Category Manager, IPS Procurement Category Management

Amazon Web Services provides a highly reliable, scalable, and low-cost cloud platform that powers thousands of businesses in over 190 countries. AWS’ Infrastructure Supply Chain & Procurement organization works to deliver cutting-edge solutions to source, build and maintain our socially responsible data center supply chains. We are a team of highly-motivated, engaged, and responsive professionals who enable the core sustainable infrastructure of AWS. Come join our team and be a part of history as we deliver results for the largest cloud services company on Earth

The IPS Procurement Category Management Org is responsible for the procurement of all third party provided services required for the operation of our Data Center infrastructure globally, including Colo and Edge facilities for externally delivered services not provided by the facility owner. The team is responsible for the identification, onboarding and performance management of suppliers as well as developing category strategies, conducting competitive tendering processes, supplier negotiations and the preparation of associated Work Orders.

The team is structured into three regions, each led by a regional manager, with each regional team composed of category managers with responsibility for the management of specific areas of spend within the region and a cohort of procurement specialists who support the category managers. The category management approach facilitates a strategic approach to procurement by facilitating in depth market analysis coupled with a cross functional approach to identify supplier and associated contracting options which are focused on meeting the particular needs of the business. Category management moves beyond traditional transactional based purchasing negotiations to provide a strategic approach to longer term, sustainable cost reductions, reducing risk and increasing resiliency in the supply base and facilitating innovation from within the supply base that the business can leverage.

While cost reduction will always be a key focus of the team, the principle cynosure of the team is the delivery of services that are keenly focused on increasing reliability and supporting enhanced availability through robust relationships which support continuity of operations. As service and quality levels can vary greatly, principally based on the skill set within a supplier local organization, the regional structure facilitates tailoring of category strategies to meet local market considerations and closely monitor supplier performance at the local level.

AWS Infrastructure Services owns the design, planning, delivery, and operation of all AWS global infrastructure. In other words, we’re the people who keep the cloud running. We support all AWS data centers and all of the servers, storage, networking, power, and cooling equipment that ensure our customers have continual access to the innovation they rely on. We work on the most challenging problems, with thousands of variables impacting the supply chain — and we’re looking for talented people who want to help.
You’ll join a diverse team of software, hardware, and network engineers, supply chain specialists, security experts, operations managers, and other vital roles. You’ll collaborate with people across AWS to help us deliver the highest standards for safety and security while providing seemingly infinite capacity at the lowest possible cost for our customers. And you’ll experience an inclusive culture that welcomes bold ideas and empowers you to own them to completion.

Key job responsibilities
The ideal candidate thinks long term, drives multiple initiatives, and communicates appropriately and influences customers and suppliers at all levels. You must be collaborative, but also work with significant autonomy. To be successful in this role you must be highly analytical; think strategically and globally; have a sense of urgency to meet customer timelines; exhibit an intense curiosity and learning drive; succeed in a fast-paced environment; engage and influence key stakeholders; and have a high level of customer focus and business judgement. Also, you must have a demonstrated track record of managing multiple projects and driving them to completion to meet business objectives. It will be critical to embrace and model Amazon’s Leadership Principles and have an entrepreneurial spirit with a “get it done” mentality.

- Manage a complex category within the Maintenance, Repair, and Operation (MRO) domains.
- Achieve cost savings through bidding and negotiations, drive collaboration to achieve long term value delivery.
- Obtain market intelligence, analyze category data and metrics to drive Procurement category strategies.
- Understand trends in customers’ needs and concerns, across categories and regions, to influence customers’ priorities.
- Lead supplier selection process across multiple sub-categories, internal teams, and regions, and create longer-term supplier selection strategies for management.
- Ensure you are knowledgeable about the supply market, new innovations and supplier capabilities, technically and geographically.
- Ensure you are knowledgeable about sustainability, diversity, in-country value and have experience developing category strategies to incorporate same.
- Develop mechanisms and metrics to track supplier performance related to delivery, quality, and cost.
- Create supplier scorecards to measure and track supplier performance.
- Lead business reviews to discuss best practices and issues and to ultimately improve supplier performance and strengthen business partnerships.
- Innovate within the procurement space, automating and/or improving tools or processes to better support the Procurement Lifecycle.
- Provide support throughout the contracting process, as well as SRM and management of contracts post-execution.

About the team
Diverse Experiences
AWS values diverse experiences. Even if you do not meet all of the qualifications and skills listed in the job description, we encourage candidates to apply. If your career is just starting, hasn’t followed a traditional path, or includes alternative experiences, don’t let it stop you from applying.

Why AWS?
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform. We pioneered cloud computing and never stopped innovating — that’s why customers from the most successful startups to Global 500 companies trust our robust suite of products and services to power their businesses.
Inclusive Team Culture
Here at AWS, it’s in our nature to learn and be curious. Our employee-led affinity groups foster a culture of inclusion that empower us to be proud of our differences. Ongoing events and learning experiences, including our Conversations on Race and Ethnicity (CORE) and AmazeCon (gender diversity) conferences, inspire us to never stop embracing our uniqueness.

Mentorship & Career Growth
We’re continuously raising our performance bar as we strive to become Earth’s Best Employer. That’s why you’ll find endless knowledge-sharing, mentorship and other career-advancing resources here to help you develop into a better-rounded professional.

Work/Life Balance
We value work-life harmony. Achieving success at work should never come at the expense of sacrifices at home, which is why we strive for flexibility as part of our working culture. When we feel supported in the workplace and at home, there’s nothing we can’t achieve in the cloud.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

- 5+ years’ experience in a Procurement organization performing strategy development, vendor management, contract management, negotiating complex purchases, and bidding M&E categories.
- Fluent English and German language skills required.
- Lead category strategies, develop pricing models, and influence across all levels of an organization with strong business judgement, instincts, and organizational skills.
- Experience with creating Procurement systems and tools and implementing category strategies globally.
- Some travel is required.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

- Experience in data centers, engineering, an infrastructure service provider or similar technology company.
- Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.

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