Category Manager

Location/s: Newcastle, UK
Recruiter contact: Nikki George

Mott MacDonald is a global engineering, management, and development consultancy with over 20,000 employees across more than 50 countries and 140+ offices. 

We work across incredible global industries, delivering exciting work that is defining our future and making an important societal impact in the communities we serve. Our people power our performance – we succeed when they do. With countless opportunities to collaborate, learn, and grow, the possibilities for excellence are as varied as every individual. 

Whether you want to grow as a subject matter expert or broaden your experience with roles across our international community, you're surrounded by global specialists who want to combine their expertise and champion you to be your best. As a proudly employee-owned business, we benefit our clients, our communities, and each other, investing in creating the right space for everyone to feel empowered, included, and valued. Whatever your ambition, Mott MacDonald is where people come to be brilliant.

Overview of the role
The role will manage procurement activities within a range of technology areas with spend across the organization. This includes acquiring goods and services within budget and facilitating communication between the Business and suppliers to deliver products and services as planned. The IT Category Manager will also work on master agreements with our suppliers to ensure streamlined procurement activities globally. All activities will be in line with Group IT procurement guidelines and principles, ethics and sustainability objectives to deliver lowest total cost of ownership for solutions.

You will report to the IT Manager – Procurement and will work alongside a team of IT Category Managers and Purchasing Specialists.

Key duties and responsibilities include:

• Strategy and Planning
  • Monitor and analyse trends in company spending and inventory control to make recommendations for the future, and to identify areas for savings
  • Develop, establish, implement, and enforce supplier and outsourcer guidelines, obligations, and service level agreements to the organisation
  • Comply with all IT purchasing policies and procedures, including those for equipment, hardware, software, and service provision, in conjunction with department leads and department-specific requirements
  • Analyse market trends and conditions for present and future pricing, availability, lead-time, and capacity of goods and services
  • Interview, identify, and qualify potential new vendors or suppliers to secure more cost-effective sources of products and services
  • Develop and deliver purchasing and inventory reports, bid proposals, requirements documentation, and tender documents
  • Review and maintain the global supplier/contract base for the IT category, and update annual IT category plans to re-tender, consolidate, expand or change suppliers, as appropriate to leverage optimum service and value
• Operational Management
  • Direct and manage sourcing strategies from beginning to end
  • Define purchasing recommendations that support business goals, in collaboration with management and stakeholders
  • Negotiate pricing, terms and conditions of sale, and warranties of goods and products with key suppliers and vendors
  • Negotiate pricing, terms and conditions of contracts with contractors and/or service providers
  • Monitor vendor, service provider, outsourcer, and/or contractor performance to ensure quality of service
  • Provide periodic oversight and execution of vendor requalification
  • Establish and maintain regular written and in-person communications with the organisation's executives, department heads, and end users regarding pertinent sourcing activities
  • Effectively communicate procurement strategies to team members and stakeholders in a timely and clear way
  • Manage escalated issues between vendor and the company and coordinate key mitigation actions
  • Where possible, standardise equipment to lower total costs

Candidate specification
Essential:

• Experience / Knowledge of category, supplier, and contract management
• Experience of procuring and negotiating contracts
• Experience running end-to-end RFPs for senior stakeholders
• Experience of implementing procurement policy, procedures, and governance
• Experience in achieving financial savings through supplier negotiation

Desirable:

• Working knowledge of the Category Management process
  MCIPs qualified or willing to work towards a CIPS qualification
• Experience operating at both a tactical and strategic level with a track record of success in delivering financial savings
• Experience working in an environment where customer needs are variable
• Experience working under category management-based approaches
• Experience tendering and managing contracts over £1m
• Experience implementing best practice contract and supplier management

Personal Attributes:

• Passionate about technology and learning
• Ability to balance demands and priorities and think clearly under pressure
• Attention to detail and a focus on quality
• Excellent conflict resolution, communication, and collaboration skills
• Logical and analytical approach to solving problems

We are actively recruiting a diverse workforce that is reflective of the communities we serve. We recognize that differences in ability, skills and experience are a strength and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds.

UK Immigration

Mott MacDonald Ltd. are not currently offering sponsorship to candidates under the Skilled Worker visa route in the UK. This decision is as a consequence of the changes made to the Skilled Worker route by the UK Government in April 2024. We continue to welcome applications from candidates who are eligible for alternative immigration routes in the UK, that do not require sponsorship as a Skilled Worker now or in future.

Agile working  

At Mott MacDonald, we believe it makes business sense for you and your manager to choose how you can work most effectively to meet your client, team, and personal commitments. We offer a hybrid working policy that embraces your well-being, flexibility, and trust.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion 

We put equality, diversity, and inclusion at the heart of our business, seeking to promote fair employment procedures and practices to ensure equal opportunities for all. We encourage individual expression in our workplace and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels they can contribute.

Accessibility

We want you to perform your best at every stage in the recruitment process. If you are disabled or need any support to enable you to apply or attend an interview, please contact us at and we will talk to you about how we can support you.

We offer some fantastic benefits including:

Health and wellbeing

• Private medical insurance for all UK colleagues.
• Health cash plan to support you with every day health costs and treatments.
• Access to Peppy, providing free support from menopause experts for all UK colleagues.
• A variety of wellbeing support is available through our comprehensive wellbeing program, including access for you and your family.
• Ability to flex your salary to opt into a wide range of health benefits, many of which can be extended to your family too.

Financial wellbeing

• We match employee pension contributions between 4.5% and 7%.
• Life assurance equal up to 4 x your basic salary, with an option to increase the level of cover to 6 x your salary.
• Our income protection scheme provides a financial benefit, as well as absence and return to work support due to long-term illness or injury.
• Flexible benefits, including increased life assurance cover, critical illness insurance, payroll saving and will writing.
• As an independently owned business we share the financial success of the business with all our colleagues in various ways including annual bonus schemes.

Lifestyle

• A minimum of 33-35 days holiday each year, inclusive of public holidays and dependent on level, with the ability to buy or sell leave through our flexible benefits programme.
• Holiday entitlement increased to a minimum of 35 days after 5 years' service.
• Variety of employee saving schemes and discounts from high-street retailers.

 Enhanced family and carers leave

• Enhanced family leave policies, including 26 weeks paid maternity and adoption leave, and two weeks paid paternity/partner leave.
• Our shared parental leave matches maternity leave meaning we pay up to 24 weeks at full pay.
• Up to five additional days leave are provided for those with significant caring responsibilities, two of which are paid.

Learning and development

• Primary annual professional institution subscription.
• A broad range of opportunities to enhance both technical and soft skills through mentoring, formal training, and self-development options.

Networks, communities, and social outcomes

• Join a wide range of groups including our Advanced Employee Networks which support our LGBTQ+, gender, race and ethnicity, disability, and parents/carers communities.
• Make a difference within our communities through our social outcomes.

Apply now, or for more information about our application process, click here.