Lead Category Manager – The Atrium, Curtis Road, Dorking, Surrey,

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

My job makes better lives by 

Supporting the category teams and customer Trusts by working with stakeholders and suppliers to build a reputation for procurement excellence within NHS Commercial Solutions (NHSCS). Leveraging new commercial opportunities and delivering procurement projects and frameworks. Maintaining relationships with existing clients and building new relationships by delivering a high-quality service, ensuring sourcing solutions are in place. Facilitating delivery of new contracts and monitoring contracts resulting in high-quality, value-for-money goods and services for customers. Helping to secure cash and efficiency savings for NHS Trusts across the country to release resources and ultimately improve patient outcomes.

Job Overview

This is a full-time role for an experienced Lead Category Manager who will lead a wide range of strategic sourcing, consultancy projects and category related initiatives for defined projects impacting all stages of the Procurement life cycle for NHS organisations.

 You will take the lead on a portfolio of initiatives across a wide range of categories, contract compliance, sustainable cost improvements, and a range of other benefits associated with the commissioning of category services and products whilst maintaining NHS Commercial Solution’s high standards. 

You will work closely with all teams across the organisation to ensure cohesive strategies in the delivery of categories, products and services.

The Role Holder Will 

·  Support the development and delivery of a strategic and operational procurement service

·  Work with stakeholders to ensure that service specifications, procurement evaluation criteria and assessment processes are fit for purpose and will result in the effective procurement of individual services

·  Support delivery against an annual procurement delivery plan in line with the organisations objectives to support Acute, Community and Mental Health Trusts for collaborative and independent projects

·  Manage a rolling workplan capturing and managing procurement intentions for a range of NHS organisations.

·  Drive change and innovation within NHSCS, to deliver commercial excellence across the region. This will be achieved by focusing on:

·  improving stakeholder benefit and advantage through new solutions.

·  engaging with stakeholders to understand their strategic integrated business plans and developing solutions that meet the needs.

·  developing and implementing project solutions, both on a collaborative and bespoke project management basis.

·  engaging with supplier markets to maintain the highest standard of market intelligence

·  Take the lead in individual procurements including responsibility for the preparation of tender documentation, undertaking briefings, assessment of bidder documentation according to financial viability, risk, sustainability and alignment with collaborative procurement strategies

·  Manage and build relationships within multi-disciplinary procurement project teams

·  Be responsible for maintaining communications around any current procurements and for preparing briefings for internal and external stakeholders

·  Lead the process of evaluation and bid assessment, ensuring that the processes are equitable, transparent and defensible and ensure that the customer attains best quality and value

·  Be responsible for the assessment of bidder documentation according to financial viability, risk, sustainability and alignment with current strategies

·  Liaise with and manage external contractors, maintaining effective partnership working whenever external procurement resource is required

·  Provide specialist procurement support and advice to Trust Stakeholders and other partners

·  Be responsible for maintaining communications around any current procurement and for preparing briefings for Directors and drafting Board papers as appropriate

·  Be responsible for maintaining the integrity of the overall approach and ensuring systems and processes for procurement are appropriate, fair transparent and non-discriminatory in line with national policy and relevant legislation

·  Maintain accurate records in accordance with good commercial practice, Standing Orders and the relevant organisation’s Freedom of Information Policy

·  Work with the Heads of Procurement across the region to ensure the necessary information to make informed decisions regarding the best practice procurement approach

·  Advise on the impact of the procurements and the implementation of NHS policy or initiatives and service developments

·  Develop and contribute to procurement methodologies, policies and procedures.

Advise on best practice procurement, working collaboratively with other agencies wherever possible 

Suitable for someone who has

·  Excellent communication skills; verbal, written, and presentational.

·  Strong analytical skills

·  The ability to understand and interpret complex data and information and utilize it effectively to inform others and influence key decision makers

·  A keen eye for detail with good organisational skills

·  The ability to concentrate for long periods of time with frequent interruptions

·  The ability to multitask and switch tasks efficiently

·  A proactive mindset

·  Excellent interpersonal skills

Key Relationships

The candidate will be required to maintain strong relationships with:

·  Trust Heads of Procurement and procurement teams

·  NHS Commercial Solutions Executive Team

·  Project Stakeholders 

·  NHS and public sector collaborative procurement colleagues

·  External partners including engagement with the public

·  Existing providers

·  Potential new entrants to the provider market 

Key Responsibilities:

·  Manage individual procurements as a project using appropriate project management principles

·  Liaise with and manage independent contractors, maintaining effective partnership working whenever external procurement resource is required

·  Provide specialist procurement support and advice to budget holders, commissioners and other partners

·  Ensure that procurements are conducted in line with the process required from the standing financial instructions, regional, and national rules

·  Require applying their skills at the level as per the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework 

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• has a degree as a minimum
• is CIPS level 5

Desirable criteria

• working towards MCIPS

Experience

Essential criteria

• Min 5 years’ experience in procurement
• Demonstrates understanding of best practice techniques in category management.
• Demonstrates procurement delivery.
• NHS or Public Sector experience
• Has procurement legislation knowledge
• Ability to read and interpret data and apply the findings

We are seeking to enrich the diversity of our Trust to better reflect demographic needs of the populations we serve and to enhance the skills of our workforce. We actively encourage applicants with underrepresented personal characteristics to apply for this role if you match the job description. Please note that you are not restricted from applying for this role if you do not identify with these characteristics and all applicants will be considered fairly against the job description.

As a flexible working and friendly organisation, we want to ensure that you can work in a way that is best for us, our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement whether that’s job share, part time or any other flexible working patterns.

Gender Pay Gap Action

Women in our Trust are under-represented in some senior grades.  We are therefore encouraging women to apply for posts at 8A and above.

Sponsorship

Regrettably, due to UK Home Office requirements we cannot offer sponsorship for all our job roles. If you apply for a role that we cannot offer sponsorship for, unfortunately, your application form will be rejected from the process. 

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.