Senior Procurement Manager

Join us as a Senior Procurement Manager and make an invaluable contribution to our Food Safety & Biosecurity!

As Senior Procurement Manager, you will be Fera's lead procurement professional, responsible for delivering an effective, value-driven procurement service across the business. Working closely with senior stakeholders, you will help support Fera's growth ambitions by driving commercial value, managing supplier risk, strengthening procurement processes and supporting strategic business initiatives.

This role offers an excellent opportunity for someone looking to step beyond a traditional Procurement Manager position and broaden their strategic influence. For the right individual, there is a genuine opportunity to develop into a future Head of Procurement role as the function and business continue to evolve, making this an ideal next step for an experienced procurement professional seeking to accelerate their career.

What you’ll be doing:

• Develop and implement procurement strategies, policies and priorities that support Fera's business objectives and growth plans.
• Act as the senior procurement expert, providing authoritative, commercially pragmatic advice and constructively challenging stakeholders to achieve optimum procurement outcomes.
• Build strong relationships and ensuring regular and pro-active communications with senior leaders and business units, ensuring procurement is engaged early in business planning, investment decisions and purchasing activity.
• Pro-actively lead strategic sourcing activities, competitive tender processes and commercial negotiations to deliver value for money and manage supplier risk.
• Partner with business areas to develop category plans, undertake spend analysis and identify opportunities for savings, efficiencies, service improvements and innovation.
• Establish strong supplier relationship and performance management, including oversight of strategic suppliers, service performance, continuous improvement and supply-chain resilience.
• Ensure procurement activity complies with Fera's governance framework, delegated authorities, ethical standards and applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
• Support business projects, acquisitions and integration activities by providing procurement expertise, supplier due diligence and commercial input where required.
• Line manage, coach and develop the Procurement Assistant, setting clear objectives, supporting professional development and ensuring effective delivery of day-to-day procurement priorities.
• Drive continuous improvement through better procurement data, systems, processes, market insight and proportionate use of digital tools and automation; maintain clear reporting of procurement performance and benefits.

What we’re looking for:

• Significant procurement experience in a commercial organisation, with a strong track record of operating as a senior procurement professional and subject-matter expert.
• MCIPS or an equivalent recognised professional procurement qualification, or demonstrably equivalent professional procurement experience.
• Strong expertise in strategic sourcing, category management, supplier relationship management, negotiation, procurement governance and third-party risk management.
• Experience delivering measurable procurement outcomes, including savings, supplier improvements, risk reduction and operational efficiencies.
• A strong communicator with excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to build credibility across all levels of the business.
• Strong commercial awareness and the ability to balance business needs, risk and value when making recommendations.
• A proactive, innovative and solution-focused approach, with the confidence to challenge constructively and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Experience coaching, mentoring or supporting junior colleagues would be advantageous.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities within a fast-paced environment.

What’s in it for you?

• ​25 days’ holiday (rising to 29) with the opportunity to buy & sell extra leave.
• Flexible working hours, on-site gym, restaurant, free parking and a discounted on-site nursery.
• The opportunity to take a paid day out of the office, volunteering for our charity partners or a cause of your choice
• Company matched pension, life assurance, a cycle2work scheme, 15 weeks’ fully paid maternity, adoption and shared parental leave, paternity pay of two weeks…and plenty more.
• Voluntary benefits designed to suit your lifestyle – from discounts on retail and socialising, to health & wellbeing, travel and technology
• Fera operates a LTIP ( Long Term Incentive Plan) under which all employees are awarded points towards shares in the Employee Benefits Trust on an annual basis. The Employee Benefits Trust holds shares on behalf of our employee, at the point of an equity event the shares will realise a cash value.

What we hope you’ll do next:

Choose ‘Apply now’ to fill out our short application, so that we can find out more about you. If you have any questions you’d like to ask before applying, you can contact recruitment@fera.co.uk

We’re an equal opportunity employer, which means we recruit and develop people based on their merit and passion. We’re committed to providing an inclusive, barrier-free recruitment process and working environment for everyone. If you need the job description or application form in an alternative format or if you’d like to discuss other changes or support you might need going forward, please email at recruitment@fera.co.uk and we’ll get back to you.