Senior Category Manager, Technology - Procurement

who we are

lululemon is an innovative performance apparel company for yoga, running, training, and other athletic pursuits. Setting the bar in technical fabrics and functional design, we create transformational products and experiences that support people in moving, growing, connecting, and being well. We owe our success to our innovative product, emphasis on stores, commitment to our people, and the incredible connections we make in every community we're in. As a company, we focus on creating positive change to build a healthier, thriving future. In particular, that includes creating an equitable, inclusive and growth-focused environment for our people.

about this team

The Global Procurement team are trusted business advisors who strategically partner with internal stakeholders and external suppliers to create value and mitigate risk in strategic non-product purchases for the global organization. The team supports the business in increasing its profitability and return on investment by creating value in our indirect supply chain through sourcing and negotiation. From providing category expertise, market insights, cost savings opportunities & developing short and long-term strategies, the Global Procurement team supports the business with their supplier relationships.

core responsibilities

The Senior Category Manager - Procurement for our Technology category supports stakeholders in meeting their business goals and objectives. In partnership with business stakeholders, they are responsible for the development, implementation, management, and performance of sourcing strategies. What you’ll do:

• Support the development and execution of category plan and associated sourcing strategies for indirect spend across the Technology category.
• Lead and develop team members.
• Support annual Technology sourcing activities - from strategy to contract.
• Support annual productivity improvements in each category of spend by developing and ensuring implementation of ideas to optimize total cost of ownership (TCO) for spend categories.
• Bring sourcing efficiency to all activity; define specific roadmaps containing prioritization of sourcing categories and events.
• Build strategic partnerships with internal business leaders to increase Procurement awareness and reach through collaboration to build effective sourcing strategies that leverage the fast pace of the Technology market to achieve business and function specific priorities.
• Link market intelligence and value analytics to sourcing strategy & category plan development.
• Use a collaborative and inclusive approach to deliver against global Technology strategic priorities and translate that strategy into effective and innovative sourcing strategies.
• Continuous learning and understanding of industry and market trends using external and internal resources to inform the Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy.
• Contribute to supplier relationship and performance management activities.
• Analyze spend data and other resources to identify value delivery opportunities and uncover additional insights.
• Facilitate the contract management process, liaising with legal counsel to ensure agreements are executed

qualifications

• Required: Bachelor
• Preferred: MBA, SCMP or equivalent professional designation

7+ years Procurement experience

• 3+ years Technology category experience
• Business Relationship: Has oversight of stakeholder issues and drivers. Uses knowledge when building relationships and determining appropriate action on stakeholder input and expectations. Has the ability to handle complex issues. Takes ownership of issues and sees them through resolution while providing guidance and support to other team members.
• Category management: Develops strategies and buying programs for a range of commodities. Knowledgeable of the geographic, technical and commercial features. Knowledgeable of supply/demand dynamics and industry cost structures and mechanisms.
• Sourcing: Works independently or facilitates teams to generate creativity in creating options contracting, sourcing, relationships or risk improvement, using the category sourcing frameworks. Validates assumptions and robustness of strategies.
• Negotiation: Fully comprehends when and how to negotiate. Has successfully conducted an assortment of negotiations to accomplish organization objectives. May lead some strategic and business-critical negotiations. Can adapt negotiation tactics. Ensures the organization has sufficient time to negotiate and that all negotiations result in a signed contract. Is able to change the negotiators internally based on the needs of the specific negotiation.
• Project