Category Manager (Indirect) - Digital Tech

Here at N Brown, we champion inclusivity by making our customers look and feel amazing. We don’t believe that age, size, shape or background should stop anyone from feeling confident, stylish and happy with the way they look and feel. With our industry leading expertise in creating fashion that fits, we’ve been proudly breaking down these barriers for over 150 years. We help our customers to express themselves with stylish products, helpful services and flexible finance. Now, we’re moving forward together, embracing innovation and new technology, to continue to delight our customers.  

Working here you’ll explore everything the world of digital retail has to offer — asking questions, trying new things and chasing new opportunities. Combine this curiosity with the freedom to make your own decisions, take charge of projects and work flexibly, and you’ve got the perfect place to show your skills and learn new ones. It’s fast and furious here at times, but this just means something new and exciting is always on the way. So, if you collaborate, think on your feet, embrace innovation and love rising to a challenge, your work with us will have a serious impact on the business, your career and our customers’ lives. We are proud to be N Brown.  

About the role: 

Here at N Brown we are continuing to build a motivated and thought leading Procurement team.  We are now on the lookout for a Category Manager – Digital Technology who will lead in the development of a culture where everyone is cost conscious, smart spenders, looking for ways to save every day and challenge where they see waste.  

You’ll engage colleagues and stakeholders to think and work cross functionally to drive organisational efficiency. Suppliers will want to partner with us to share innovation and ideas to improve how we work and give us an edge on our competition. 

Our Procurement vision and mission is to be outward looking, gaining and sharing, knowledge and perspective of how we find, partner and manage our suppliers. We’ll elevate our thinking and work collaboratively to buy what the business needs at the best possible value.  We’ll deliver the right solutions and relationships for now and the future. If this sounds like a team you’d like to be part of and you’ve got: 

• Outstanding negotiation skills 
• Excellent influencing and relationship building skills 
• A strong communication style that you adapt to suit your audience 
• Has experience in the IT Category, including key sub-category exposure such as; Software, IT Services, Digital, Telco, Hardware and Infrastructure
• Highly experienced across end to end, strategic procurement, including RFP. RFQ, RFI, Strategic Sourcing, Category Management and Supplier Relationship activities
• An action orientated, innovative approach that alongside great commercial acumen delivers results‿. then read on.                  

Our Procurement team look after all indirect expenditure for the N Brown group and a little that supports our product buying too.  With a remit of around £300m of spend there’s lots of opportunity to support the acceleration of our profitable growth 

As Category Manager you role will be to support the creation and continual review of robust, forward looking category plans that use a full range of supply and demand levers, to identify opportunities that deliver relevance and tangible value to our business and customers. 

What you’ll do as a Category Manager - Digital Technology: 

• Develop and continually review robust, forward looking plans in collaboration with Category Lead and business stakeholders to address business needs, supply market dynamics and technological advancements.  

• Work with stakeholders to consider a variety of commercial models, providing constructive challenge to drive the most appropriate business outcome. 

• Closely managing contracts and suppliers within remit to align to the Category plan, the Category Manager shares insights with the business and drives reviews; and acts where opportunities and risks appear. 

• Delivering support to Supplier Relationship Managers and ensuring compliance with the organisational SRM policy; reporting accordingly to the Category lead on SRM KPIs. 

• Collaborate with the Commercial Management team to determine contract KPI’s & SLA’s that are relevant and capable of effective measurement for supplier performance and relationship management; ensuring that tangible benefits can be tracked into the P&L.   

• Contribute to the creation of category pipeline of initiatives to achieve or exceed savings targets. 

• Lead negotiations with suppliers and partners to realise cost efficiency opportunities and negotiate commercial terms and contracts, closely aligned with Supplier Relationship Managers. 

• Working with agility when priorities change; aligning with category plans and team members to deliver consistency in ways of working. 

Our Benefits: 

• A competitive salary (Depending on experience). 

• Discretionary annual bonus scheme which is based on both individual and company wide performance. 

• Company pension scheme which will match up to 5% and if you put in 6% we will contribute 8%. 

• Life Assurance  

• Hybrid working – you can work from one of our hubs or from home, empowering you to choose the right location for you to deliver your best. 

• Safe and secure Head office space based in bustling Northern Quarter - easily accessible via car or public transport 

• 24 days holiday which increases with length of service, plus bank holidays. 

• Holiday purchase scheme allowing colleagues to purchase up to an additional 10 days per year. 

• Fantastic employee discount scheme across our websites 

• Training & development throughout your career. 

• Discounted share scheme. 

• Train/Tram season ticket loan scheme. 

Employees in our business may have access to our customers’ personal data therefore for a number of our roles, offers of employment are subject to a satisfactory criminal record check. Having a criminal record will not necessarily prevent an individual from obtaining a position with N Brown Group.