Senior Category Manager - IT Services

Manpower UK Ltd; Farnborough; On-site; GBP 104,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Manpower UK Ltd is seeking an IT Category Manager to own the IT Services category, driving strategy and supplier engagements. The role involves leading complex sourcing, managing risks, and transitioning Source-to-Pay processes within a multi-category IT spend environment.

The position requires MCIPS or progression towards it, plus at least five years in strategic category management and strong stakeholder relationships. Hybrid working with a mix of onsite and remote collaboration is offered.

Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent professional experience.
• MCIPS qualification or working towards completion.
• Minimum five years' strategic category management experience in IT spend.
• Proven track record of building relationships with senior stakeholders.
• Demonstrable experience negotiating high-value contracts.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Practical experience with Source to Pay (S2P) technology.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain strategic relationships with senior stakeholders, driving early engagement to influence business planning and ensure alignment with organisational priorities.
• Own, develop and execute category strategies for IT Services, using market insights and data to challenge existing approaches and maximize value.
• Lead complex sourcing activity, including the design of sourcing strategies, working with the business to support business case development, competitive tenders, and negotiation of high-complexity contracts.
• Identify and manage category-specific risks, including information security, IR35, supply resilience, geopolitical, financial and sustainability considerations.
• Support stakeholders to drive Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) across key contracts to ensure performance, innovation and value realisation from strategic partnerships.
• Support the Finance and Business Systems transformation, including transition from SAP Ariba to Oracle Fusion and establishment of a mature Source-to-Pay model.

Skills

Stakeholder management

Category management

Contract negotiation

S2P technology

Written and verbal communication

Education

Degree or equivalent professional experience

MCIPS qualification or working towards completion

Tools

S2P software

Job description

Role: IT Category Manager

Location: Farnborough ( 3 days onsite, 2 days remote)

Duration: 6 months

Rate: 660/day Umbrella

Inside IR35

IT & Tech

The IT category has a spend of circa 100m across key categories including Software, Hardware, Networks and IT Services. This role is responsible for the IT Services Category.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and maintain strategic relationships with senior stakeholders, driving early engagement to influence business planning and ensure alignment with organisational priorities
• Own, develop and execute category strategies for IT Services, using market insights and data to challenge existing approaches and maximize value
• Lead complex sourcing activity, including the design of sourcing strategies, working with the business to support business case development, competitive tenders, and negotiation of high-complexity contracts
• Identify and manage category-specific risks, including information security, IR35, supply resilience, geopolitical, financial and sustainability considerations
• Support stakeholders to drive Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) across key contracts to ensure performance, innovation and value realisation from strategic partnerships
• Support the Finance and Business Systems transformation, including transition from SAP Ariba to Oracle Fusion and establishment of a mature Source-to-Pay model

Experience and Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent professional experience
• MCIPS qualified or working towards completion
• Minimum five years' strategic category management experience in similar categories of spend
• Proven track record of building successful relationships with senior stakeholders
• Demonstrable experience negotiating high-value contracts
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Practical experience with Source to Pay (S2P) technology

Due to the nature of the work carried out at our client's site, these roles are subject to specific nationality requirements and are only open to sole British citizens. Candidates who meet this criterion will also be required to undergo security clearance vetting.

If you receive suspicious outreach claiming to be from us, please contact us via the ManpowerGroup website.