Category Manager – Professional Services

• Fantastic opportunity to join the team at the University of Birmingham
• Overseeing the Professional Services Category

About Our Client

The University of Birmingham is one of the largest employers in the West Midlands. With over 8,000 members of staff working across a huge variety of roles, running an organisation of this size and complexity offers a challenge to rival that of any major business or public sector body.

We are the original ‘redbrick’ University, part of the prestigious Russell Group; our thriving student population enjoys a wide range of courses, and exceptional campus and research facilities.

The 10 Nobel Laureates we count among our staff and alumni have contributed to some of science’s greatest discoveries, including in recent times the Higgs Boson and Gravitational Waves. Our research provides innovative solutions to the challenges we face in our city, our region and across the globe.

We encourage and empower people to turn ideas into reality and make important things happen.

Job Description

The Professional Services category is both the largest & most complex area and as such we seek a dynamic, collaborative and purpose led procurement professional who possesses strong category management experience within this remit. As the Category Manager for Professional services, you will be responsible for:

Dealing with queries related to procurement and contracting activity, across a broad variety of subcategory areas including but not limited to;

• Recruitment – Contract management and effective planning for re-tender when due.
• Consultancy – Engaging with various departments to ensure IR35 is assessed, and relevant Consultancy Contracts are in place.
• Transport & Fleet, Libraries, Security – Working closely with the departments to ensure new requirements are identified, current contracts are managed and re-tender plans are in place in sufficient time.
• Managed Print – Collaboration with various end users, including IT, to prepare for re-tender due within 3 years.
• Travel – Contract Management and close working with other teams to ensure Travel is as seamless as possible for end users

Overall, you will be supporting end users to prepare contracts for tendering, analyse tenders to determine the overall best value for the University, prepare contract packs for signature and ensure relevant documents are completed related to contract award. Alongside of ensuring compliance with University financial rules and regulations.

You will be required to work collaboratively with multi-disciplinary teams daily across the University on a broad range of interesting and sometimes research led projects.

The Successful Applicant

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate the following experience:

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent level qualifications), higher degree where appropriate or substantial relevant Category Manager/Procurement experience.
• Membership of CIPS / qualified to competent level or willing to study towards
• Knowledge, application and administration of European Union procurement procedures and regulations.
• Ability to lead and manage diverse groups of staff through intermediate managers
• Commercial terms and conditions of contract
• Contractor and Supplier Relationship Management experience
• Administration of Request for Proposal/Tendering/Evaluation and Contract Award procedures including detailed contract negotiation
• Working with the procurement of a wide portfolio of projects.
• Networking and influencing people.
• IT skills including MS Word, Excel and Project and computerised procurement and management information systems.
• Actively promotes equality and diversity to internal and external stakeholders.

What’s on Offer

Salary – £34,980-£44,263 (depending on experience). In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Contact Nicola Harper

Quote job ref JN-012024-6298366

Phone number 0161 829 0354