I am partnering with a large multinational food/snacks organisation in their search for a Global Sourcing/Procurement/Category Manager to be based in west London (3 days in the office per week). The person will be responsible for the procurement of cartons/paper across all of the business' key regions. The position is best-suited to someone who:

Has 4+ years of procurement experience,
Has previously been responsible for packaging sourcing,
Has worked in a fast-paced, large, multinational matrix (consumer goods) organisation,
Is legally authorised to work in the UK.

The Cartons Category Manager reports directly to the packaging procurement head, who in turn reports into the CPO. They will drive (in alignment with Regional Procurement teams) the Cartons Category (£70M spend). The Category includes all paper-based packaging with the exception of Corrugated.

The Cartons Category Manager's key responsibilities include:

Designing, formalizing & implementing a 2 to 3 years forward sourcing strategy, after ensuring full alignment with the business strategies
Implementing all Procurement-driven processes & tools within their categories
Building strong relationships across all business functions (R&D, Operations, Engineering, Finance, Marketing), influencing business strategy in relation with cartons (competitivity, innovation, sustainability) and working with all key stakeholders to accelerate project implementation
Driving Procurement teams in regions to ensure a smooth and efficient implementation of global sourcing strategies, while promoting the sharing of best practices and leading benchmarks across regions

Delivering top class results across all 5 strategic dimensions of our mission: –

A 3-year productivity roadmap to achieve sustainable savings of a minimum of 3.5% per year, through reformulation of our materials or negotiation with our suppliers
A clear sustainability roadmap (jointly with R&D) to reach the goals set by the business on its path to carbon neutrality, while creating differentiation in the market
A clear innovation roadmap (jointly with R&D) to create extra value for consumers across our strategic innovation platforms
A robust supply continuity plan to assess, anticipate and prevent any disruption to our supply chain
A strong target to improve cash flow across our operations (payables, stocks of finished goods…).

More specifically with regards to the Cartons Category, they will:

Map together with Regional Procurement our requirements for the next 3 years, in order to anticipate our needs as the market evolves. This includes looking at innovative packaging which matches our long-term sustainability roadmap (needs analysis)
Map the market to identify new suppliers in those strategic areas, able to challenge our incumbent suppliers (market analysis)
Define our Commodities cover strategy (on paper board), jointly with the Procurement Head for Financial Hedging when done through financial instruments. Link with Procurement teams in Regions to ensure timely execution of our cover strategy when done through physical contracts.
Build a strong cost-modelling program with key suppliers to ensure prices are directly linked to specifications design and commodity covers or indices (board, energy).
Share benchmarks and best practices across all regions
Define jointly with Procurement in the Regions a Sourcing Strategy (productivity roadmap, innovation roadmap, sustainability roadmap, supplier strategy)
Build strong SRM (Supplier Relationship Management) with global & strategic suppliers, to build long-term relationship in order to leverage our size whenever it makes sense and get priority access to their sustainability / innovation programs. This includes setting up & monitoring a robust supplier evaluation program.
Negotiate frame agreements with Global Suppliers, support negotiations in all regions and align supplier selection with Procurement in the Regions
Finalize contracts with global suppliers, collecting all necessary requirements (technical, service level, expected KPIs) from the various stakeholders. Support Procurement teams in the Regions with the contract execution when significant breaches of service / quality are identified
Identify improvement opportunities, develop should-cost models, set up continuous improvement targets to drive savings & value
Lead AOP (budgeting process) for commodity assumptions, and key cost-model assumptions (labour, energy, chemicals, etc).

Required Skills and experience for role:

Bachelor degree or masters degree
Successful experience in Procurement (a min. of 5 years is expected)
Ability to deal with ambiguity within a complex and multicultural environment
Proven ability to work with cross-functional team, with a collaborative mindset.
Natural leadership & influence skills
Strong analytical skills
Ability to be hands on operationally as well as building a long term strategic vision
English is a must, proficiency in another language is a desirable
Advanced Excel & Power Point skills
Previous work experience in matrix procurement organization.
Available to work in Chiswick 3 days a week / travel on request to factories & suppliers.

Please apply if this position matches your experience and aspirations