Senior Lead - Indirect Procurement Marketing Category Manager

In short

We are seeking a dynamic and strategic Senior Lead - Indirect Procurement Category Manager for our Marketing category. This pivotal role will shape and drive the marketing category strategy, optimize spend, and build strong partnerships with agencies and vendors. You will be responsible for developing the category management framework, identifying key opportunities, and ensuring alignment of marketing procurement activities with the organization’s overall brand and business objectives. The ideal candidate will demonstrate innovative thinking, strong negotiation skills, a deep understanding of marketing trends, and exceptional market knowledge.

Your Mission

• Take ownership of shaping the marketing category by analyzing current practices, identifying gaps, and introducing innovative solutions to optimize costs, improve agency and vendor performance, and align with brand and business goals.
• Design and implement a comprehensive procurement strategy for the Marketing category, including but not limited to advertising, media buying, creative agencies, market research, digital marketing tools, trade marketing, events, and sponsorships.
• Ensure robust management of key agency and vendor relationships within agreed categories of marketing supply, while mitigating risk and delivering operational benefit at all times.
• Ensure marketing solutions are fit for purpose, aligned to brand and business needs, and represent the best value, highest quality, and innovation.
• Lead high-value contract negotiations with agencies and vendors, ensuring favorable terms for the organization, managing contract lifecycle, and mitigating risks.
• Perform detailed spend analysis and identify opportunities for cost savings and value creation within the marketing category. Leverage data to drive decision-making and measure performance against KPIs.
• Provide key senior stakeholder support in the marketing procurement sourcing lifecycle—including driving requirement specifications, RFIs, RFPs, evaluation, drafting, contracting, on-boarding, negotiations, agency/vendor management.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement by exploring new marketing technologies, processes, and methods for category management to increase efficiency and impact.

Your story

• 7+ years of procurement experience, with a focus on marketing services, advertising, or a related category.
• Entrepreneurial, flexible, and agile with a proven ability to achieve results with limited resources.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment while working independently and self-directed.
• Proven track record in developing and executing marketing procurement strategies, delivering cost savings, and adding value.
• Proactive, positive, and flexible personality with excellent negotiation and communication skills. Extensive negotiation experience and ability to operate effectively in volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous environments.
• Familiarity with marketing markets, including trends, pricing models, key players, and digital platforms.
• Exceptionally self-motivated, organized, and able to prioritize efficiently within an entrepreneurial environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to present complex information clearly and influence decision-making.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Supply Chain Management, or a related field. Marketing-specific certifications or equivalent procurement certification is desirable.

What to expect

We want to set everyone up for success, so here’s the lowdown on how we hire. Our process is a two-way street – bringing you into our culture, while helping us learn how you think.

Our full process can last about eight weeks from application to offer, because we care about getting it right. These steps explain how we usually do things.

Before you get started, feel free to consider if you want to work with us. Strange question? Well, we give people a lot of space to navigate their day-to-day and that style isn't for everyone. We want you to be passionate about what you do and be sure this is the right fit. Because when skills and passion combine – it creates that 'Wow' moment.

• Step One

  It starts with you...

  You'll start by submitting your application to a specific role. We try to keep this step as simple as possible. We do get a lot of applications, but we review them all. We ask that you allow around 14 days for us to come back to you with a response. If you are a good fit to the role, someone will follow up with you within that window. If you didn't receive a reply, or were unsuccessful this time around, we encourage you to look for other possible matches at On.

• Step Two

  Interview with a recruiter

  What ignites your spirit? This is where we’ll start getting to know all about you and what makes you tick – and it’s your first chance to get a feel for our culture. Chatting with a member of our talent team, you’ll learn more about On and how we work. We’ll learn about what motivates you and what you could bring to the team.

• Step Three

  Interview with a hiring manager

  Ready to dig into the details? This second interview will be held with your future manager and will focus on the specifics of the job. Together you’ll delve into your unique skills and experiences and how they could be relevant at On. It's also a time to assess how you might feel working side-by-side. Bring any questions you have about the job, the team or anything else you might like to know – this is an open forum.

• Step Four

  The Case Study

  What's your style? This task will help us understand how you think, face a challenge and give insight into your novel ideas. Designed to give everyone their best shot, your case study is based on something you might typically experience on the job. This is your chance to show us what you’ve got. So express yourself. Be you.

• Step Five

  The Experience Day

  Your first taste of the Oniverse. This is a time to meet some of the people you'll be working closest with. In person or virtually, you'll get a feel for the day-to-day at On and the people who make it happen. You'll chat with a few potential teammates - the conversations will be as equally driven by the role and your experience as by our values. We believe how you do things is just as important as what you do.

• Step Six

  The Result

  Are we a good fit? We’ll get together internally to share our feedback and decide if we’re a match. We know that job searching is a big time investment, so it’s not a decision we take lightly. It’s also time for you to reflect on the experience – are we the right place for you? No matter the outcome, we’ll give you meaningful feedback.

Step One:

It starts with you...

You'll start by submitting your application to a specific role.

We try to keep this step as simple as possible. We do get a lot of applications, but we review them all. We ask that you allow around 14 days for us to come back to you with a response. If you are a good fit to the role, someone will follow up with you within that window. If you didn't receive a reply, or were unsuccessful this time around, we encourage you to look for other possible matches at On.