Category Buyer

Job Summary

We are seeking a skilled Category Buyer to join us Global Travel and Fleet Category and Programs -Global Finance Services Division

The preference for this role is to be based out of Whitefield Office, Bangalore, India

What you do

To serve as the primary contact between Caterpillar and the supply base for global initiatives, including filling the functional seat for commercial discussions/negotiations with suppliers, being the recognized expert for his or her assigned portion global travel and fleet category and supporting the development and execution of global travel services and fleet category strategies.

Other key aspects of the role are as follows:

• Category Management: Help to manage the global supplier relationship including but not limited to supplier relationship management, supplier performance management, cost management, risk management, and category network management. Develop and implement global and regional category strategies for travel services (e.g., air, hotel, ground transportation, travel management companies). Align category plans with business needs, stakeholder expectations, and corporate social responsibility goals. Monitor market trends and innovations to identify cost-saving opportunities and service improvements. Responsible to managing policies, agreements, source catalogues, and special procurement programs.
• Strategic Sourcing: Lead end-to-end sourcing processes including RFI/RFP preparation, supplier evaluation, negotiation, and contract implementation.Ensure robust governance and stakeholder engagement throughout sourcing activities.

• Supplier Relationship Management: Manage strategic travel suppliers to ensure service delivery, issue resolution, and continuous improvement.- Conduct regular performance reviews and maintain strong vendor partnerships.
• Leadership: Lead continuous improvement initiatives activities within Purchasing. Demonstrate leadership in recognizing the potential for cost reductions, and quality improvement, as well as responsibility for soundness of business proposals and risk assessment. Promote the highest level of professionalism and business ethics.

• Accountability and Management: Be able to handle a substantial flow of projects with challenging/expedited deadlines. Actively facilitate and manage procurement from start to finish with a hands-on approach. Working efficiently with internal BU Stakeholders, Service Owners, CRM teams, Subject Matter Experts, Legal, Tax as well as others to integrate business requirements into procurement decisions. Facilitate cross-functional alignment and support change management initiatives.
• Contract & Data Management: Negotiate and manage supplier contracts in coordination with legal teams. Define and track KPIs, savings delivery, and supplier performance metrics. Analyze fragmented spend data to support strategic decisions and reporting.

Qualifications:

• Educations: Bachelors Degree (preferably in Business, Finance, Purchasing/Supply Chain, Law or related field)
• Experience: 3+ years insourcing/ procurement with a focus on travel or services categories or 3+ years as Travel Manager; experience in global sourcing preferred
• Expert communicator: proficient in building collaborative and trusted partnerships to work across a internal matrix organization and external Supplier network.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills, acting with integrity in tough and emotive situations; able to mediate and reach consensus within a group environment.
• Candidates may have gained the following skills and experience through previous roles:
  • Demonstrated understanding of category deliverables, savings commitments, milestones and obligations, and establish a project plan to meet them.
  • Support development of category strategies based on rigorous analysis of spend data, supply market dynamics, category intelligence, and business requirements.
  • Analytical, problem solving, and project leadership expertise.
  • Manage and optimize supplier performance including contract compliance, continuous improvement, innovations, and reduction in total cost of ownership (TCO).
  • Established negotiator; able to interpret, analyze, and negotiate contractual cost elements.
  • Proactive and motivated to thrive in an autonomous working environment

Skills desired:

Data Analytics: Knowledge of techniques and processes for inspecting, cleansing, transforming, and modeling data; ability to discover useful information, draw logical conclusions, and support decision-making.Level Extensive Experience: Advises stakeholders on the relationship between financial, performance, and operational data used in business data analytics. Anticipates operational challenges of data collection and its integration with decision-making. Identifies correlations that reveal trends and determine conditions. Evaluates the quality of data collected and the effectiveness of data analysis methods for evaluating business performance. Interprets potential risks, threats, and opportunities involved with predictive modeling.

Effective Communications

Interpersonal Relationships: Knowledge of the techniques and the ability to work with a variety of individuals and groups in a constructive and collaborative manner.Level Working Knowledge: Explains impact of interactions with individuals and groups. Identifies roles and responsibilities for self and others. Demonstrates an understanding of alternative points of view. Collaborates with departmental associates and management. Adapts interaction style to situations and people.

Negotiating: Knowledge of successful negotiation concepts and techniques; ability to negotiate successfully across the organization and with external vendors and clients in a constructive and collaborative manner.Level Extensive Experience: Ensures negotiators have awareness of complementary yet diverse interests. Successfully completes significant negotiations, both internal and external. Details the risks of negotiation breakdown from each party's perspective. Protects own position, while demonstrating willingness to achieve win-win. Identifies similarities and differences in position and assesses impact on discussions. Detects and addresses lack of progress or a stalemate.

Contracts Management and Administration: Knowledge of policies, standards and processes of how to manage and administer contracts; ability to use proper processes and practices for managing and administering a variety of contractual agreements.Level Working Knowledge: Administers locally relevant contracts for the department. Implements organizational protocols and procedures for contracts management. Explains the types of information required before a contract is signed. Reviews contracts to ensure compliance with contract specifications and regulations. Assists in creating files of relevant information for specific vendors, customers, or contracts.

Purchasing Tasks and Activities: Knowledge of policies, regulations and processes of purchasing; ability to use practices and procedures for procurement of materials, components, equipment and services.Level Working Knowledge: Records documents of purchasing tasks and activities, such as orders, bidding. Uses available procurement systems and tools. Ensures compliance with procurement regulations and contract specifications. Works with basic purchasing related tasks and activities. Adheres to various requirements and steps of the procurement process.

Supplier Relationship Management: Knowledge of supplier relationship management concept and strategies; ability to address critical issues to meet supplier needs and maintain engaged, partnering relationship with suppliers.Level Extensive Experience: Advises others on the organization's supplier relationship management practices. Builds consensus, resolves conflicts, and applies techniques to achieve influence and impact results with different suppliers in the organization's supplier network. Coaches juniors on selecting, evaluating, and managing suppliers. Conducts periodic reviews of work effort, progress, issues, and successes in supplier relationship establishment and management. Evaluates the impact of SRM on the organization's different financials. Refines organizational processes for establishing and maintaining supplier partnerships.

Strategic Sourcing: Knowledge of strategic sourcing methods, technologies and processes; ability to analyze, improve and re-evaluate organizational procurement process continuously.Level Working Knowledge: Works with various basic components of strategic sourcing, such as data analysis, market research and purchasing budgets examination. Participates in enhancing institutional sourcing process continuously including identifying improvement opportunities. Conducts strategic sourcing activities in a limited environment. Follows relevant standards, policies and practices regarding strategic sourcing. Assists senior sourcing professionals with strategic sourcing in multiple environments..