Category Buyer Firenze

Category Buyer
Firenze
Toscana, Firenze

Location: Firenze, Italy

In fast changing markets, customers worldwide rely on Thales.

Thales is a business where brilliant people from all over the world come together to share ideas and inspire each other.

In aerospace, transportation, defence, security and space, our architects design innovative solutions that make our tomorrow's possible.

The Category Buyer (CB) may support one or several procurement categories.

The CB is accountable for end to end performance of the acquisition process, via the management of the RFI &/or RFP's until the Pvet 4 stage (up to PVet 5 based on some Regions)

The CB is expected to lead supplier selection exercises to support business needs.

The CB ensures the deployment, implementation and monitoring of agreed category strategies.

Furthermore, the CB is:

Responsible for supplier relationship management and continuous improvement of suppliers within his/her category (with the support of Supplier Performance Management Team if needed) and the management of suppliers performance including, but not limited to, quality, cost, delivery, contractual performance and innovation.

An essential element of his role is to ensure that the suppliers provide the competitiveness required to support the business and to introduce optimal supply base changes to support business winning capability.

**Missions and Responsibilities

The Category Buyer (CB) supports one or several procurement categories.

The CB works in close relation with the relevant Global Category Managers (GCM), the Categories Team leader (CTL), the Category Manager(CM) and the Tactical Buyer (TB).

All actions have to be in line with the strategy defined by the Global Category Manager and the CM.

The CB's prime role is the management of the RFI or/and RFP's until PVet 4 stage (up to PVet 5 based on some Regions) in order to provide the competiveness to the business.

In addition to this their main tasks are:

Operational Support:

- Ensure the TBs/BA's receive all required information to raise the Procurement Orders.

Procurement Competitiveness Capture:

- Monitor the markets for defined categories including key players, newcomers, economic evolutions, market or regulation constraints, innovations and technology in order to support the development of the most up to date category strategies to the businesses.

- Based on the above provide insights as to how products / projects could be more competitive via the adoption of different suppliers / methodologies / technology etc.

Governance, Leadership and Performance Management:

- Ensure appropriate governance is applied using KPI's and root cause corrective actions

Supplier / Acquisition Management:

- Performance management of the supply base in line with the standards set out by the Global Category Manager.

- Ensure that supplier competitions follow the governance process and are balanced and fair in order to improve business and customer performance.

- Ensure that global contracts / framework agreements are adopted and utilised.

- Ensure that Thales e-Acquisition and all THALES procurement tools are fully used.

- Based on the performance management of the supply base identify the suppliers who require focused development actions and ensure that the Supplier Development Team have the required support / leverage in order for these actions to be successful.

**Work experience requirements

Experience working in project/program, design / product development with cross functional teams.

Demonstrable experience in negotiation projects &/or categories is desirable.

**Skills Requirements

Technical skills

Ability to implement operational supply chain strategy

Contractual knowledge especially of framework agreements, Liability & insurance.

Ability to lead negotiation including import / export considerations

Understanding of the market for the categories under his/her control but also ability to understand the customer's needs and program issues

Good knowledge of a best practice acquisition Process.

English language fluency is desirable

Soft skills

Capability to work within cross functional and international multi organizational teams (teamwork)

Open minded (listen, share ideas etc. )

and able to bring added value and new ideas

Ability to take initiatives with a good capacity of analysis and of synthesis

Ability to prioritize tasks

Ability to represent Thales and to demonstrate Thales values

Good written and verbal communication skills