Regional Procurement Excellence & Sourcing Lead – Europe

Compass Group; Ottershaw; Hybrid; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A major foodservice and support services company seeks a procurement expert to lead strategic sourcing initiatives across the EME region. This role requires significant experience in multi-country procurement, strong stakeholder management skills, and the ability to drive procurement transformation. The ideal candidate will liaise with Procurement Directors and various teams, supporting supplier engagement and operational excellence while residing in one of the company's European locations.

Qualifications

• Significant experience in regional or multi-country procurement roles.
• Strong influencing and stakeholder management skills.
• Proficient in English with additional language capability an advantage.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support Procurement Blueprint assessments and initiatives.
• Support development of effective wholesaler and distributor management practices.
• Act as a trusted partner to country Procurement Directors.

Skills

Procurement excellence

Strategic sourcing

Supplier relationship management

Change management

Stakeholder management

Job description

This regional role supports the acceleration of procurement maturity, performance, and value creation across the EME region. The role combines procurement excellence and capability building with strategic sourcing and supplier partnership development, working in close partnership with country Procurement Directors and regional stakeholders. The role reports to the Regional Procurement Director for Europe. The successful candidate must be based in one of Compass's European countries.

Key Responsibilities

Procurement Excellence & Blueprint Enablement

Lead and support Procurement Blueprint assessments in priority countries, identifying maturity gaps, risks, and value opportunities.

Partner with country Procurement Directors to shape and support delivery of procurement roadmaps aligned to regional priorities.

Drive adoption of best practices across sourcing, category management, metrics, performance management, standards, and controls.

Provide practical guidance, tools, and hands‑on support to accelerate progress and close priority gaps.

Establish light governance, progress tracking, and insight reporting to support consistent execution.

Build procurement capability through collaborative forums, workshops, webinars, and tailored materials.

Strategic Sourcing & Regional Coordination

Lead and coordinate selected regional strategic sourcing initiatives aligned to value, efficiency, and continuity of supply.

Identify and support sourcing pilots and innovative approaches in targeted markets.

Enable consolidation of regional buying opportunities in partnership with country and category teams.

Support access to regional and local supply markets while balancing regional and country needs.

Apply financial and performance insights to support informed sourcing decisions.

Supplier & Partnership Development

Lead regional engagement with selected strategic suppliers and distributors, in partnership with country teams.

Support development of effective wholesaler and distributor management practices across the region.

Enable supplier participation in sustainability, ESG, and supplier diversity initiatives.

Collaborate with suppliers to identify innovation opportunities that support value creation and resilience.

Monitor supply market trends to inform risk awareness and proactive planning.

Stakeholder Collaboration & Influence

Act as a trusted partner to country Procurement Directors, providing challenge, guidance, and practical support.

Work closely with Operations, Culinary, Finance, Sustainability, and other functions to ensure alignment.

Communicate regional priorities, progress, and insights clearly to senior stakeholders.

Contribute thought leadership and best practice sharing across a matrixed regional environment.

Key Stakeholders

Country Procurement Directors and procurement teams

Regional and Group procurement leadership

Operations, Culinary, Finance, Sustainability teams

Strategic suppliers, wholesalers, and distributors

Functional Expertise

Strong experience with procurement maturity models and transformation.

Strategic sourcing and category management capability.

Supplier and distributor relationship management.

Performance management, KPI tracking, and value delivery

Leadership & Ways of Working

Strong influencing and stakeholder management skills.

Ability to operate at both strategic and practical levels.

Proven change management and capability-building experience.

Comfortable working in complex, multi-country, matrixed environments.

Clear communicator with strong organizational and analytical skills

Experience

Significant experience in regional or multi-country procurement roles. Prior Compass experience is a plus.

Track record of supporting transformation and value delivery through influence.

Experience working with mature procurement organizations preferred.

Proficient English; additional language capability an advantage.

Must reside in one of Compass's European countries