Strategic Procurement Partner & Stakeholder Ally

1st Executive Ltd; Reading; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

1st Executive Ltd in Reading seeks a Strategic Procurement Business Partner to connect business stakeholders with Commercial and Procurement teams. You will act as a strategic adviser, understanding business plans early and translating demand into a clear procurement pipeline.

This role emphasizes building relationships across teams, influencing decisions before requirements become urgent, and delivering value while managing risk. On-site 3 days a week in Reading.

Qualifications

• Commercial acumen with ability to translate plans into procurement actions.
• Experience across strategic sourcing, category management and supplier relations.
• Contract awareness including drafting or negotiating would be valuable.
• Familiarity with public procurement regulations desirable.

Responsibilities

• Build trusted relationships with stakeholders and act as their primary contact for commercial and procurement matters, including escalations.
• Understand business strategies, forecasts and upcoming projects to identify short- and long-term sourcing requirements.
• Work with stakeholder leads to develop a commercial and procurement pipeline and a formal demand management plan.
• Translate planned demand into operational resource and strategic requirements for procurement delivery teams.
• Engage stakeholders early and work with Category Managers to align requirements with category strategies and preferred suppliers.
• Advise on make-or-buy decisions and help develop tailored sourcing strategies for specialist functions, including research and product development.
• Identify opportunities for savings, efficiency and risk reduction across relevant spend categories.
• Support supplier relationship management and contribute to effective contract outcomes.
• Provide input to process and performance improvements and support the development of commercial support services.
• Help stakeholders understand procurement processes and the value of early commercial engagement.

Skills

Stakeholder management

Strategic sourcing

Supplier relationship management

Risk management

Job description

1st Executive Ltd in Reading seeks a Strategic Procurement Business Partner to connect business stakeholders with Commercial and Procurement teams. You will act as a strategic adviser, understanding business plans early and translating demand into a clear procurement pipeline.

This role emphasizes building relationships across teams, influencing decisions before requirements become urgent, and delivering value while managing risk. On-site 3 days a week in Reading.