Global Category Manager

Shape the future of logistics automation through a strategic partnership ecosystem development

Are you a strategic procurement professional who knows how to turn Indian market insights and business needs into impactful category strategies? Do you enjoy working in an international environment where you can influence supplier partnerships, sourcing decisions, and business performance on a global scale?
Vanderlande is looking for a Global Category Manager to develop and execute category strategies and lead strategic sourcing initiatives to unlock new business opportunities. As part of the global Procurement organization, you will work closely with business stakeholders to understand requirements, identify sourcing opportunities, and implement sustainable procurement solutions that support Vanderlande's business goals. You will ensure alignment of Category strategies across regions and projects while driving cost, quality, innovation, and supplier performance.

Our global procurement organization enables our projects and business functions by maximizing value and minimizing risks via the procurement of goods and services in the smartest, cost-effective, and sustainable way. We ensure a resilient and competitive supplier ecosystem and aim to advance towards best-in-class practices, and ensure the organization is efficient, effective, and future-proof.

What will you be doing?

As a Global Category Manager, you will be responsible for all kinds of new business opportunities and making them mature on a global scale, translating business requirements into sourcing strategies, and leading end-to-end strategic sourcing initiatives. Specifically in this role you will be be at the forefront of Vanderlande's growth in India. Your mission is to build and develop a strong network of strategic suppliers, unlock access to innovation and emerging technologies and create long-term partnerships that strengthen our global supply chain in India.

In this highly visible role, you will serve as the go-to expert for procurement opportunities. Next to this, you will define and drive category strategies, ensuring their effective implementation across regions and projects. You will collaborate closely with stakeholders to deliver value, mitigate risk, and support business objectives and make the new opportunities mature for scaling-up. Additionally, you will serve as the Supplier Relationship Manager for a designated portfolio of strategic suppliers, fostering long-term partnerships and driving continuous performance improvement.

Responsibilities

Develop and build the India supplier ecosystem

• Develop and execute innovative sourcing strategies contributing to the overall ecosystem strategy
• Identify, assess, and develop new suppliers capable of supporting both local and global business
• Build a sustainable pipeline of qualified suppliers across strategic commodity areas.
• Support the expansion of local-for-local and local-for-global sourcing initiatives.

Drive supplier scouting and market intelligence

• Continuously monitor the Indian supplier market for new capabilities, technologies, capacity developments, and investment opportunities.
• Conduct supplier scouting activities and market assessments to identify new sourcing opportunities.
• Maintain a deep understanding of market dynamics, industry trends, and competitive developments.
• Translate market insights into actionable sourcing recommendations.

Unlock innovation opportunities

• Identify innovative suppliers, technologies, and manufacturing capabilities that can strengthen Vanderlande's competitive position.
• Connect with business stakeholders with suppliers capable of supporting new products, technology, and supply chain developments.
• Facilitate collaboration between suppliers and internal stakeholders to accelerate innovation adoption.
• Drive supplier involvement in early-stage development and value engineering activities.

Lead supplier development and selection activities

• Coordinate supplier qualification and onboarding activities in collaboration with Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Category Management.
• Lead sourcing projects where new supplier development is required.
• Ensure suppliers meet Vanderlande standards regarding quality, compliance, sustainability, and operational excellence.

• Lead and/or support in strategic and complex sourcing events, with tasks such as the creation of the sourcing projects within the S2P Suite, creation of RfX documents, evaluation of proposal based on pre-defined criteria, support the negotiation process, etc.

Organize supplier engagement and innovation events

• Plan and execute supplier innovation days, market visits, supplier conferences, and technology workshops.
• Create platforms that strengthen collaboration between suppliers and Vanderlande stakeholders.
• Promote supplier innovation capabilities across the global procurement community.
• Ensure best practices and market insights are shared effectively across category teams.

Lead cross-functional collaboration

• Work closely with Category Managers, Supplier Quality Engineers, Technology, Engineering, Solutions Operations, Supply Chain teams, etc.
• Act as the primary procurement contact for new business development opportunities in India.
• Support strategic procurement projects aimed at expanding supply chain capabilities and resilience.
• Facilitate alignment between global procurement strategies and local market opportunities.

Governance, Compliance & Ethical Procurement

• Ensure full compliance with Vanderlande procurement principles, ESG policies, safety regulations, and quality system requirements.
• Support responsible sourcing and supplier sustainability objectives.
• Maintain accurate supplier intelligence, qualification documentation, and sourcing records.

• Uphold ethical procurement standards in all supplier interactions and selection activities.

What do we ask from you?

To be successful in this role, you should have:

• University degree in a technical or economics degree with business background

• Fluent in English, spoken and written (mandatory)
• Minimum 10-12 years of experience in procurement Category management, supplier development, business development, sourcing with a strong focus on identifying, qualifying, and developing new suppliers.
• Strong knowledge of the Indian manufacturing and supplier landscape, ideally in the area of logistics automation or alike
• Strong commercial mindset combined with technical curiosity and market awareness.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills across multiple organizational levels in an international environment.
• Experience organizing supplier events, workshops, innovation programs, or business networking activities.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills in an international business environment.
• Experience within manufacturing, industrial automation, logistics automation, electronics, or complex supply chain environments is preferred.
• Experience with Source-to-Pay systems and supplier management tools is considered a plus.
• Ability to travel internationally up to 30% of the time

About the team

Our Procurement team is a dynamic and collaborative group of procurement professionals dedicated to optimizing both direct and indirect spend across the organization. Our team comprises category experts and supplier relationship managers who develop and implement tailored procurement strategies that align with local market dynamics while supporting global objectives. We cultivate robust supplier partnerships, negotiate competitive contracts, and identify opportunities for cost savings, always enhancing efficiency and value. By working closely with procurement engineering, project procurement management, procurement centers of excellence, and external suppliers, we ensure all procurement activities comply with regulations and support overall business goals. Through strong relationships and effective communication across regional and global teams, we drive sustainable procurement performance and support the organization in achieving its strategic objectives.

About Vanderlande

Vanderlande is the global market leader for future-proof logistic process automation at airports and in the distribution market. Furthermore, we are also a leading supplier of process automation solutions for warehouses, which seamlessly integrate innovative systems, intelligent software, and life-cycle services.

At Vanderlande, you can develop your career, satisfy your ambitions, and aspire to new heights, while enjoying personal growth and thriving achievement.

What we offer

In the challenging and responsible position of Global Category Manager, you will have the chance to make a significant contribution to industry-leading projects and be connected to our dedicated people and customers. We offer a position in an informal, international and professional working environment with a lot of scope for personal development. By joining our profitable and growing company you will be able to reach your goals and focus on your future.

Diversity & Inclusion

Vanderlande is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Qualified applicants will be considered without regards to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability status.