Procurement - Category Lead - HYBRID

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona•Phoenix, AZ

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona (AZ Blue) is seeking a Procurement - Category Lead to join their team. This role is part of the Category team responsible for developing and maintaining best practice Procurement to Pay (P2P) processes to maximize business value, enhance internal customer experience, and foster partnerships with an inclusive supplier base. The Category Lead will manage and maintain supplier/vendor categories based on business segment requirements, support business case development for ongoing needs and projects, and ensure the adoption of strategic sourcing initiatives. AZ Blue is committed to inspiring health and making it easy, offering a variety of health insurance products and services. They have a hybrid workforce strategy called Workability, offering flexibility in how and where employees work. This specific position is hybrid and requires residency within the State of Arizona.

Requirements

2 years of experience in procurement lifecycle, including requirement gathering, contracting, and post-purchase vendor management (level 1)
2 years of experience of the procurement operation functions including transaction management, sourcing, and pricing analytics (level 1)
4 years of experience in procurement lifecycle, including requirement gathering, contracting, and post-purchase vendor management (level 2)
4 years of experience of procurement operation functions including transaction management, sourcing, and pricing analytics (level 2)
High-School Diploma or GED in field of study
Possess the ability to establish relationships to deliver effective and timely client procurement solutions
Strong project management skills
Comfortable with negotiating with suppliers
Excellent analytical, organizational, problem resolution, presentation, and verbal and written communication skills
Proficient in current industry standard PC applications
Ability to understand, balance and apply industry, enterprise and business demands, drivers, goals to support and/or influence leaders in making value based acquisitions
Understanding of P&L impact of supplier-related decisions
The ability to manipulate large amounts of data and raw conclusions, recommendations and solutions.
Maintain confidentiality and privacy
Analytical knowledge necessary to generate reports based on available data and then make decisions based on reported data
Capable of legal and analytical research
Ability to synthesize legal and regulatory information, identify key issues, and analyze their impact on the corporation
Strong writing skills and the ability to translate complex information into simple, clear language
Demonstrated ability to plan and implement complex procurement projects to meet specific deadlines.
Ability to communicate well, both verbally and in writing, to management on complex procurement matters.
Residency within the State of Arizona.

Nice To Haves

2 years of experience in procurement lifecycle, including requirement gathering, RFx, negotiation, contracting, and post-purchase vendor management (level 1)
2 years of experience of the procurement operation functions including transaction management, sourcing, and pricing analytics (level 1)
4 years of experience in procurement lifecycle, including requirement gathering, RFx, negotiation, contracting, and post-purchase vendor management (level 2)
4 years of experience of the procurement operation functions including transaction management, sourcing, and pricing analytics (level 2)
Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, business, accounting, or finance.
Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M. or C.P.S.M)
Institute of Supply Management (I.S.M.) affiliation
Skilled at leading supplier negotiations focusing on contractual terms, pricing, & service levels
Category management experience
Knowledge of a wide range of subjects pertaining to the organization's service and operations.

Responsibilities

Ownership of assigned product category including, spend analytics, category and supplier performance management, risk identification, analysis, and mitigation.
Partner with internal stakeholders to understand business needs and align procurement strategies.
Strategic engagement with supplier communities to develop and implement initiatives that enable profitable growth.
Develop category and market expertise that allows the organization to effectively compete in target market segments; this includes market trends and competitive analysis, as inputs to the development of our assortment strategy.
Leverage market intelligence to validate and benchmark costs and competitive pricing.
Develop product pricing/costing models that demonstrate value, impact, and opportunity.
Lead RFx processes, contract negotiations and supplier selection, ensuring cost effectiveness & value add.
Manage on-going supplier relationships and execute supplier performance management initiatives in accordance with standards and guidelines and in collaboration with business partners.
Manage multiple projects and initiatives within assigned categories with the ability to meet defined timelines and provide proactive status communication to business partners.
Establish category ownership with internal and external stakeholders.
Ensure compliance with all policy and procedures to ensure efficient and compliant operations.
Work directly with business segment leaders and procurement operations to determine enterprise sourcing strategies and tactics to realize those strategies.
Provide support to ensure efficient Procure 2 Pay processes including requisition, purchase order, through payment.
Ensure close collaboration with the Legal department to ensure contracts are in compliance with Legal directives.
Develop and maintain strong professional relationships with key vendors and other outside partners.