Category Manager

Category Manager - Inside IR35

Contract Term: 12 months

Contracting Authority: MOD Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL)

Location: Salisbury on a hybrid basis (1/2 days a week on site)

Due to the nature of this role, active Government SC Clearance is required at time of application.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is a central government department with a mission to protect our country and provide the ultimate guarantee of its security and independence, as well as helping to protect its values and interests abroad.

To do this we have an annual budget of almost £40 billion and a workforce comprising 193,000 people, almost 59,000 of whom are civilians. We currently manage more than £11 billion of spend every year.

Our work really matters; we offer engaging roles which have a direct impact on the quality of services we provide. We employ people in many different roles and in many locations across the UK and abroad. We have jobs in policy, finance, HR, IS/IT, commercial and project management and all the types of jobs you would expect to find in a government department, or indeed in the private sector. We also employ doctors, dentists, teachers, police, fire service, quantity surveyors, and engineers to name a few. There are many opportunities to develop and progress both within MOD and across the wider Civil Service, whether you’re a permanent appointee or an interim. 

As a Category Manager, your main responsibilities would be: 

• Assessing current strategies, cost data and commodity profiles along with business needs in order to convert gathered intelligence into a proposed strategy. Taking ownership of assigned categories, engaging the customer in order to provide the major influence on strategy direction and delivering category benefits. Leading change in introducing and embedding assigned categories within a challenging environment. Applying skills and endeavour to challenge existing boundaries where needed and in implementation. Drive cost reduction, measure and review performance, and implement continuous improvement. Reporting of the benefits realisation of assigned categories with over-arching business requirements. Facilitate the delivery of contractual arrangements and supporting structures required to deliver results.  Using knowledge gained and commercial awareness to embed a category management approach. Support peers by acting as change agent for assigned categories including driving relationships, preparing papers and chairing meetings, designing and delivering training solutions and presentations to both internal and external stakeholders. Capture future demand information and continually review changes in the marketplace and industry to reflect these changes within an adapting category strategy.

You’ll have relevant experience in:

• Experience of working as a Senior Commercial/Category Manager, ideally within the Public/Research Sectors. Strong stakeholder engagement skills, you will be working across a variety of workstreams/programmes which will encompass engagement with the wider MOD community and stakeholders. Excellent communication skills, both verbally and written. Attention to detail and an analytical mind – you will be interrogating and analysing a variety of data sets. Being a self starter is key, this role will present challenges that may require you to think outside of the box to solve problems but still stay within internal guidelines/regulations.

If this Category Manager role sounds like something that you would be interested in, please click the link to apply and get in touch with one of our PSR team now.

"In applying for this role you acknowledge the following; this role falls in scope of the Off Payroll Working in the Public Sector legislation. Any rates of payment quoted will reflect the gross rate per day for the assignment, and will be subject to appropriate taxes and statutory costs. As such the payment to the intermediary and your income resulting from this contract will be different."

Please be aware that this role can only be worked within the UK and not Overseas.