Procurement Category Specialist – Professional Services & Marketing

Primark Stores Limited; Dublin; On-site; EUR 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work

Healthcare

Pension

Bonus potential

27 days leave + bank holidays + 5 days

Job summary

Primark is seeking a procurement professional to lead category strategy and sourcing across Professional Services and Marketing & Communications. You will partner with key stakeholders to understand business needs and deliver value through strategic supplier relationships and rigorous governance.

You will manage high‑value contracts and SOWs, apply market insights and analytics to optimise spend, and drive continuous improvement, sustainability and cost efficiency in a fast-paced retail

Qualifications

• 5+ years in category management and strategic sourcing in fast-paced organisations.
• Category expertise in Professional Services and Marketing & Communications.
• Strong negotiation and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Analytical and data-driven decision making.
• Proactive, with strong project management and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Drive category strategy and sourcing across Professional Services and Marketing & Communications.
• Develop and execute category and sourcing plans aligned with business objectives.
• Lead complex sourcing and negotiation of high-value contracts and SOWs.
• Partner with marketing, brand, digital, finance, HR, technology and transformation teams.
• Manage supplier performance and drive value beyond cost savings.
• Leverage market insights and analytics to improve spend transparency and decision making.

Skills

Procurement

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Analytical thinking

Project management

SOWs/Contracts

Job description

What You'll Do

• Drive category strategy and sourcing activities across Professional Services and Marketing & Communications, delivering value through effective procurement, supplier management, and commercial governance.
• Develop and execute category and sourcing plans that align with business objectives, maximise value, manage risk, and support long-term cost efficiency initiatives.
• Lead complex sourcing and negotiation activities, including high-value contracts, consulting engagements, managed services, agency agreements, and Statements of Work (SOWs).
• Partner with key stakeholders across Marketing, Brand, Digital, Finance, HR, Technology and Transformation teams to understand business needs and ensure procurement strategies support organisational goals.
• Manage supplier performance and strategic partnerships, driving continuous improvement, innovation, sustainability and measurable value beyond cost savings.
• Leverage market insights, analytics and digital tools to identify opportunities, optimise supplier relationships, enhance spend transparency and support data-driven decision making.

What You'll Get

• Hybrid opportunity with 1-2 days working from home each week.
• Healthcare, pension and potential bonus.
• 27 days of leave, plus bank holidays and the option to purchase 5 additional days.
• Tax Saver Tickets, fitness centre and a subsidised cafeteria.

What You'll Bring

• Proven procurement experience, with 5+ years in category management, strategic sourcing, supplier management and commercial procurement within complex, fast-paced organisations.
• Category expertise across Professional Services and/or Marketing & Communications, including consulting, managed services, agency services, media, creative, digital, PR and production spend.
• Strong commercial and negotiation skills, with experience developing sourcing strategies, managing Statements of Work (SOWs), leading complex sourcing programmes and delivering value beyond traditional cost savings.
• Excellent stakeholder management and influencing capabilities, with the ability to build trusted relationships and collaborate effectively across Marketing, Brand, HR, Finance, Technology and external supplier teams.
• Analytical and strategic thinking skills, with experience using market intelligence, supplier benchmarking and data-driven insights to support decision making, innovation and supplier optimisation.
• A results-focused and proactive mindset, backed by strong project management, communication and problem-solving skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and drive successful outcomes.

About Primark

At Primark, people matter. We've grown from our first store in Dublin in 1969 to a £9bn+ turnover business with over 80,000 colleagues and over 440 stores in 17 countries today. Our values run through everything we do – caring, dynamic and succeeding together.

We offer reasonable adjustments for candidates with accessibility needs. All offers of employment are subject to background checks, including right to work, reference, education and, for some roles, criminal and financial checks.