Senior Procurement Manager, Global CO & Logistics

ABOUT UNILEVER IN KATOWICE 

It is Unilever’s in-house centre of business partnering and operational excellence in the area of finance services, supply chain, customs, procurement, integrated planning and performance delivery. There are 300 people in Katowice Hub. 

The modern Katowice Hub office, whose interiors were designed according to the principles of sustainable development, is located in the city centre of Katowice, Poland.  
We are working in the hybrid way to use the time spent in the office to influence collaboration and straighten the team spirit, using special designed for this purpose office areas.   

ABOUT PROCUREMENT

Part of the Supply Chain’s family, Procurement is responsible for over 30B Euro of material and services spend globally with more than 70,000 suppliers. Getting the right materials, sustainably sourced and ensuring responsible procurement is critical to ensuring our brands with purpose grow. Our teams work closely with the business to understand brand needs, bring supplier innovation to meet changing consumer needs and drive financial value for Unilever through competitive buying. We’re at the forefront of digital procurement, bringing new tools and analytics to drive data-based findings.

With over 1400 employees globally, we support a network of thousands of suppliers, more than 1.5 million smallholder farmers who in turn support communities of over 7 million people. Our strategy is ‘Procurement with Purpose’ and focuses on buying responsibly, buying better and growing together with partners around the world and we have an ambition that is based on three key drivers: Being Purpose-Led, Value-Driven and Future-Fit.

Our teams work closely with the business to understand procurement needs and drive financial value for Unilever We’re at the forefront of digital procurement, bringing new tools and analytics to drive data-based conclusions.

CO & LOGISTICS PORTFOLIO

The Logistics Portfolio covers the sourcing strategy development and procurement of transportation services for Unilever globally. The broader Customer Operations scope works closely with IOPs to ensure the necessary procurement sourcing strategy.  Therefore this position will work with a global scope across Customer Operations, CO (50%) and Logistics Procurement (50%) in close connection with the Logistics Procurement Leadership Team (LPLT) and S&I Logistics team to create portfolio sourcing and supplier strategies that align with the overall business objectives relevant to CO & Logistics. Key Facts and Figures: € 3.1 Billion Spend; 400+ warehouses globally; 4000+ suppliers globally.

JOB PURPOSE

Reporting to the Procurement Director Logistics Global the purpose of this role is to drive Procurement’s Lighthouse strategy across its different pillars, logistics sub-portfolios and geographies focusing on buying, sustainable sourcing, building purpose-led partnerships for Logistics Procurement as well as capability development in procurement across different geographies for transportation

WHAT WILL YOUR MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES BE

• VP Customer Operations & LPLT (Logistics Procurement Leadership Team) & IOPs LT

• Procurement Strategy & Insights team

• Global and Market sourcing teams for CO & Logistics

• Global and Market sourcing teams for Business Services & IOPs teams

• Procurement Finance Team

• Supplier Operations & Data and Analytic teams

• Logistics operations teams

• Key Suppliers and agencies/partners (Mainly market insight and consulting suppliers)

• Industry and insights resources

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO SUCCEED

A successful candidate for this role must be a self-starter, displaying the ability to take initiative and drive projects independently. They should possess a strong sense of responsibility and the motivation to pursue goals without constant supervision. The candidate should anticipate potential challenges and opportunities, and actively seek solutions before issues arise. The candidate should be adept at leveraging available resources, including market data, supplier relationships, and internal expertise, to achieve optimal outcomes. Their resourcefulness will enable them to derive value creation opportunities and support regional teams effectively

Experiences & Qualifications

• Preferred over 7 years’ experience in a Procurement or Supply Chain roles either in Unilever / FMCG industry or in a large complex organisation with strong portfolio and market expertise.

• Consulting experience in Tier 1 consulting firms would be a plus.

• Logistics procurement knowledge in addition to strong program and project management skills.

Skills

• Strategy and Capability Development and Implementation with demonstrated success.

• Strong negotiation skills (Commercial and contractual)

• Familiarity with 3PL activity-based cost modelling and contracting strategies, planning and digital

• Strong business and commercial acumen.

• Finance skills to be able to provide input on inflation impacts.

• Supply Market Intelligence, Analysis, Competitiveness, and value opportunity identification.

• Excellent critical thinking, story-telling skills to respond to multiple market/portfolio specific characteristics and influence change remotely.

• Strong process oriented with experience to land process transformation (Preferred)

• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and peers effectively (Experience of working in cross-functional teams within a matrix environment – both F2F and virtually)

• Ability and drive to work individually and lead diverse teams, across different geographies.

• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and peers effectively (Experience of working in cross-functional teams within a matrix environment – both F2F and virtually)

WHAT WE OFFER

• Hybrid work and flexibility

• Company car or financial equivalent

• Opportunities for the development and improvement of qualifications

• Sharing the cost of professional training & courses

• Benefits: life insurance, private medical care, pension fund, sharing the cost of sports activities, Benefits System – Cafeteria and many others

• Extra days off to take care of yourself and others

• Unilever store - Our products at attractive prices

Unilever embraces diversity and encourages applicants from all walks of life! This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants and continuing development of all employees regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity. 

Unilever is an organisation committed to equity, inclusion and diversity to drive our business results and create a better future, every day, for our diverse employees, global consumers, partners, and communities. We believe a diverse workforce allows us to match our growth ambitions and drive inclusion across the business. At Unilever we are interested in every individual bringing their ‘Whole Self’ to work and this includes you! Thus if you require any support or access requirements, we encourage you to advise us at the time of your application so that we can support you through your recruitment journey.