Program Manager V – Category Strategy & Value Capture CoE

Applied Materials•Austin, TX

1d•$140,000 - $192,500

About The Position

The Program Manager V (M5) – Category Strategy & Value Capture Center of Excellence (CoE) is responsible for leading the operating rhythm, governance, and execution discipline that enables consistent Category Strategy development, Value Capture delivery, and sourcing pipeline management across a global, matrixed organization. This role serves as a player/coach, acting as a trusted extension of Category & Sourcing leadership while directly managing a sourcing support and pipeline management organization (including one manager and an offshore team). The role blends Chief-of-Staff-style enablement, operating model ownership, and people leadership, with accountability for execution quality, throughput, and results. The position requires comfort operating in ambiguity, influencing senior stakeholders, and building scalable structure while the organization continues to evolve.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
10–15+ years of experience in program management, transformation, strategy operations, sourcing enablement, or similar roles within large, matrixed organizations.
Demonstrated experience managing managers and/or globally distributed teams, including offshore models.
Proven success designing and running operating rhythms, governance frameworks, and execution engines at scale.
Strong executive communication skills with the ability to synthesize complex issues into clear, decision-ready narratives.
Comfort operating in high ambiguity and influencing senior stakeholders across functions.
Enterprise-minded systems thinker who translates strategy into scalable execution.
Effective people leader with a coaching mindset and bias for accountability.
Comfortable balancing rigor with flexibility in dynamic, fast-moving environments.
Trusted partner to leadership and effective change agent during transformation.

Responsibilities

Category Strategy & Value Capture Operating Model Own and continuously evolve the end-to-end operating framework for Category Strategy and Value Capture, including annual planning, in-year refresh cycles, leadership reviews, and pipeline formation.
Define and maintain standard templates, methodologies, quality criteria, and timelines to ensure consistent, high-quality Category Strategies and value tracking across portfolios and regions.
Partner with Category Leaders to translate business priorities into structured strategies, executable initiatives, and measurable value outcomes.
Governance, Cadence, and Decision Enablement Design, run, and continuously improve governance forums, operating cadences, and decision checkpoints that enable timely, data-backed leadership decisions.
Ensure Value Capture, pipeline reporting, and sourcing activities remain aligned to enterprise priorities, financial targets, and approved rules/assumptions.
Track progress, risks, dependencies, and interlocks across initiatives; proactively surface issues, tradeoffs, and recommendations.
Sourcing Support & Pipeline Management Leadership Directly manage a Manager and an offshore team responsible for:
Sourcing pipeline tracking and hygiene
Initiative intake, prioritization, and stage-gate support
Data quality, reporting accuracy, and cadence readiness
Operational support for sourcing events and category execution
Set clear expectations, performance measures, and development plans for the team, ensuring reliable execution and continuous improvement.
Scale and mature the offshore operating model to improve speed, consistency, and leverage for Category Managers.
Chief of Staff & Organizational Integration Act as a senior integrator and extension of Category & Sourcing leadership, supporting prioritization, sequencing, and cross-program coordination.
Align Category Strategy & Value Capture rhythms with broader GSP and enterprise operating cadences (financial reviews, QBRs, transformation milestones).
Drive clarity and alignment during periods of change by connecting strategy, execution, and communication across stakeholder groups.
Stakeholder Leadership & Influence Lead through influence across Category, Sourcing, Finance, Analytics, SRM, BRM, and Process teams without reliance on direct authority.
Build strong, trusted relationships with senior leaders to resolve conflicts, align priorities, and accelerate adoption of standard ways of working.
Facilitate complex, cross-functional discussions and guide stakeholders toward enterprise-aligned outcomes.