Senior Procurement Manager - Marketing & Corporate Services

Role OVO-View

Location: Hub based! Bristol, London or Glasgow

But you have the flexibility to work wherever suits you best

Team: Procurement & Supplier Management (Finance)

Salary banding: £75-£85k + benefits package (dependent on experience)

Experience: Senior Manager

Working pattern: Full-Time

Reporting to: Karl Walton - Head of Procurement

Sponsorship: Unfortunately we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.

This role in 3 words: Management, Strategist, Owner

Top 3 qualities for this role: Leadership, Self Solving, Commercial

In the words of the team, you should leave your current role for this one because….

"OVO is a fantastic place to work. The company really cares for its people which makes you want to go above and beyond. There is a reason we won Times best place to work! The Procurement & Supplier Management team are on a really exciting journey and it's not every day you get the ability to actively participate in a Procurement transformation! OVO felt like home to me after just 2 weeks and I put that down to having such a great team around me"

Everyone belongs at OVO

At OVO, we are on a mission to solve one of humanity's biggest challenges, the climate crisis. And we know it takes all of us to change the world. That's why we need diverse people from all gender identities, ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, life experiences and backgrounds to join us.

Teamworking for the planet

Everything we do here spins around Plan Zero. So, naturally, the team you’ll be joining plays a gigantic role in making that happen. Here’s how:

As an enterprise business OVO’s supply chain presents large risk but great opportunity when it comes to sustainability and wider ESG initiatives. Procurement & Supply Management play a vital role when contributing to OVOs wider Plan Zero aspirations ensuring we’re working with the right partners and managing risks appropriately.

This role in a nutshell:

We’re hiring for the best of the best in the world of Procurement! A Procurement transformation is never simple but the rewards are huge. We need hardworking, driven self starters who know what good looks like and how to get there. We have a very ambitious strategy to be recognised as a leading function in the Procurement industry winning awards and experimenting with pioneering technologies that give us the edge over our competition, such as incorporation of AI. We’re investing in an exciting training programme (our Procurement DNA) to provide a fantastic foundational capability at all levels and will be recognised across the business for value generation beyond tactical cost savings. Our journey is just getting started so come and be part of something great!

Reporting to the OVO Head of Procurement, you’ll be part of the Procurement senior management team responsible for inspiring change, delivering results and setting the bar for ‘what good looks like’ across the team.

Buying goods or services is a crucial part of OVO’s business. It enables us to deliver a whole range of products to our customers from marketing campaigns, smart meters and everything in between.

The Procurement Team’s objectives are:

• Driving daring commercial benefits to support OVOs EBITDA targets
• Getting the Procurement basics right, reducing risks and driving compliance whilst still allowing OVO to operate in an agile manner
• Becoming a knowledge base of relevant supply markets, products, technologies and trends and bringing this back into our business
• Continuously aspiring for improvements in commercial value, process efficiency and risk mitigation
• Effectively business partnering with our internal colleagues
• Implementation and support of Procurement systems that support the execution of opportunities whilst reducing risk and improving compliance

Your key outcomes will be:

You will drive the sourcing strategy and plan across both marketing (media buying, direct marketing, creative & content production, sponsorships & PR) and corporate services (consultancy, professional services, people services and travel) supported by two direct reports. You will be delivering exceptional stakeholder management to the VP of Corporate Affairs & Marketing and the Chief People & Customer Officer aligning the supply chain to the business strategy and objectives. 

Adopting a Category Management approach you will be developing appropriate category strategies which de-risk OVOs market exposure and drive maximum potential value. 

In addition, your role will cover:

• Leading and developing a small team
• Using data to build and keep updated a clear view of category spend and suppliers (taxonomy driven)
• Developing category savings opportunity analysis and future pipeline initiatives
• Delivering savings that contribute towards the OVO procurement team objectives and impact OVO’s EBITDA
• Collaborative development of negotiation plans bringing collaborators in where appropriate
• Leading on material commercial initiatives and presenting these to the C-suite in line with OVO’s delegation of authority matrix
• Working closely with the Supplier Management team to implement effective supplier management strategies
• Ensuring all relevant OVO partners are aligned (and are adhering to) the procurement policy and process monitoring and reporting on compliance
• Continuously aiming for improvements in commercial value, process improvement and risk mitigation
• Driving continuous improvement of Procurement ways of working (tools, process, customer journey) whilst handling change with OVO stakeholders
• Supporting OVOs Plan Zero objectives and demonstrating how your team is contributing to the overall strategy

You’ll be a successful Senior Procurement Manager, Marketing & Corporate Services at OVO if you…

• Are MCIPS qualified or working towards this (desirable)
• Are an inquisitive self starter who is able to hold themselves accountable for their category output
• Possess proven experience in a similar role in a senior procurement role
• Are an outstanding negotiator with a proven track record of delivering material commercial benefits
• Are customer service obsessed adopting a business partnering approach and having previous exposure to C level stakeholders
• Can demonstrate how you are able to develop a successful team
• Analytical, able to effectively source and manipulate data, turning it into significant outputs
• Demonstrate strong emotional intelligence and awareness (EQ)
• Have comprehensive experience across all types of marketing subcategories (Corporate Services desirable but not crucial)
• Are comfortable proposing, initiating and implementing change in a constantly evolving environment
• Possess strong story telling, relationship building and conflict resolution skills 
• Have good knowledge of Procurement (we use Workday Strategic Sourcing)
• Are team-oriented with a collaborative, pragmatic approach
• Exposure to the energy sector is desirable but not crucial. 

You won’t like this role if you…

• Are uncomfortable leading on initiatives with high corporate exposure (c-suite)
• Are unable to effectively and reasonably challenge the status quo
• Are uncomfortable giving constructive feedback (radical candor)
• Do not possess strong technical understanding of Procurement best practice
• Are unable to work effectively across a wider team and influence multiple collaborators constructively
• Are unable to effectively sell and promote the benefits of Procurement to your colleagues and peers

Let’s talk about what’s in it for you

We’ll pay you between £75 - £85k + benefits package per annum, depending on your specific skills and experience. If your expectations are a little different, have a chat with us!

We keep our pay ranges broad on purpose to give us, and you, flexibility to match your experience to our zero carbon mission.

You’ll be eligible for an on-target bonus of 15%. We have one OVO bonus plan that focuses on the collective performance of our people to deliver our Plan Zero goal. 

We also offer plenty of green benefits and progressive policies to help you feel like you belong at OVO…and there’s flex pay.  It’s an extra 9% of your salary on top of your core pay to use as you like. You can take it as cash, add to your pension, or choose to spend it on a huge range of flex benefits.

Here’s a taster of what’s on offer: 

For starters, you’ll get 34 days of holiday (including bank holidays).

For your health
With benefits like a healthcare cash plan or private medical insurance depending on your career level, critical illness cover, life assurance, health assessments, and more

For your wellbeing
With gym membership, gadget, travel and cyber insurance, workplace ISA, will writing services, DNA testing, dental insurance, and more

For your lifestyle
With extra holiday buying, discount dining, culture cards, tech loans, and supporting your favorite charities with give-as-you-earn donations

For your home 
Get up to £300 off any OVO Energy plan (when you pay by Direct Debit), plus personal carbon offsetting and great discounts on smart thermostats and EV chargers (available after passing of probationary period)

For your commute
Nab a great deal on ultra-low emission car leasing, plus our cycle to work scheme and public transport season ticket loans

Want to hear about our full range of flexible benefits and progressive people policies? Our People Team can tell you everything you need to know.

For your Belonging

To find better ways to support our people, we need to listen to each other’s experiences and find ways to build a truly inclusive and diverse workplace. As part of this, we have 8 Belonging Networks at OVO. Led by our people, for our people - so when you join OVO, you can play a part - big or small - with any of the Networks. It's up to you.

Oh, and one last thing...

We’d be thrilled if you tick off all our boxes yet we also believe it’s just as important we tick off all of yours. And if you think you have most of what we’re looking for but not every single thing, go ahead and hit apply. We’d still love to hear from you!

If you have any additional requirements, there’s a space to let us know on the application form; we want to make the process as easy and comfortable for you as possible.