Category Management Specialist V

This senior individual contributor position is responsible for developing category/spend strategies for key categories by leveraging extensive knowledge of the markets, suppliers and stakeholder needs; building long-term relationships with key internal clients and suppliers; owning end-to-end delivery of business needs for categories under management; identifying and understanding key initiatives of internal clients and short, medium, and long-term goals; ensuring alignment of initiatives and strategies with client expectations; adopting change practices with customers, suppliers and stakeholders to drive strategic programs; and interacting with leadership to review and drive decisions.
This position is also responsible for leading the RFP process and/or supplier negotiations; developing and executing RFPs; leveraging analytics and insights to ensure data-driven decisions; analyzing category spend to understand price drivers and trends; applying cost and supply market analytics; and applying a digital mindset to adopt new technologies in the source to pay space.

• Promotes learning in others by proactively providing and/or developing information, resources, advice, and expertise with coworkers and members; builds relationships with cross-functional/external stakeholders and customers. Listens to, seeks, and addresses performance feedback; proactively provides actionable feedback to others and to managers. Pursues self-development; creates and executes plans to capitalize on strengths and develop weaknesses; leads by influencing others through technical explanations and examples and provides options and recommendations. Adopts new responsibilities; adapts to and learns from change, challenges, and feedback; demonstrates flexibility in approaches to work; champions change and helps others adapt to new tasks and processes. Facilitates team collaboration to support a business outcome.


• Completes work assignments autonomously and supports business-specific projects by applying expertise in subject area and business knowledge to generate creative solutions; encourages team members to adapt to and follow all procedures and policies. Collaborates cross-functionally and/or externally to achieve effective business decisions; provides recommendations and solves complex problems; escalates high-priority issues or risks, as appropriate; monitors progress and results. Supports the development of work plans to meet business priorities and deadlines; identifies resources to accomplish priorities and deadlines. Identifies, speaks up, and capitalizes on improvement opportunities across teams; uses influence to guide others and engages stakeholders to achieve appropriate solutions.


• Develops category/spend strategies for key categories by leveraging extensive knowledge of the markets, suppliers and stakeholder needs; driving clear, informed decisions based upon a multi-year strategy; owning end-to-end delivery of business needs for categories under management; keeping current on external and internal influences that may impact the larger organization (e.g., Healthcare Reform, macroeconomic issues, etc.); and interacting with leadership to review and drive decisions.


• Develops and maintains relationships with key internal clients and suppliers by building strong, collaborative relationships with internal clients across the business to gain buy-in and deliver value; identifying and understanding key initiatives of internal clients and short, medium, and long-term goals; working with suppliers to identify and pursue opportunities to drive improved quality and delivery performance; assuring alignment of initiatives and strategies with client expectations to drive value, innovation, service/supply resiliency, quality of care and governance; and partnering with cross-functional stakeholders (e.g., Portfolio Leads, Sourcing, Procurement Operations, Supply Chain, Finance, etc.) to advance Category Management capabilities.


• Leads RFP process and/or supplier negotiations and facilitates contracting to deliver strategic value by leveraging appropriate negotiation strategies, tactics, and processes in line with situational demands; leading contract negotiations in partnership with Legal; and developing and executing RFPs to drive the strategic sourcing process.


• Leverages analytics and insights to ensure data-driven decisions by analyzing category spend to understand price drivers and trends; applying cost and supply market analytics to create category strategies; and applying a digital mindset to adopt new technologies in the source to pay space.


• Adopts change practices with customers, suppliers and stakeholders to drive the implementation and/or modification of new or existing strategic programs (e.g., Source to Pay transformation, Category Management training programs, etc.).


• Contributes to KPs Sustainability and Environmental goals and serves as an advocate to further advance results in Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP).

Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations, Management Science, Business, Finance, Accounting, Contract Administration, Procurement or a directly related field and minimum three (3) years experience in category management, strategic sourcing, or a directly related field. Additional equivalent work experience in a directly related field may be substituted for the degree requirement. Advanced degrees may be substituted for the work experience requirements.