Global Category Lead - Engineering & Construction

SD Guthrie International; Petaling Jaya; On-site; MYR 120,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

SD Guthrie International is seeking a senior procurement leader in Malaysia to drive global category strategies and end-to-end lifecycle governance for construction-related spend. You will oversee regional alignment, market forecasting, and supplier performance while maintaining PPV targets and cost-reduction initiatives.

The role requires 8–10 years of relevant experience, strong negotiation skills, and a track record in strategic sourcing within the construction sector.

Qualifications

• 8 to 10 years of progressive experience combining technical civil/construction execution with commercial or procurement responsibility.
• Expertise in procurement processes, category management, strategic sourcing, stakeholder management, excellent influencing and story telling skill.
• Strong ability to analyze market trends, price movements, and industry data to make informed procurement decisions.
• Skilled in managing procurement budgets, identifying cost-saving opportunities, and developing cost-effective strategies.
• Strong communication and presentation skills to articulate sustainability goals and initiatives.
• Excellent ability to negotiate with suppliers and communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders.
• Skilled in driving innovation / saving projects.
• Experience in construction industry is an added advantage.

Responsibilities

• Global Strategy Development: Lead formulation and implementation of the Global Category Strategy and TCO optimizations.
• Regional & Global Alignment: Formulate and execute procurement strategies that meet global and regional needs.
• Market Trend Management: Monitor macro-market trends to keep category strategies competitive.
• Category Strategy Execution & Management: Develop global category plans and governance over execution.
• Financial Accountability: Maintain P&L for the category budget and cost-reduction targets.
• Lifecycle Governance: Own procurement and contract management lifecycles across centers.
• Market Intelligence & Forecasting: Forecast price movements and secure supply continuity.
• Performance Metrics Optimization: Drive KPIs and operational excellence.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborate across functions to build consensus on strategies.
• Spend Analysis & Leakage Mitigation: Review tail spends and fix value leaks.
• Joint Business Planning: Lead JBP with strategic suppliers and key stakeholders.
• Productivity & Efficiency Gains: Lead productivity roadmaps across spend portfolios.
• Executive Escalation: Escalation point for bottlenecks and vendor issues.
• Strategic Partnerships: Build relationships for value-generating initiatives.
• Supply Chain Risk Mitigation: Maintain risk registers and continuity plans.
• Sustainable Sourcing Frameworks: Embed ESG criteria for net-zero goals.
• Supplier Performance Governance: Monitor supplier scorecards and OTIF metrics.
• Mentor and guide buyers and teams to uplift capabilities.
• Execute ad hoc projects as assigned.

Skills

Procurement leadership

Stakeholder management

Market analysis

Cost reduction

Negotiation

Education

Degree in Civil Engineering / Construction Management / Quantity Surveying / SCM

Tools

SAP

Oracle

Ariba

MS Excel

MS PowerPoint

MS Word

Job description

SD Guthrie International is seeking a senior procurement leader in Malaysia to drive global category strategies and end-to-end lifecycle governance for construction-related spend. You will oversee regional alignment, market forecasting, and supplier performance while maintaining PPV targets and cost-reduction initiatives.

The role requires 8–10 years of relevant experience, strong negotiation skills, and a track record in strategic sourcing within the construction sector.