Senior Procurement Engineer

BAE Systems - Saudi Arabia; Preston; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading defense contractor in Preston is seeking a Senior Procurement Engineer to support sourcing activities and manage supplier relationships. The role involves negotiation and collaboration with various internal and external stakeholders. Ideal candidates should possess a degree or professional qualification in procurement, coupled with strong negotiation and communication skills. This position offers hybrid working arrangements and opportunities for travel.

Benefits

Competitive pension scheme

Employee share plans

Flexible health and wellbeing benefits

Qualifications

• Excellent collaboration and communication skills.
• Previous Procurement experience with a Continuous Improvement mindset.
• Negotiation skills for pricing and contractual terms.

Responsibilities

• Support sourcing and strategic activity with Suppliers.
• Interface across the Air business and other functions.
• Lead and support Senior Business Reviews with Suppliers.

Skills

Collaboration and communication skills

Negotiation skills

Supplier risk management

Problem solving

Working with ERP systems

Education

MCIPS or similar professional qualification

Degree in STEM or business-related subject

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Job title:Senior Procurement Engineer

Location:Samlesbury – We offer a range of hybrid and flexible working arrangements – please speak to your recruiter about the options for this particular role

Salary: £47,683

What you’ll be doing:

• Support all sourcing and strategic activity for the defined Suppliers; including negotiating pricing and contracting terms and conditions as applicable
• Work cross functionally as a member of the team; interfacing across the Air business and with other functions, e.g. PM, Engineering, Commercial, Finance, Logistics Planners
• Engaging with internal and external stakeholders to ensure the product or service provision meets the governance requirements of the business and our customers, and delivers optimum value for money.
• Be the primary interface for commercial and contractual issues by managing Supplier Relationships, Risk and driving supply chain resilience
• Lead and support Senior Business Reviews with Suppliers and Customers
• Regular travel to Suppliers as and when required

Your skills and experiences:

Essential:

• Excellent collaboration and communication skills, fostering close & trusting relationships with a network of demanding internal and external stakeholders
• Previous Procurement experience and a Continuous Improvement mind-set with proven examples of identifying new ideas that drive improvement, problem solving and working collaboratively with others to identify a solution ideally within a Procurement (or similar) environment
• Negotiation skills – experience of price and contractual terms and conditions negotiations
• Detailed understanding and experience of supplier risk and opportunity management
• Working understanding of tool sets and IT such as ERP systems, Microsoft Office programs particularly in Excel; with the ability to compile data, analyse and propose recommendations through reports and presentations

Desirable:

• Previous experience of managing strategic Supplier relationships and complex development contracts
• You will have, or be working towards MCIPS OR have a similar professional qualification OR hold a degree in a STEM or a business related subject (e.g. Economics, Business, Finance)

Benefits:

As well as a competitive pension scheme, BAE Systems also offers employee share plans, an extensive range of flexible discounted health, wellbeing and lifestyle benefits, including a green car scheme, private health plans and shopping discounts - you may also be eligible for an annual incentive.

The Procurement Value Team:

Join our Procurement Value Team, where you’ll take the lead in driving value-focused sourcing activities that ensure affordability, supply chain resilience, and strong commercial outcomes. The team works cross-functionally with internal and external stakeholders, managing key supplier relationships, analysing pricing, and leading cost-reduction campaigns on significant contracts.

With opportunities for UK and occasional overseas travel, plus support towards CIPS qualifications, this is a fantastic environment to develop your procurement expertise while making a real impact on high-profile programmes.

Why BAE Systems?

This is a place where you’ll be able to make a real difference. You’ll be part of an inclusive culture that values diversity of thought, rewards integrity, and merit, and where you’ll be empowered to fulfil your potential. We welcome people from all backgrounds and want to make sure that our recruitment processes are as inclusive as possible. If you have a disability or health condition (for example dyslexia, autism, an anxiety disorder etc.) that may affect your performance in certain assessment types, please speak to your recruiter about potential reasonable adjustments.

Please be aware that many roles at BAE Systems are subject to both security and export control restrictions. These restrictions mean that factors such as your nationality, any nationalities you may have previously held, and your place of birth can restrict the roles you are eligible to perform within the organisation. All applicants must as a minimum achieve Baseline Personnel Security Standard. Many roles also require higher levels of National Security Vetting where applicants must typically have 5 to 10 years of continuous residency in the UK depending on the vetting level required for the role, to allow for meaningful security vetting checks.

Closing Date: 29 September 2025

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

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