Category Buyer - Indirect

Job description

Category Buyer - Indirect
Thales UK
Reading or Crawley
Competitive salary plus bonus, private healthcare and pension

You will be joining a large procurement function across Thales UK which consists of around 200 procurement professionals. This role sits within the Indirect Procurement team and reports into the Head of Procurement.

As the Category Buyer you will lead the strategic sourcing activities for Indirect Procurement spend categories such as HR and Travel with the goal of achieving significant initial cost reductions, while maintaining/improving product quality and supplier service levels. The successful candidate will work closely with key stakeholders to develop effective cost reduction strategies and implementation plans.

The Thales UK procurement function achieved CIPS Corporate Certification in 2017 demonstrating a commitment to growth and development and we are looking for talented procurement professionals to join us on our journey.

Thales is a global business and you will be working cross collaboratively with other business units globally.

Your responsibilities

· Work collaboratively within your category to optimise synergies and opportunities across Thales UK
· Negotiate, implement and manage Frame work agreements
· Ensure appropriate Supplier Relationship Management and Performance Management techniques to improve performance, mitigate risk and capture innovation from suppliers.
· Ensure relevant governance is complied with, including Delegation Of Authority, Acquisition Log process and Purchase Order approval
· Work in accordance with all business governance processes as laid out in Chorus.
· Develop category strategies, developing sourcing options, cost benchmarking, developing commercial models, contract drafting, KPI models & facilitating major/complex tender processes.
Your skills and experience

· Track record of deploying Category Management techniques to define long term supply policies
· Interpersonal skills to optimise cross organization working and to work effectively with suppliers.
· Technical and Supply Market knowledge within IT Hardware
· Use of Supplier Relationship and Performance Management techniques and measurement
· Able to work effectively within and across transverse teams, actively seeks synergies and sharing of best practices.
· Procurement experience gained within a large blue chip organization.
· Ideally CIPS or MCIPS qualified or be willing to obtain
Thales supports Smart Working which is an approach to organising work that aims to drive greater efficiency and effectiveness in achieving job outcomes. It combines flexibility, autonomy and collaboration, while optimising tools and working environments for employees – ask for more details at your interview.

In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency