Category Management Group Lead

Your new role Highways England is investing 27bn from 2020 - 2025 across the strategic road network. Our job is to manage and improve the road network to make journeys safer, smoother and more reliable. Here at Highways England we are constantly challenging ourselves and our supply chain to achieve more for our customers. As a Category Management Group Lead, you will contribute to the achievement of Category Management by developing/shaping strategic sourcing strategies to meet the short and long term needs of the business. You will be accountable for one assigned category area ensuring the implementation of the strategy through planning and management of new arrangements and management of existing ones. The role will see you working closely with internal and external stakeholders to maximise customer value for money, identifying opportunities for innovation and capturing changes in the marketplace to meet the strategic objectives for your category. This is an exciting time to join the Commercial & Procurement directorate where you will act as an integral member of the Procurement division, achieving maximum leverage from our multi-billion annual spend and delivering significant benefits to the organisation. We have a number of roles available across various disciplines and locations with regular travel required: Category Management Group Lead, General Civil - Birmingham or Bristol Category Management Group Lead, Sitework & Labour - Birmingham or Bristol Category Management Group Lead, Steel Structure & Gantries - Leeds or Birmingham Category Management Group Lead, Concrete Structure - Leeds or Birmingham Category Management Group Lead, Vehicle Restraint Systems - Leeds or Birmingham Category Management Group Lead, Design Services - Bristol or Guildford Category Management Group Lead, Logistics - Bristol or Guildford Line management responsibilities are anticipated dependent on the assigned category. Here at Highways England we are striving for commercial excellence so if you're looking for a new opportunity to join a high performing Procurement function in a progressive organisation please apply now! When applying please clearly state the location(s) and category area(s) you would like to be considered for. What you'll be doing Develop category strategies which maximise customer value for money. Create a plan to engage with Internal stakeholders and with suppliers on the strategy in order to drive value and efficiencies. Ensure that Category Management is seen in a strategic way and looking at new long-term supplier strategy and innovation and how to bring best value to Highways England Apply best practices to deliver outcomes and effectively manage governance and risk (strategic risks including supplier performance and resilience). Actively encourage innovation within assigned category area. This could include providing direction to the team to identify opportunities of innovation that helps meet strategic objectives (e.g... customer engagement, developing new arrangements etc.), setting performance metrics and targets for innovation etc. Engage with the wider Procurement Senior team and support in making critical commercial decisions as part of the short, medium- and long-term strategy of the business and be empowered to make these decisions. In delivering outcomes (new frameworks or other arrangements) effectively manage governance by engaging with and managing submissions to relevant internal and external governance groups/bodies eg. Investment Decision Committee (IDC), Procurement Assurance Board (PAB) etc. To be successful A proven track record in delivering complex strategic sourcing A strong proven track-record in developing/leading category management A proven track record in leading varying aspects of the procurement function Strong ability to manage the sourcing strategy and critical success factors internally and externally Strong negotiation skills and understanding of contracts and supply agreements A track record of successfully developing strong stakeholder management at all levels and across different business areas to implement and embed new ways of working Ability to work quickly across multiple projects / initiatives simultaneously Previous experience in working in a regulated environment is desirable but not essential. A bit about us There's never been a better time to join our Commercial and Procurement team. We're a growing, vibrant team helping to drive the most ambitious roads investment programme our country has ever seen. You'll be involved in ensuring that our customers and road workers get home safe and well every day while travelling or working on our road network. Want to know more? To request a copy of the role profile please contact charlotte.randzio@highwaysengland.co.uk quoting reference number HIG03488. Why you should join us At Highways England we believe in a connected country. We are passionate about creating a culture where colleagues feel connected, included and enj