Senior Manager, Category Manager Professional Services & Labor

Verra Mobility•Mesa, AZ

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

Verra Mobility is a global leader in smart mobility, developing technology-enabled solutions for safe and easy movement. The company fosters safe cities through safety cameras and creates smart roadways for commercial fleets and rental car companies, managing tolling transactions and violations. They are also a leading provider of connected systems, processing millions of transactions annually. Verra Mobility operates with a people-first philosophy and core values: Do What’s Right, Choose Courage over Comfort, Win Together, and Own It. The company is dynamic, entrepreneurial, and focused on growth through organic means and acquisitions, aiming to be the undisputed market leader with a bias for action, customer focus, teamwork, drive for results, and commitment to excellence.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required in supply chain, finance, project management, or related field.
8-10+ years of experience, heavy in managing large/complex Professional Services and/or Contingent Labor categories in a strategic sourcing or category management environment.
Strong understanding of “Big Four” service provider ecosystem and workforce operating models including supplier-direct programs, VMS tools, and MSP solutions.
Demonstrated executive communication and storytelling skills; track record influencing VP/C-suite decisions.
Expert fluency in benchmarking, TCO, complex contracting, commercial strategy, and supplier performance governance at scale.
Expert analytical skills with working knowledge of procure-to-pay, RFx processes, and contract basics/playbooks.
Composure in high-visibility and executive environments.
Strategic thinking and structured problem solving; ability think upstream and downstream to frame choices and drive decisions.
Executive presence; concise narrative building; board-quality materials.
Proven ability to build strong stakeholder relationships and influence at all levels.
Influencing without authority; stakeholder alignment and change management.
Financial acumen (budget alignment, forecasting, value realization).
Deep understanding of contingent labor pricing models, staffing markups, blended rate structures, and consulting commercial models.
Ability to discern workforce data such as fill rates, time-to-fill, geographic benchmarking, attrition, etc.
Sophisticated financial modeling (TCO/NPV, scenario analysis, indexation, benchmarking).
Design of KPIs, supplier incentives, and performance regimes; SRM maturity models.
Category strategy toolkits; RFx design; commercial modeling (price ladders, indices, incentives).
Deep fluency in complex contracting (MSAs, SOWs, data protection, service levels, audit/benchmarking clauses).
Builds capability; mentors; leads through influence; navigates ambiguity, complexity, pressure, multiple priorities, and change at scale.
Bias for action; ownership of outcomes; adaptability; team-first collaboration.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree (MBA or Master’s) strongly preferred in supply chain, finance, project management, or related field.
10-12+ years of experience in progressive category management/strategic sourcing experience, including leadership of large, complex negotiations and cross-enterprise programs.
Experience building or maturing contingent workforce programs, VMS models, and MSP structures; including experience with platforms such as: Beeline, SAP Fieldglass, etc.
Experience leading transformation (operating model, digital S2P, supplier ecosystem) across multiple regions.
Certifications: CPSM/CIPS; PMP/Prosci or equivalent change credentials; Lean Six Sigma Black Belt.
Domain depth in one or more enterprise functions (e.g., HR, IT, Finance, Professional Services, Facilities/CRE).
Experience in large, global enterprise with exposure to both indirect (corporate) and direct (client-facing) procurement models.
Recent/current experience working across time zones.
Strong grasp of software licensing models (SaaS/PaaS/IaaS, subscription vs. perpetual) and associated services.

Responsibilities

Establishes governance frameworks and sourcing standards for major professional services firms and contingent labor engagements across the enterprise.
Drives supplier rationalization and preferred supplier strategies for consulting firms, staffing agencies, and outsourced labor providers.
Evaluates and creates fit-for-purpose workforce operating models, including direct supplier management, VMS-enabled programs, or scaled MSP partnerships based on organizational size and spend profile.
Owns a complex, high-spend category (or portfolio) with global scope and enterprise impact.
Leads cross-functional project teams and external partners to deliver multi-year roadmaps and operating model changes.
Serves as the primary procurement voice with senior/executive stakeholders and presents at executive committees.
Shapes policy, standards, and governance; mentors and develops the category talent bench.
Ensures category plans reflect stakeholder goals, market dynamics, and supplier capabilities.
Influences functional leaders; presents recommendations and status at leadership forums.
Champions adoption of preferred suppliers, standards, and policies across the business.
Leverages analysis to shape strategic insights and market intelligence frameworks that inform category strategy, RFx prioritization, supplier negotiations, and contract terms.
Scrutinizes variable and complex data to identify and prioritize sourcing and planning opportunities that drive competitive advantage and long-term value.
Leads sourcing waves and supplier business reviews; accountable for savings and value realization.
Crafts and socializes a bold, evidence-based multi-year category strategy tied to enterprise goals (growth, productivity, risk, ESG).
Develops labor rate benchmarking frameworks and market intelligence to improve rate competitiveness, geographic alignment, and workforce planning decisions.
Identifies opportunities to reduce unmanaged spend, rogue staffing engagements, mark-up inconsistencies, and duplicate supplier utilization.
Identifies and delivers step-change value levers (portfolio simplification, demand challenge, supplier ecosystem redesign, digital automation).
Stands up structured value tracking with Finance; validates and publishes results to executives.
Builds and maintains a living category strategy (demand, market, supplier, risk, and should-cost).
Translates strategy into an annual sourcing wave plan and prioritized contract pipeline with mitigation actions for expirations/renewals.
Owns data quality across procurement systems (e.g., sourcing, CLM, P2P) and audit readiness records.
Reviews and performs analytics and market research that inform strategic planning decisions, RFx, negotiation prep, and category direction.
Manages intake queue; validates requirements; sets expectations on timelines and next steps.
Maintains project trackers, savings logs, contract records, and supplier profiles for audit readiness.
Creates, refreshes, publishes, and communicates preferred supplier lists and engagement playbooks.
Leads negotiations involving SOW commercial structures, rate card & labor mix structures, volume discounts, delivery accountability, staffing markups & conversion fees, and supplier tiering models.
Evaluates and negotiates VMS platform solutions and workforce operating models appropriate for organizational scale, complexity, and spend maturity in the labor space.
Conducts in-depth market analysis to inform RFx development, supplier negotiations, and contract terms.
Identifies and prioritizes sourcing opportunities that drive competitive advantage and long-term value.
Owns and drives marquee RFx/sole-source events and renewals with enterprise-wide implications; negotiates creative commercial constructs (risk-share, outcome-based, gainshare).
Oversees and/or performs total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis to sourcing decisions and supplier evaluations.
Sets deal architectures and negotiation plays; coaches deal teams; engages executive sponsors and legal counsel to closure.
Establishes playbooks and guardrails for rebid/renewal strategies, indexation, benchmarking, and continuous improvement.
Chairs executive governance with strategic consultancy partnerships; sponsors joint innovation roadmaps and transformation programs.
Collaborates with HR and other governance areas to manage labor supplier performance across metrics such as fill rates, cycle times, attrition, quality of talent, compliance adherence, and stakeholder satisfaction.
Partners with HR Legal and Finance/Accounting to mitigate worker misclassification risks and ensure contingent workforce governance aligns with applicable labor regulations globally.
Oversees risk management for the portfolio (cyber, supply continuity, financial, regulatory, ESG) with proactive mitigation and incident response.
Segments suppliers (Tier 1/2) and implements governance (QBRs/ABRs, scorecards, corrective actions).
Performs AQSCIR assessments for key suppliers.
Facilitates supplier-led innovation and continuous improvement initiatives aligned to business outcomes.
Holds quarterly and annual business reviews (QBRs/ABRs) with suppliers and relevant stakeholders.
Drives adoption of preferred suppliers and manages change communication effectively.
Establishes enterprise-wide standards for services usage such as rate card management, SOW approvals, supplier onboarding, headcount visibility, and contractor tenure monitoring.
Partners cross-functionally to design scalable contingent labor intake, approval, and tracking processes that balance governance with business agility.
Elevates standards, templates, and systems; automates analytics and reporting; ensures data fidelity and audit readiness.
Continuously improves ways of working across Legal, Security/Privacy, Finance/AP, and business units.
Tracks cost savings and avoidance progress against targets and pipeline forecasts.
Coordinates cross-functional approvals (Security/IT, Privacy, Compliance, Finance, AP, Legal) and drives issue resolution.
Coaches and assigns work to sourcing resources (analysts/specialists) aligned to the wave plan.
Partners closely with HR, Talent Acquisition, Finance, Legal, and critical functional business leaders to assure governance and align workforce sourcing strategies with organizational priorities.
Maps stakeholder ecosystems and develops engagement strategies based on influence, impact, and business needs.
Acts as a strategic advisor helping stakeholders determine the most appropriate engagement model for external advisory and/or labor needs.
Engages stakeholders to understand business requirements, pain points, and future needs.
Maintains a cadence of meetings and communications with key stakeholders and their leadership teams.
Acts as a trusted advisor and liaison between procurement and business units.
Communicates clearly and professionally across all channels (in-person meetings, email, video calls), tailoring messages to diverse audiences.
Represents procurement in steering committees, executive briefings, and supplier governance forums.
Supports stakeholder projects with high responsiveness, strategic input, and proactive problem-solving.
Crafts compelling storylines and materials.
Delivers measurable value through enterprise professional services governance/negotiation, labor rate and markup optimization, supplier consolidation, etc.
Analyzes labor spend trends, rate inflation, utilization patterns, and supplier concentration risks to support budgeting and workforce planning decisions.
Engages consistently with Finance and stakeholders in the budgeting process, aligning procurement plans with financial goals.
Coordinates with Finance for savings tracking and bottom-line impact protection.
Delivers measurable cost savings and avoidance, tracking progress against targets and pipeline forecasts.
Applies Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis to sourcing decisions and supplier evaluations.
Optimizes contract value through improved terms, pricing structures, and performance incentives.
Mentors and supports a matrixed and cross-functional team of procurement professionals and governance partners to build skills and succession; promotes a high-performance, inclusive culture.
Designs and executes change management and communications for enterprise rollouts; crafts executive narratives and decision memos.