Procurement Category Manager (Technology Infrastructure Buyer)

Bank of England; Leeds; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A central financial institution in the UK is looking for a Technology Infrastructure Buyer to manage procurement for IT infrastructure. Key responsibilities include developing procurement strategies, drafting and finalising contracts, and analysing market insights. Successful candidates will have experience in technology procurement and a strong ability to manage stakeholders. This role offers a comprehensive benefits package including a pension scheme and flexible working arrangements.

Benefits

Comprehensive benefits package

Flexible working arrangements

Private medical insurance

Qualifications

• Proven track record of buying technology infrastructure or other complex category of goods and services.
• Experience of the end-to-end sourcing process for high value infrastructure contracts.
• Knowledge of Public Contract regulations PCR2015.

Responsibilities

• Develop procurement strategies for IT infrastructure.
• Draft and finalise contracts.
• Generate and analyse spend data and market insights.

Skills

Attention to detail

Organisational skills

Strong communication skills

Stakeholder management

Tools

e-procurement systems

Job description

Overview

The Procurement Division is responsible for ensuring value-for-money for the Bank for approximately £300m of third‑party spend annually; and compliance with procurement policies and regulations when the Bank purchases goods, services and works. The team is responsible for undertaking the end‑to‑end procurement process across a broad range of categories to support all parts of the Bank, implementing category strategies and managing the future sourcing timeline, and is broadly organised into three business‑partnering teams covering Technology, Property & Notes Production, and Corporate. This role of Technology Infrastructure Buyer is within the Procurement Division's Technology Category team. The role is responsible for buying IT infrastructure (compute, storage and networking), software (such as operating systems and database software), support, and cloud services.

Responsibilities

• Developing procurement strategies and identifying routes to market for IT infrastructure.
• Buying under frameworks, either as a direct award, or as a further competition.
• Supporting the Technology teams with renewals, and "true ups".
• Drafting and finalising call‑ orders and contracts.
• Creating, reviewing, amending, managing approval, and publishing of notices for tendering opportunities and contract awards.
• Creating a rolling forecast of buying activity, planning renewals and replacements over the next 36 months.
• Advising the stakeholders on the strategic direction of the market, by collaborating closely with colleagues across the Bank to understand business area strategies and long‑term requirements.
• Generating and analysing essential spend data, market insights, supplier reports and contract performance metrics to support business areas.
• Providing governance support to ensure compliance with the directions of the Commercial Oversight Group and other management boards. Liaising with professionals in Finance, Environment, Social and Governance, Technology, Cyber, Legal and other areas, to ensure compliance with savings targets and environmental measures, amongst other interactions.
• Driving compliance in the category, by notably working closely with Subject Matter Specialists.
• Working with the Supplier Management team to ensure supplier and contract management best practice is implemented in line with the Bank's framework.
• Providing support to the wider team to meet peaks in tendering activity.

Direct Reports

None

Key Requirements

• Proven track record of buying technology infrastructure or other complex category of goods and services.
• Knowledge and demonstrable experience of IT infrastructure, such as compute, OS and applications.
• Experience of the end‑to‑end sourcing process for high value infrastructure contracts.

Essential Criteria

• Attention to detail when drafting and reviewing documents.
• Demonstrable ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously.
• Demonstrable excellent organisational, planning and time‑management skills.
• Strong communication skills, ability to build rapport and constructive relationships.
• Experience of working in procurement in the public sector.
• Experience of the Public Contract regulations PCR2015; and knowledge of the Procurement Act 2023.
• Strong stakeholder management skills and assertiveness, with ability to challenge.
• Self‑motivation, with the ability to work both on your own initiative and as part of a team.
• Capability to translate data into meaningful insights for appropriate audiences and presenting outcomes to those audiences.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience of e‑procurement systems (for example Proactis, Oracle).
• Supplier and/or contract management expertise (post‑contract award).

Our Approach to Inclusion

The Bank values diversity, equity and inclusion. We play a key role in maintaining monetary and financial stability, and to do that effectively, we believe we need a workforce that reflects the society we serve. At the Bank of England, we want all colleagues to feel valued and respected, so we are working hard to build an inclusive culture which supports people from all backgrounds and communities to be at their best at work. We celebrate all forms of diversity, including (but not limited to) age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status. We believe that it's by drawing on different perspectives and experiences that we'll continue to make the best decisions for the public. We welcome applications from individuals who work flexibly, including job shares and part‑time working patterns. We have also partnered with external organisations to support us in making adjustments for candidates and employees in the recruitment process where they are needed. For most roles where work can be carried out at home, we aim for colleagues to spend half of their time in the office, with a minimum of 40% per month. Subject to that minimum requirement, individuals and managers should work together to find what works best for them, their team and stakeholders. Finally, we are proud to be a member of the Disability Confident Scheme. If you wish to apply under this scheme, you should check the box in the "Candidate Personal Information" under the "Disability Confident Scheme" section of the application.

Salary and Benefits Information

We encourage flexible working, part‑time working and job share arrangements. Part‑time salary and benefits will be on a pro‑rated basis as appropriate. In addition, we also offer a comprehensive benefits package as detailed below:

• Currently a non‑contributory, career average pension giving you a guaranteed retirement benefit of 1/80th of your annual salary for every year worked. There is the option to increase your pension (to 1/65th) or decrease (to 1/105th) in exchange for salary through our flexible benefits programme each year. The Bank has the discretion to vary standard accrual rates and dial up and dial down rates at any time and to withdraw dial up and dial down options at any time.
• A discretionary performance award based on a current award pool.
• An 8% benefits allowance with the option to take as salary or purchase a wide range of flexible benefits.
• 26 days' annual leave with option to buy up to 12 additional days through flexible benefits.
• Private medical insurance and income protection.