualifications

• 5+ years' Procurement or Commercial experience.
• Proven experience delivering procurements and tendering exercises.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work effectively across different levels of an organisation.
• The ability to manage and prioritise a wide and demanding workload, rather than focusing on just a small number of projects.
• A good understanding of public sector procurement regulations.
• Experience or knowledge of relevant public procurement legislation, including PCR 2015 / UCR and the Procurement Act 2023.

Responsibilities

• Managing end-to-end procurement and tendering activity across professional services and related indirect categories.
• Working closely with stakeholders to understand requirements, shape procurement approaches and deliver commercially sound outcomes.
• Managing multiple projects simultaneously, prioritising effectively in a high-volume environment.
• Providing procurement guidance to stakeholders and confidently handling challenging or complex situations.
• Working with existing frameworks and supporting framework call-offs where appropriate.
• Applying public sector procurement knowledge and best practice to procurement activity.
• Working collaboratively as part of a growing professional services and consultancy procurement team.

Skills

Procurement

Commercial experience

Stakeholder management

Public sector procurement

Job description

Interim Category Specialist - Professional Services £450pd

Category Specialist - Professional Services £450pd

Location: Reading (minimum 2 days per week on site)
Contract: 6 months, with potential for extension
Rate: £450 per day (umbrella, Inside IR35)
Client: Major Public Sector Organisation

An Interim Category Specialist role, to join a growing Procurement Team, within a major UK organisation operating in a highly regulated and security-conscious environment.

You'll take ownership of a varied portfolio of indirect and professional services spend, supporting procurement activity across areas such as engineering consultancy, project and programme management consultancy, and other specialist professional services.

This is a busy, high-demand category, requiring someone who can confidently juggle multiple priorities, manage stakeholders at all levels and keep procurement activity moving.

What you'll be doing

• Managing end-to-end procurement and tendering activity across professional services and related indirect categories.
• Working closely with stakeholders to understand requirements, shape procurement approaches and deliver commercially sound outcomes.
• Managing multiple projects simultaneously, prioritising effectively in a high-volume environment.
• Providing procurement guidance to stakeholders and confidently handling challenging or complex situations.
• Working with existing frameworks and supporting framework call-offs where appropriate.
• Applying public sector procurement knowledge and best practice to procurement activity.
• Working collaboratively as part of a growing professional services and consultancy procurement team.
  

Requirements:

• 5+ years' Procurement or Commercial experience.
• Proven experience delivering procurements and tendering exercises.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work effectively across different levels of an organisation.
• The ability to manage and prioritise a wide and demanding workload, rather than focusing on just a small number of projects.
• A good understanding of public sector procurement regulations.
• Experience or knowledge of relevant public procurement legislation, including PCR 2015 / UCR and the Procurement Act 2023.

This is a great opportunity to join a team going through an exciting period of growth and development. You'll have the opportunity to broaden your professional services category experience and gain valuable exposure to a complex, highly regulated environment.

Please note: Due to the sensitive nature of this role, candidates will be required to hold, or be able to gain and maintain, valid Security Clearance.