Our client is one of the largest fully regulated natural gas and electric utility companies in the United States. We are seeking a Category Lead for a 6+ month contract based in Valparaiso, IN 46383.
You will have the opportunity to work a hybrid schedule (remote on Monday and Friday)
Qualifications:
Minimum 3+ years strategic sourcing experience, preferably 5+ years. That does not include buyer type experience, someone issuing purchase orders.
Purchasing expereince
Strong organizational skills, managing multiple projects at once
Self-starter & Initiative Communication and relationship building (leading without authority)
Responsibilities:
Establishing, leading/facilitating and supporting cross functional category management teams to develop and maintain category plans and ongoing category performance
Developing deep knowledge and experience within assigned spend management responsibilities
Developing spend/performance and external market analyses to monitor category performance and identify performance improvement opportunities
Developing spend and savings/performance improvement forecasts to monitor progress and ensure goals are achieved
Developing plans to capture identified opportunities
Defining category requirements through collaborative efforts with respective stakeholder groups
Collaborating with stakeholder groups to develop consensus on the appropriate category plans and priorities
Leading performance improvement initiatives defined by the category plan including strategic sourcing and other performance improvement initiatives
Establishing, leading/facilitating and supporting cross functional strategic sourcing/performance improvement teams as needed/prescribed by category plans to achieve savings and performance targets (e.g. reduce cost, improve quality and result in a lower total cost of ownership, meeting supplier diversity goals)
Leading negotiations with suppliers as needed
Maintaining critical supplier agreements including renewals, negotiation of terms, issue identification, tracking and resolution
Supplier Management responsibilities include:
Developing and maintaining supplier criticality ratings and managing resulting critical supplier relationships
Managing supplier relationships including conducting Quarterly Business Reviews with critical suppliers and NiSource
Executive Sponsors
Stakeholder Management responsibilities include:
Developing successful partnerships with key stakeholders / business partners to achieve desired results
Developing and managing cross-functional category management and strategic sourcing teams as needed
Collaborating with stakeholders to drive needed decisions to achieve desired results