Operational Buyer

OCS; Manchester; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Digital Learning through OCS Academy

Wagestream Flexible Pay access

Job summary

OCS is hiring for a procurement lead role in Manchester to ensure reliable supply chains, governance, and strong cost-saving initiatives. You will collaborate with account teams, develop supplier strategies, and drive performance across customer sites.

Responsibilities include evaluating new suppliers, benchmarking performance, and leading risk-based tendering to secure best value while upholding standards and overall strategy.

Qualifications

• Procurement activity aligned with organisational strategy.
• Develop and deliver supplier strategies and plans.
• Lead cost-saving initiatives with measurable benefits.
• Manage risk-based tendering and supplier performance.

Responsibilities

• Ensure supply chain reliability and governance across customer sites.
• Negotiate and deliver cost savings through procurement activities.
• Develop and manage procurement accounts in partnership with account teams.
• Evaluate and onboard new suppliers with rigorous benchmarking.

Skills

Procurement

Supplier management

Negotiation

Cost savings

Risk assessment

Tools

Contract management

Job description

About The Role

Working Hours: Monday - Friday, 08:00 - 17:00

• Ensure we have a good supply chain, readily available to rely on, that delivers excellence to our customer sites with the right governance around the relationship to ensure performance standards are met.
• Ensure that all procurement activity is undertaken in line with the overall organisational strategy; category plan; account specific procurement plan and procurement best practice.
• Develop the procurement account strategy in partnership with the account team and take ownership to lead the delivery.
• Identify, select, develop and manage new supply chain to support future business through a rigorous evaluation process, ongoing performance measurement, contract review and benchmarking
• Negotiate and deliver cost savings through negotiation. Evidence value for money that can be demonstrated to our customers.
• Initiate a risk based approach to supplier tendering, selection and award, building in commercial analysis of tenders / negotiations to ensure caveats / assumptions are well managed; the correct financial model is used, and any KPIS / SLAs / Programme risk is negotiated and back-to-back with supply chain.

About The Company

OCS UK & Ireland is a leading facilities management company with 50,000+ colleagues and a turnover in excess of £2bn. We deliver innovative, award-winning services within facilities management, hard services, cleaning, security and catering.

Our mission is to make people and places the best they can be for our colleagues, customers and the communities we serve. Our commitment to doing business the right way is rooted in our TRUE values - Trust, Respect, Unity, and Empowerment.

Why Work for OCS

• Award-Winning Employer: Ranked 36th on Glassdoor’s Best Companies to Work For 2025 — we value and motivate our people.
• Digital Learning: The OCS Academy offers digital courses and resources to help you build skills and grow your career.
• Retail Perks: With our Hapi app, you can gain access to exclusive discounts, rewards and wellbeing resources.
• Professional Growth: 600+ live learners across UK&I — Empowering colleagues with further development and qualifications!
• Flexible Pay: Access a portion of earned wages before payday with our Wagestream App! (Contract Specific)

We are an equal opportunities employer and rely on a diverse workforce with a broad range of knowledge, skills, and backgrounds to deliver our goals. We offer an inclusive and welcoming environment and actively encourage applications from all individuals regardless of race, gender, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or age.

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