Global Category Manager

Vanderlande Manufacturing USA; Pune District; On-site; INR 4,000,000 - 7,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Vanderlande is seeking a Global Category Manager to shape procurement strategy in India, driving supplier partnerships, sourcing decisions and global performance. You will translate business needs into category plans, collaborate with stakeholders, and lead end-to-end strategic sourcing initiatives to unlock new opportunities.

In this high-visibility role, you will build a network of strategic suppliers, assess market dynamics, and ensure category alignment across regions while advancing

Responsibilities

• Develop and build the India supplier ecosystem
• Develop and execute innovative sourcing strategies contributing to the overall ecosystem strategy
• Identify, assess, and develop new suppliers capable of supporting both local and global business
• Build a sustainable pipeline of qualified suppliers across strategic commodity areas
• Support the expansion of local-for-local and local-for-global sourcing initiatives
• Drive supplier scouting and market intelligence
• Continuously monitor the Indian supplier market for new capabilities, technologies, capacity developments, and investment opportunities
• Translate market insights into actionable sourcing recommendations
• Unlock innovation opportunities
• Identify innovative suppliers, technologies, and manufacturing capabilities that can strengthen Vanderlande's competitive position
• Connect with business stakeholders with suppliers capable of supporting new products, technology, and supply chain developments
• Facilitate collaboration between suppliers and internal stakeholders to accelerate innovation adoption
• Drive supplier involvement in early-stage development and value engineering activities
• Lead supplier development and selection activities
• Coordinate supplier qualification and onboarding activities in collaboration with Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Category Management
• Lead sourcing projects where new supplier development is required
• Ensure suppliers meet Vanderlande standards regarding quality, compliance, sustainability, and operational excellence
• Lead and/or support in strategic and complex sourcing events, with tasks such as the creation of the sourcing projects within the S2P Suite, creation of RfX documents, evaluation of proposal based on pre-defined criteria, support the negotiation process, etc.
• Organize supplier engagement and innovation events
• Plan and execute supplier innovation days, market visits, supplier conferences, and technology workshops
• Create platforms that strengthen collaboration between suppliers and Vanderlande stakeholders
• Promote supplier innovation capabilities across the global procurement community
• Ensure best practices and market insights are shared effecti

Job description

Job Title

Global Category Manager

Job Description

Shape the future of logistics automation through a strategic partnership ecosystem development

Are you a strategic procurement professional who knows how to turn Indian market insights and business needs into impactful category strategies? Do you enjoy working in an international environment where you can influence supplier partnerships, sourcing decisions, and business performance on a global scale?

Vanderlande is looking for a Global Category Manager to develop and execute category strategies and lead strategic sourcing initiatives to unlock new business opportunities. As part of the global Procurement organization, you will work closely with business stakeholders to understand requirements, identify sourcing opportunities, and implement sustainable procurement solutions that support Vanderlande's business goals. You will ensure alignment of Category strategies across regions and projects while driving cost, quality, innovation, and supplier performance.

Our global procurement organization enables our projects and business functions by maximizing value and minimizing risks via the procurement of goods and services in the smartest, cost-effective, and sustainable way. We ensure a resilient and competitive supplier ecosystem and aim to advance towards best-in-class practices, and ensure the organization is efficient, effective, and future-proof.

What will you be doing?

As a Global Category Manager, you will be responsible for all kinds of new business opportunities and making them mature on a global scale, translating business requirements into sourcing strategies, and leading end-to-end strategic sourcing initiatives. Specifically in this role you will be be at the forefront of Vanderlande's growth in India. Your mission is to build and develop a strong network of strategic suppliers, unlock access to innovation and emerging technologies and create long-term partnerships that strengthen our global supply chain in India.

In this highly visible role, you will serve as the go-to expert for procurement opportunities. Next to this, you will define and drive category strategies, ensuring their effective implementation across regions and projects. You will collaborate closely with stakeholders to deliver value, mitigate risk, and support business objectives and make the new opportunities mature for scaling-up. Additionally, you will serve as the Supplier Relationship Manager for a designated portfolio of strategic suppliers, fostering long-term partnerships and driving continuous performance improvement.

Responsibilities

• Develop and build the India supplier ecosystem
• Develop and execute innovative sourcing strategies contributing to the overall ecosystem strategy
• Identify, assess, and develop new suppliers capable of supporting both local and global business
• Build a sustainable pipeline of qualified suppliers across strategic commodity areas.
• Support the expansion of local-for-local and local-for-global sourcing initiatives.
• Drive supplier scouting and market intelligence
• Continuously monitor the Indian supplier market for new capabilities, technologies, capacity developments, and investment opportunities.
• Conduct supplier scouting activities and market assessments to identify new sourcing opportunities.
• Maintain a deep understanding of market dynamics, industry trends, and competitive developments.
• Translate market insights into actionable sourcing recommendations.
• Unlock innovation opportunities
• Identify innovative suppliers, technologies, and manufacturing capabilities that can strengthen Vanderlande's competitive position.
• Connect with business stakeholders with suppliers capable of supporting new products, technology, and supply chain developments.
• Facilitate collaboration between suppliers and internal stakeholders to accelerate innovation adoption.
• Drive supplier involvement in early-stage development and value engineering activities.
• Lead supplier development and selection activities
• Coordinate supplier qualification and onboarding activities in collaboration with Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Category Management.
• Lead sourcing projects where new supplier development is required.
• Ensure suppliers meet Vanderlande standards regarding quality, compliance, sustainability, and operational excellence.
• Lead and/or support in strategic and complex sourcing events, with tasks such as the creation of the sourcing projects within the S2P Suite, creation of RfX documents, evaluation of proposal based on pre-defined criteria, support the negotiation process, etc.
• Organize supplier engagement and innovation events
• Plan and execute supplier innovation days, market visits, supplier conferences, and technology workshops.
• Create platforms that strengthen collaboration between suppliers and Vanderlande stakeholders.
• Promote supplier innovation capabilities across the global procurement community.
• Ensure best practices and market insights are shared effecti