Purchasing and Supplier Management: Category Manager

The mission of our Category Managers is to continually refine category of spend to ensure high value of supply through supplier identification and management and share industry acumen. Lead Category Strategy with Stakeholders through AbbVie.

Leads category sourcing initiative teams that encompass local, domestic and/or international purchasing organizations. This position is responsible for establishing, articulating, and implementing sourcing strategies for individual spend categories, capital projects, supplier networks and / or geographic regions. This position may be responsible for obtaining program buy-in from various stakeholder organizations. The incumbent shall create and manage the project plan, identify the resources to support projects, drive projects through a sourcing process and ensure end results meet the requirements of all organizations impacted. This position requires a proactive approach that is: relationship orientated, customer focused, and team orientated, analytical, creative, dynamic, and demonstrative of continuous improvement.

• Conceive, initiate, develop, communicate, and manage the execution of purchasing strategies representing a minimum of $25 million of annual expenditures that will drive savings. Possess and maintains knowledge of spend vertical with ability to develop and manage long range plans for such spend category.
• Delivers successful cross-divisional sourcing projects that yield benefits to the corporation including; savings, re-engineered business processes, sustainable long-term agreements and risk mitigating supply strategies. Sets aspirational targets for the team; helps the team understand metrics for evaluating performance. Inspires high performance by holding the team accountable for key results; evaluates milestone achievement and addresses issues through appropriate channels.
• Skilled approach to execution of the negotiation process including usage of information, best-of-breed practice and deal closure. Properly converts the negotiated deals to performance based, legally sound contracts that serve as a guide for on-going supplier management and program sustainability.
• Communicates with management and stakeholder groups affected by the teams sourcing decisions. The use of effective oral and written communication skills to achieve organization objectives and improve productivity is critical. Fosters the exchange of ideas and information as well as establishing productive working relationships and teams.
• Initiates and cultivates open, honest and beneficial relationships with colleagues and stakeholders by establishing rapport, developing an understanding of other's needs, promotes common goals and follows through on commitments. Adapts information to stakeholder's needs delivers communications tailored to the needs of the receiver; uses appropriate language and level of detail for the receiver; provides specific feedback to others; writes clear executive summaries and persuasive proposals.
• Takes initiative to resolve conflicts constructively; diverts tensions away from individuals and toward work issues; probes for root causes of problems, collaborates to find mutually beneficial solutions, proposes action steps and assists in implementation. Maximizes cultural sensitivity to influence positive long-term change with sustainable benefits for the corporation.
• Uses analytical abilities to gather, analyze and establish spend baselines as a starting point for each sourcing process. In addition, they must possess the analytical abilities to perform analyses of the spend data, market data and the various supplier proposals, in order to yield fact-based decisions that address the requisite needs of the key stakeholders for the spend under evaluation.
• Timely execution of an established sourcing process for all projects. This includes all aspects of the process from initial project scope development through implementation. Identify and scope out new potential sourcing projects. Prepare scoping document to include scope and scale of project and key stakeholders. Set direction on standards (what may be purchased), identifying points of supply (which suppliers become approved key suppliers), developing, executing, and managing a sourcing strategy and strategic initiatives for all Stakeholders to improve Purchasing's overall and ultimate value. Gain senior level authorization for project activities and resource planning.

• Bachelor's Degree: Business, Finance, Law, Economics, Engineering, Chemistry/Biology or like degree. Certified Purchasing Manager (CPM)-desired
• 6 years of total combined minimum experience required.
• Required experiences: Recognized as Sourcing Authority, Project Management, Conflict Resolution, Seasoned Negotiator, Supply Chain Management, Production Planning, Value Engineering, Cost Analysis, Financial Analysis, Quality Systems and Documentation, Regulatory Issues, Compliance, Contracting Experience, Commercial and Construction Law, Technical Experience. Computer Applications. Supervision of Matrix Organizational, Strong Communication/Persuasion, Presentation and Interpersonal Skills.
• Ability to lead teams through the sourcing process and keep members focused on a fact-based conclusion without defaulting to a compromise position.
• Demonstrates the ability to plan, execute and measure successful project implementations. Displays the capabilities of project management by formulating complex project objectives and breaking them down to actionable tasks. Manages to key milestone dates that is critical to ensure maximum savings impact on an annual basis