Senior Category Manager - It & Telco

SSE has big ambitions to be a leading energy company in a low carbon world. Following our commitment to invest £20.5 billion in low carbon projects to 2027, we have significant growth plans and are well on our way to achieving our ambition to build a world that's more sustainable and inclusive for you, your family, the community you live in and for generations to come.

Join us on our journey to net zero and help us power change.

About the Role

Base Location: Flexible across UK locations, however our preference is that you will be based in one of our key UK locations, which includes but is not limited to Reading, Havant, Glasgow, Perth.

Salary: £55,200 - £83,000 + performance-related bonus + a range of other benefits to support your family, finances and wellbeing.

Working Pattern: Permanent | Full Time | Flexible working options available

What is the Role?

This is a key role to support IT in meeting their internal customer needs. You be instrumental in driving IT & Telco commercial and contractual activities within a portfolio of projects.

As Senior Category Manager - IT & Telco, you will be responsible for the execution of a category management approach to the procurement of a specified portfolio of spend to ensure compliance, drive efficiencies, mitigate supply risks and drive down the total cost of ownership to the organisation. You'll be responsible for conducting internal and external analyses and engaging effectively with stakeholders to determine optimum sourcing strategies.

In your role as Senior Category Manager you will have responsibility for:

- Leading or project managing others to provide a range of sourcing activities in support of category plans and in accordance with all policies and procedures.

- Conducting Category Management in accordance with the overall procurement strategy, processes and procedures and ensure Category Management delivers against targets and objectives (such as savings, total cost of ownership, quality improvements and efficiencies).

- Liaising with the Head of Procurement and Commercial for IT & Telco on a regular basis to provide updates on category performance and provide additional insight through reporting and commentary as required.

- Interfacing with the IT & Telco Stakeholders to understand demand for and the impact of sourcing activities and foster relationships with Legal, Data Protection and Security to build robust & agile contracts.

- Developing and foster relationships with Stakeholders, Technical Specialists, Suppliers, Collaborative bodies and marketplace forums to build insights and market knowledge.

What do I need?

To be considered for this role, we would love you to have:

- In depth knowledge of IT contracts with the ability to draft special terms, including IT & Telco specific contract clauses and be able to provide guidance to others on how to assess and mitigate risks.

- Advanced negotiation skills and in depth knowledge of Software/SaaS based commercial models.

- Excellent organisational and planning skills, ability to work to deadlines, dealing with changing priorities whilst manging own time effectively.

- Knowledge of Procurement related systems eg Oracle, Jaggaer, Achilles Utilities Vendor Database

- CIPS or Degree level educated is preferred but not essential for the role.

About our Business

At SSE, we own more than 500 property assets and several thousand land assets, which are located across the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland. Our Procurement & Commercial, Property and Facilities Management teams are responsible for helping the business to procure services and materials in a timely and cost-effective way, and for ensuring SSE offers a safe, modern, fit-for-purpose property portfolio. We work right across the SSE Group, ensuring our businesses gets the best possible service and value from our supplier network, as well as ensuring all service providers are compliant and continue to meet contractual obligations and business need.

What's in it for you?

We offer an excellent package with 34 days annual leave entitlement. Enhanced maternity/paternity leave, discounted healthcare, salary sacrifice car leasing and much more, view our full benefits package on our careers site.
As an equal opportunity employer we encourage diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We encourage applicants from all protected characteristics and commit to providing any reasonable adjustments you need during the application, assessment and upon joining SSE. Search for 'Inclusion & Diversity at SSE' to find out more.

What happens now?

All applications should be made online, and I'll be back in touch after the vacancy closing date to let you know the outcome.

If you would like to discuss any working flexibly requirements or adjustments you may require throughout the recruitment and selection process, please contact Fran on 01738 344763

Before commencing your role with SSE, you'll need to complete our pre-employment screening process. This will consist of a criminality and credit check.