Category Lead

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Category Lead to join our Professional Services team on a Full Time, Hybrid basis!

Reporting into a Category Manager, the Category Lead is responsible for leading strategic procurement operations within both the US and UK Business Units. The role will partner the Category Manager in delivery of Category strategies.

National Grid is leading the charge towards a Net Zero future in the UK and NE of USA. We recognize that decarbonizing our electric and gas systems will require resolving many questions and seeking new partnerships, technologies and transformative investments. Over the next 5 years, we will be investing over 60bn across our UK and US businesses - nearly double the investment over the past 5 years. This is an exciting time for our industry that is creating significant opportunities for National Grid; this is not just a moment in time; it's a game-changing era that will shape National Grid's success for decades to come.

Given this backdrop, our supply chains are facing an unprecedented set of challenges and are at the forefront of our plans, placing National Grid Procurement at the center of our Net Zero goals. We have set out an ambitious transformation plan, focused on becoming a client of choice for our supply partners whilst ensuring outstanding outcomes for our Business Units (BUs). Our strategy revolves around significant changes in three core areas:

* Partnering: We are forging closer ties with our supply chain, aligning ourselves more closely with each NG Group Business Unit (BU).
* Scale: We are leveraging the immense scale of our group to unlock even greater potential. By harnessing our collective strength, we can achieve remarkable things.
* Operational Transformation: We are revolutionizing the way we work as a team. Embracing new approaches and technologies, we are streamlining processes and making the day-to-day job simpler and more efficient.

This role will involve engaging and building strong and established working relationships with stakeholders to identify business needs and then ensuring we understand the supply chains so we can offer the best solutions for National Grid.
* Support the Senior Business Partners to engage with the BU, and where appropriate directly support the strategic relationship with them to ensure their procurement and supply chain needs are delivered in line with business requirements.
* Support the overall development and delivery of assigned category strategy and share best practice across other category teams
* Role model excellence in procurement standards, taking a proactive role in mentoring / providing guidance to Buyers to ensure best-in-class methodologies are adopted and utilized across National Grid Procurement.
* Input into the development and execution of sourcing strategy for allocated categories and execute standardized strategic sourcing processes from market engagement through to award, ensuring goods are procured in a best-in-class manner that drives value.
* Profile category characteristics and research supply markets, suppliers and assess trends, opportunities and risks feeding insights into the Global teams and Market and Supplier Development teams
* Work with Contract Managers to ensure the successful delivery of contracted activities, special projects, identifying continuous improvement opportunities through engagement with suppliers and stakeholders, understanding the stakeholder needs, aligning supplier capabilities, and maximizing value for money from contracts awarded.

Additional Key Responsibilities:
* Design, build, and maintain automated reports and dashboards using tools such as Excel, Power BI, or similar platforms.
* Conduct quantitative analysis to identify trends, patterns, and opportunities for improvement.
* Collaborate with cross-functional teams to gather requirements and ensure reporting meets business needs.
* Translate complex data sets into clear, concise visualizations and narratives for stakeholders.
* Ensure data accuracy and integrity across all reporting outputs.
* Develop and maintain documentation for reporting processes and data sources.
* Support ad hoc analysis requests and provide insights to guide business strategy.

* Bachelor's degree in supply chain, finance, business or operations preferred.
* Preferred 7+ years' experience in strategic sourcing, contract negotiations and vendor management. 3+ years of experience in data analysis, reporting, or a related role.
* Proficiency in Excel and at least one data visualization tool (e.g., Power BI,).
* Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
* Excellent communication skills with the ability to present findings to non-technical audiences.
* Attention to detail and commitment to data quality.

* Experience in category strategy development, including the ability to support others in development of strategies & share best practice across teams
* Significant experience of strategic sourcing and category management
* An understanding of project management principles and ideally evidence of managing multiple projects and consistently delivering outstanding results.
* Ability to prepare for and to lead negotiations.
* Ability to build and manage complex commercial assessment models