Procurement Lead

Football Association of Ireland•Dublin, OH

20h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) is the national governing body for football in Ireland, driving the growth, promotion, and development of the game at all levels. We are passionate about inspiring participation, supporting talent, and celebrating the power of football to unite communities across the country. With a proud history and an ambitious vision for the future, the FAI is committed to fostering excellence on and off the pitch, ensuring the game is inclusive, accessible, and a source of national pride. The Procurement Lead is responsible for leading and embedding best practice procurement across the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), ensuring all procurement activity is conducted in line with the FAI Procurement Policy, Delegation of Authority, governance requirements and applicable legislation. Working as part of the Finance team, the role provides procurement expertise across the organisation, supporting departments with commercial advice, managing tender processes, driving value for money and ensuring effective procurement governance and audit compliance. The role is both strategic and operational, acting as the FAI’s procurement subject matter expert while delivering end-to-end procurement activities without direct line management responsibility.

Requirements

Significant experience in procurement, sourcing or commercial management.
Experience managing competitive tender processes from initiation through to contract award.
Strong understanding of procurement governance, policies and best practice.
Experience preparing tender documentation, evaluation processes and procurement reports.
Experience working within approval frameworks and audit environments.
Strong commercial negotiation and analytical skills.
Ability to build effective relationships across multiple functions.
Excellent communication, organisation and reporting skills.
Integrity, professionalism and strong ethical judgement.
Ability to influence stakeholders without direct authority.
Commercial awareness and sound decision-making skills.
A proactive, solutions-focused approach.
Strong attention to detail and organisational capability.
Ability to manage competing priorities and multiple procurement projects.

Nice To Haves

Procurement qualification (CIPS or equivalent).
Experience within a sporting, public sector, not-for-profit or regulated organisation.
Experience with contract management and procurement systems.
Experience supporting internal or external audits.

Responsibilities

Maintain and develop the FAI Procurement Policy, procedures, templates and supporting documentation.
Ensure procurement activity complies with internal controls, governance standards and audit requirements.
Promote transparent, fair and ethical procurement practices.
Monitor compliance through reviews, reporting and spot checks.
Provide procurement updates and reporting to the Finance Director, Procurement Committee and senior leadership.
Lead competitive tender processes for goods, services and works in line with procurement thresholds.
Develop sourcing strategies for significant or high-risk procurements.
Prepare tender documentation, evaluation frameworks, procurement reports and award recommendations.
Coordinate supplier communications, evaluations and cross-functional tender teams.
Maintain complete procurement records and audit trails.
Act as the primary procurement advisor to FAI departments.
Support annual procurement planning and sourcing strategies.
Provide commercial guidance on supplier selection, market opportunities and value-for-money solutions.
Support departments in meeting operational requirements while maintaining procurement standards.
Manage supplier engagement while ensuring fairness, transparency and commercial value.
Support supplier onboarding by coordinating procurement, due diligence and contract documentation requirements.
Identify opportunities for supplier consolidation and strategic sourcing.
Support commercial negotiations and supplier performance reviews.
Facilitate supplier performance reviews with business owners, monitoring agreed SLAs and KPIs where appropriate.
Work with business units to support effective contract management.
Work closely with Legal and Finance teams to ensure appropriate review and approval processes are followed.
Ensure procurement activity aligns with approved budgets, Delegation of Authority and the FAI PO policy.
Ensure procurement documentation supports contract execution and audit requirements.
Identify opportunities to improve procurement processes, efficiency and value delivery.
Develop procurement guidance, templates and tools for FAI staff.
Provide procurement awareness and guidance across the organisation.
Deliver procurement training and awareness sessions to staff, budget holders and key stakeholders to promote compliance with procurement policies and best practice.
Maintain knowledge of procurement best practice and regulatory developments.