Procurement Excellence Lead

Procurement Excellence Lead – Indirect & Group Categories – UK Leading Food ManufacturerMidlands based with occasional travel, hybrid working£70,000-£80,000 + packageThis UK leading food manufacturing firm have underdone significant transformational change, and are now looking for an ambitious Procurement Excellence Lead to join their best-in-class procurement function. Reporting to the Group Procurement Director, you’ll be an ambitious candidate with strong category management experience within IT and Indirect areas of spend.A newly created role, you will provide strategic leadership to the Indirect & IT procurement team, guiding the transition to a category management-focused organisation, with a focus on driving strategy and sustainability. This position is pivotal in shaping procurement policies, steering category management, building and maintaining supplier relationships, and ensuring sustainability compliance. This role is ideal for a seasoned procurement professional who thrives on driving strategic change, optimising processes, and leading sustainability efforts in a global setting. Take the opportunity to drive transformational change within a dynamic and established market leading firm.Key Responsibilities:Strategic Leadership: Partner with the Group Procurement Director to implement a new Indirect procurement structure, to enhance efficiency.Category & Supplier Management: Act as the subject matter expert, accelerating the adoption of category and supplier management practices. Support the team in building capabilities, designing processes, and setting performance targets to ensure consistent progress.Standardisation & Process Optimisation: Develop and refine procurement standards and procedures to drive functional efficiency. Ensure full utilisation of the SAP Ariba platform to maximize value.Sustainability Leadership: Lead sustainability initiatives within Indirect & IT, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation, while supporting our Scope 3 carbon reduction goals.Collaboration & Influence: Serve as the key liaison with Group Shared Services, Procurement Governance & Compliance, and Accounts Payable, monitoring and enhancing process effectiveness.Key Skills & Experience:Senior-level procurement experience within a fast-paced, complex organisation required, ideally with experience in FMCG/ Food industry.Recognised procurement expert with deep knowledge in indirect category management, supplier management, and passion and understanding for sustainability legislation.Strong communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to influence and drive change across the organisation.Degree & CIPS/ MCIPS preferred.UK based, you will have the opportunity to for occasional international travel to the offices in Germany. With flexible working, you will be based in the modern Midlands office.This firm offer an above market salary of £70,000-£80,000 and generous bonus and package. If you’re an experienced procurement professional with a passion for driving change and implementing strategy, please email your CV to Lucy at: ##### Words:Procurement, Excellence Lead, Indirect, Group Procurement, IT, Strategic, Strategic Sourcing, Sustainability, Transformation, Hybrid, Midlands, Birmingham, Market Drayton, Droitwich, Coventry, Stoke-On-Trent, Telford, Worcester, Warwick, Coventry, Cheltenham, Gloucester