Procurement Strategy & Insights Lead (Hybrid)

WIBank; Warrington; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

26 days annual leave, increasing to 30

Pension up to 14% employer cont.

Up to 10.5% bonus scheme

Healthcare plan

MyGymDiscounts

Best Doctors

Salary Finance

Wealth at Work

Deals and discounts

EVolve Car Scheme

Employee Assistance Plan

Mental health first aiders

ShareBuy

MORE Choices flexible benefits

Enhanced parental leave

Job summary

United Utilities is seeking an experienced Category Strategy & Insights Manager (Procurement) to design and embed a practical category strategy and reporting framework across Bioresources, Energy, Fleet & Fuel, Chemicals and Scientific Services. Hybrid working arrangement in the UK.

You will turn internal data and external insight into clear category positions, risks and opportunities, working with category leads, stakeholders and finance to deliver decision-ready guidance and a sustainable

Qualifications

• Substantial experience in procurement, category management, strategic sourcing, procurement excellence, commercial insight or commercial transformation within a complex organisation.
• Proven track record of developing category strategies and converting analysis into clear commercial choices, priorities and delivery plans.
• Strong analytical judgement and the ability to combine spend, demand, contract, supplier, operational and external market information without losing the commercial narrative.
• Experience creating practical frameworks, templates, governance and reporting that teams can use - not simply producing one-off recommendations.
• Strong senior stakeholder management and facilitation skills, with the confidence to challenge constructively and build alignment across functions.
• A sound understanding of sourcing and supplier management processes, enabling you to support procurement activity without owning every sourcing event end to end.
• Excellent communication, presentation, project and change delivery skills, with a completer-finisher mindset and the ability to manage several category workstreams in parallel.
• Desirable: CIPS, a relevant degree or an equivalent professional qualification; equivalent practical experience will also be valued.
• Experience in utilities, infrastructure, engineering, manufacturing or another regulated and asset-intensive environment, including exposure to one or more of the role categories.
• Experience improving procurement reporting, data standards, dashboards or category management capability across a portfolio.

Responsibilities

• Design and maintain a common category strategy framework covering scope, spend and demand baseline, supplier and contract landscape, market dynamics, strengths and constraints, risk, opportunity, innovation, sustainability and resilience, total cost of ownership, strategic options and delivery roadmap.
• Work with category leads and business stakeholders to develop and refresh insight-led category strategies across Bioresources, Energy, Fleet & Fuel, Chemicals and Scientific Services, prioritising activity according to business need and maturity.
• Conduct targeted market research and benchmarking covering supply market structure, peer approaches, cost drivers, capacity, supply chain risk, regulation, technology and innovation.
• Establish repeatable category reporting and structured data requests, with clear owners, definitions and timescales, bringing together spend, contracts, suppliers, demand, performance, risk, opportunities, benefits, milestones and decisions.
• Translate category and market insight into a prioritised commercial opportunity pipeline and well-defined sourcing requirements, supported by evidence, options and practical next steps.
• Support sourcing activity where required through market engagement, supplier landscape analysis, route-to-market options, sourcing briefs, business case inputs and evidence for evaluation or negotiation.
• Support the identification and tracking of savings, cost avoidance, risk reduction, resilience, sustainability and service benefits, while facilitating workshops and decision-making with senior stakeholders.
• Embed the framework through guidance, coaching, governance and handover materials so that the approach can be sustained and developed after the fixed-term assignment.

Skills

Category strategy

Market insight

Stakeholder management

Analytical judgement

Communication

Education

CIPS or equivalent professional qualification

Job description

United Utilities is seeking an experienced Category Strategy & Insights Manager (Procurement) to design and embed a practical category strategy and reporting framework across Bioresources, Energy, Fleet & Fuel, Chemicals and Scientific Services. Hybrid working arrangement in the UK.

You will turn internal data and external insight into clear category positions, risks and opportunities, working with category leads, stakeholders and finance to deliver decision-ready guidance and a sustainable