Description
Category Manager - Paris, France - French and English speaking
(Category Management, Procurement Manager, Procurement Management, Procurement, E-Strategic Sourcing, E Strategic, E-Strategic, EStrategic, E/Strategic, Sourcing, Commodity, Ariba Solutions, Emptoris, SAP, Project Delivery, Service Delivery)
One of our Blue Chip Clients is urgently looking for a Category Manager.
Please find some details below:
Job Description Overview
The Category Manager is responsible for providing Procurement category expertise and Procurement delivery to internal and external customers, through execution of category knowledge, sourcing expertise and coordination of a variety of delivery teams across the client's existing services. The Category Manager must appropriately manage customer projects to exceed customer expectations, and will require a combination of strategic category development, opportunity assessment, and strategic sourcing, managing the engagement of client stakeholder teams and the client teams including Global Expertise, Spend Manager resource and shared service coordination as appropriate.
Roles' Duties and Responsibilities
The Category Manager will translate the customer spend profiles and Stakeholder discussions into Sourcing and Savings opportunities in their aligned categories They will work with the client account lead and delivery teams to demonstrate category and procurement excellence, establish and drive strategic category direction and sourcing initiatives in support of the client account scope and obligations. They will identify and agree the deliverables and will serve as the category lead and facilitator in the execution of the following tasks:
Develop strategic category and procurement plan for the assigned categories/sub-categories
Engage client stakeholder group and the client expertise team as appropriate ensuring the client's capability is demonstrated to client and benefits delivered within category are maximized
Work with customer stakeholders and assigned account team to obtain spend data specific to category
Conduct interviews with client stakeholders to determine existing strategies and constraints
Develop savings opportunity assessments and build into sourcing and savings pipeline in support of account delivery objectives
Assess viability of project and set customer expectations given the client's experience and current market conditions. Engage Global Expertise team as appropriate to support this activity
Primary interface to customer stakeholders to kickoff any sourcing effort, including facilitating initial data gathering and scoping of project for the delivery organization
Work as subject matter expert and key stakeholder lead along with the client operations team to execute the sourcing project. Key activities include approving supplier lists, reviewing and offering category guidance for all RFx documents, reviewing data completeness and go-to-market strategies, and interpreting results
Along with the rest of the operations team, present results of the sourcing activity back to client stakeholders with detailed recommendations for implementation
Manage ultimate contracting process for strategic suppliers, including price and terms negotiations (along with client team)
Develop detailed implementation plan for new contracts, including project management of new supplier approvals if required
Ensure that new contract terms are entered into customer P2P systems so that compliance and savings can be tracked going forward
Develop and agree savings tracking methodology and client approval process
Develop key supplier performance metrics and associated tracking/monitoring systems
Periodically review performance of key suppliers and develop action plans for improvement if required
Identify key factors of supplier/market risk, review supplier agreements and monitor suppliers to mitigate supply disruptions
Track overall compliance of suppliers and buyers to contract terms and develop action plans for improvements if required
Measure performance versus contract terms and report back to key customer stakeholders, including finance
Ensure that all deliverables meet customer contract terms and are delivered to exceed margin targets for the account or project
Review operational results and identify opportunities for process/policy changes to drive additional savings and improve overall results
Formulate category specific procurement policies and strategies and lead implementation
Coordinate and respond to sales support requests for case studies and credentials as necessary
Assist Global Category Director or Regional Category Lead in development of standard category collateral for Marketing or Operational purposes
Assist in developing materials for Supply Watch and for Category Workbooks or Portals
Drive a service culture across the organization through a variety of means, including training programs, continuous improvement efforts, rewards
Adopts formal methods for establishing project plans and managing project activities to agreed timelines, including subtasks, milestones, resources, and timelines
Effective development and management of project teams. Assignment of responsibilities, developing clear expectations and ongoing project management
Establish themselves as a category expert who can be engaged and create the interface between the Global Expertise teams and the client delivery teams
Strong ability to develop material and present to client and internal audiences. Demonstrating expertise and the client capability
Acts as a mentor for other members of the client delivery team helping to upskill them in category expertise
Potential HR responsibilities in the Assigned account
Required experience:
7+ years of Consulting, Procurement or Sourcing experience with strong category specific knowledge and demonstrable expertise
Experience running large complex sourcing initiatives from start to finish with proven ability to meet deliverables
Experience working with client stakeholders to analyze and identify needs, building out the client solution and driving the deliverables to completion
Client and internal business stakeholder management, with ability to engage stakeholders at the highest level
Ability to conduct complex opportunity assessments and deliver client facing business case
Demonstrated experience providing a high level of customer satisfaction
Experience with E-Strategic Sourcing
Previous experience with complex organizational processes relating to the sales cycle (legal, finance, contracts etc)
Demonstrated experience in project management
Exposure to multicultural scenarios and/or international work experience strongly preferred
Experience with creation and/or development of procurement structure, policies and buying channels (eg org structure, roles, processes, capability development, etc)
Experience prospecting current and prospective clients for potential sales opportunities including qualifying, selling, and closing spend management service deal
Demonstrated experience forming strategic account plans including customer profiles, targeted programs, application descriptions, forecast reports, and action items
Preferred Experience:
Media and Entertainment Industry
MBA or similar advanced degree a plus
CPM or APICS certification a plus
Strong analytical and problem solving skills
Ability to work in a team environment
Ability to communicate at all levels including senior executives, client relationships, internal teams and external customers
Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills
Ability to select and evaluate internal and external personnel to ensure the efficient operation of the team
Project management experience including:
People management
Customer management
Identification additional opportunities
Project plan development and execution
Management of agreed deliverables
Stakeholder management skills demonstrating ability to build relationships with key executives and decision makers within assigned accounts
Ability to explain what best-in-class means for a variety of purchasing related situations (eg strategy, eSourcing, LCCS, org design,...)
Understanding of global supply markets (current situation, trends, dynamics, challenges and risks), and how this impacts Purchasing (opportunities, risks,...)
Ability to leverage experience and give strong value-added input at critical phases to customer projects/project teams
Project/Service Delivery
Manages positioning, scoping, pricing, and contracting process for all services work
Preferred Knowledge:
Commodity Knowledge
Ariba Solutions, Emptoris, SAP
Solid understanding of negotiation best practices, techniques and guidelines
Strong understanding of contractual terms and conditions
Basic Minimum Qualifications
Fluent English and French
7 years of professional experience (procurement, supply chain consulting or customer/supplier management experience preferred)
High level of Microsoft Office Suite proficiency (specifically Excel, Word, PowerPoint)
Ability to travel up to 50%
Please send CV for full details and immediate interviews. We are a preferred supplier to the client.