Are you an experienced Category Manager with an entrepreneurial mindset, that strives for continuous improvement? And do you want to drive and develop supplier relations and are you passionate about supplier category management to support the development of innovative products that improve people’s lives? Then you might be our new Category Manager at Convatec. Every day, our products improve the lives of millions of people around the world. Were hugely proud of this, which is why were transforming our business to reach millions more. Join us as a Category Manager, and youll drive progress that really means something About the role This is a key role driving a high-performance culture and setting the standard for Procurement Excellence. We are looking for a Category Manager who will bring a strategic and innovative Category Management approach to Convatec as we continue our transformation journey. As Category Manager you will be accountable for end-to-end Global Category Management of the plastics portfolio under your control. You will be lead the development of long-term strategic plans within the category that align to current and future customer/business needs. This will include defining category strategy through to key stakeholder and supplier interactions that will deliver optimal levels of cost management, resilience and continuous improvement. Delivering exceptional results visible in the P&L while ensuring that sustainability is embedded in category strategies and supplier relationships. You will report to the Category Director and be a part of a dedicated team of 12 dedicated specialists with different professional backgrounds. Your main work location is in Deeside, North Wales, with occasional meetings at with our suppliers and at our other offices across Europe. We offer flexibility to work from home a couple of days a week. You can expect 20-25 travel days annually. Your key duties and responsibilities • Develop fully integrated and customer/business-aligned Category Strategy(s) for the Plastics category including but not limited to Injection Moulding, Resins, Films, Non-Wovens assigned spend area(s) engaging with key stakeholder groups in doing this. • Manage critical relationships (stakeholder and supplier) to ensure that Category Strategies are highly aligned to current and future business needs and that the supply base can support these strategies. • Responsible for the implementation of the category plan to ensure that procurement activities deliver the expected value to the business. • You will be accountable for delivering the contracts, agreements, and sourcing strategies for the supply of materials/products that support defined strategies. • You will be accountable through Supplier Relationship Management for ensuring that the supplier base supporting your category(s) is continually assessed and developed to meet changing business/customer demands. This will include identifying and driving continuous improvement/innovation initiatives that will generate value through increased supplier performance and/or capabilities. • You will be responsible for ensuring ESG targets are met for the suppliers that fall within your category(s). • Depending on complexity of categories being managed, you might be required to line manage a Strategic Buyer(s) to ensure timely implementation of category plans. About you We are looking for an experienced candidate with excellent communication skills and the ability to communicate through a variety of formats to an audience of internal stakeholders of differing seniority and with external partners. A high degree of business acumen with a good understanding of how to map out and build a relevant stakeholder network. You understand that key contributing factors to success are collaboration and at the same time deliver high quality and timely solutions and deliverables. You are well structured and methodological and know when to execute and delegate, and how to make right prioritizations. To be truly successful in this position you will take the lead to develop and execute the agreed Category and supplier strategies, that supports the overall Convatec strategy and business need. Qualification/Education • 5 years working within a Strategic Procurement/Sourcing environment, employing a formal category/sourcing management process. • Previous experience obtained from working in the injection moulding category with ability to engage technically with suppliers and support cross functional discussions with tool makers would be desirable. • Demonstrable knowledge of total cost of ownership models and detailed understanding of key market drivers. • A clear understanding of Category Management principles with a demonstrated ability to define a strategy and translate it into actionable plans and manage these plans through to implementation. • Able to work with a range of technically and culturally diverse people in a matrix environment, influencing them to achieve goals in a timely manner to help drive business results. • Experience working with e-procurement tools to find, evaluate & select the best vendors to support category plans. • Results and solution oriented, with a focus on meeting required targets and deadlines. • Possess significant ability for analytical problem-solving and analysis/interpretation of complex problems, incorporating data gathered from a variety of sources/software tools. • Good understanding of financial principles, resource planning and allocation, to support delivery of a Category Plan to deliver cost management, resilience and continuous improvement. • Skilled negotiator with the ability to lead all commercial and contractual matters.