Indirect Sourcing Specialist at Mars

Job Description:

Everything we do is driven by our passion for the health and wellbeing of every cat and dog. You can now join us at Royal Canin on this mission. Our deep understanding of cats and dogs needs makes it possible for us to design the world's most precise pet health nutrition. We never stop learning and never take anything for granted. That’s why we collaborate with leading scientific, veterinary and behavioral experts, breeders and other pet professionals and maintain an ongoing dialogue with cat and dog owners worldwide.

This position is responsible for the development and implementation of processes for Indirect categories within Royal Canin South Africa and Arcturus South Africa. This includes but is not limited to understanding key market drivers & the development of sourcing strategies, contract negotiations and reviews, obtaining contract approvals, forecasting, value engineering, managing supplier relationships and delivering improvements in areas such as cost, cash, quality, service and innovation to meet the overall business goals and objectives.

What are we looking for?

• Bachelors degree in Purchasing or Supply Chain or equivalent
• 4-5 years of experience in an indirect strategic procurement environment (Indirect portfolio strategy development and execution - non-negotiable).
• Cost modeling/formula price modeling experience
• Strong numerical ability to interpret financial data, and develop, apply, and understand in-depth costing models
• Experience managing multiple suppliers/service providers with varying levels of spend
• Strong analytical skills & market knowledge
• Strong negotiation skills
• Strong communication and presentation skills
• Financial understanding related to budgeting and price variance
• Stakeholder engagement and influence
• Detail oriented. Strong computer and analysis skills; able to handle multiple projects at one time
• High drive for performance and deliverables to meet targets
• Experience in the development, implementation and monitoring of policies, governance protocols, systems & controls in-line with best practices
• Ability to work on and navigate multiple in-directs categories from a strategic procurement perspective, whilst dealing with multiple stakeholders of various disciplines
• The ability to drive efficiencies and unlock new value
• The ability to translate strategy into performance
• Strong research and application skills to analyze market trends and assess applicability at a strategic and tactical level
• The ability to interpret complex contracts from a Commercial perspective, including the ability to draft and apply Commercial clauses.

What will be your key responsibilities?

• Analyze supply and demand fundamentals to forecast and budget annual spend.
• Understand monthly price variances and implement opportunities for improvement.
• Deliver the overall business plans by working with internal and external stakeholders to align on goals and strategies.
• Work with all suppliers/service providers to improve payment terms in line with Regional and/or Global policies.
• Ensure sound contractual governance is maintained within portfolio (contractual drafting and finalization with internal legal assistance, implementation, and review – including SLA and KPI matrix adherence).
• Represent Commercial in meetings with peers of various levels and contribute to projects, and process improvement activities.
• Contribute toward sustainability goals and DIB savings goals and objectives.
• Ensures compliance with proper procedures, policies, systems and controls.
• Identifies and manages supplier collaboration initiatives (i.e., continuous improvement programs, clear KPI settings, Service level agreements, process optimization …)
• Ensure effective risk management of the supply base, through robust contracts and monitoring of financial and other KPIs. Implement corrective actions as appropriate. 
• Manage all related commercial, financial & ethical aspects of projects and of assigned categories.
• Continuous improvement upon the business processes that currently exist through measurement with current best of class analysis and benchmarking exercises.
• Alignment with key business stakeholders on planned savings initiatives and projects, and that the necessary approvals are obtained.
• Coordinate and facilitate the communication process between all functions to ensure the efficient and effective flow of the information required to run the business.
• Continually review new processes and Vendor base to ensure new supply/service provider opportunities exist.
• Establish & maintain relationships with Finance team and departmental heads (plant manager, Pillar Heads, supply chain manager, P and O, Corporate affairs manager and others), and their teams to ensure understanding of their needs and to facilitate the appropriate level of engagement considering challenges.
• Development, implementation and monitoring of policies, governance protocols, systems & controls as well as best practices.
• Liaise with Royal Canin Indirect Community (Regional and Global) on opportunities.
• Participate in external forums and associations e.g., Mars Foods and Multisales South Africa Teams.
• Carries out supplier performance reviews on a regular basis for in scope categories.
• Determines when collaborative strategies are not possible and if a Unit approach is necessary.
• Custodian of Contract tracker file: updating, review and monitoring of file. Follow up with relevant stakeholders in relation to contracts, contractual review and maintenance, including contract KPI/Service Level tracking and Vendor Performance reviews.
• Onboarding of new service providers/suppliers as part of the vendor management process, in collaboration with the S&F Department.
• Responsible for all strategic sourcing activities relating to assigned category portfolio, including but not limited to: BARS, MSSM, RFI’s/RFQ’s/RFP’s etc.
• Work in collaboration with other regional buying managers.
• Travel is 15 – 20% of the time (Subject to change)
• Note: The indirect portfolio allocation is subject to change based on business operational requirements.