Procurement Head

Role & responsibilities

The Head of Procurement is the senior management personnel responsible for leading, managing, and optimizing the procurement function across all units. This role sets the strategic direction for procurement, ensures policy and regulatory compliance, drives efficiency and optimization, and manages the performance of procurement function. The incumbent will work closely with leadership to ensure that procurement supports the mission, growth, and cost-effective procurement of the organization, including the quality of materials being procured.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Strategic Procurement Leadership

• Develop and implement an organization-wide procurement strategy aligned with operational needs.
• Define, improve, and review the procurement policies and processes, adhere to the compliance standards, defined approval limits, and implement operational risk controls.
• Ensure consistency, transparency, and accountability across all procurement activities.

2. Team Management and Supervision

• Directly manage and mentor Procurement Managers and Officers.
• Assign responsibilities, set team goals, and monitor procurement performance indicators (KPIs).
• Conduct regular reviews, training, and organizational development within the procurement function as well as the requisitioning functions/departments on the procurement process and policy.

3. Vendor & Contract Governance

• As part of vendor development establish strategic supplier relationships and negotiate high-value contracts.
• Oversee vendor onboarding, performance evaluations, and contract renewals across locations.
• Ensure preparation of all post-negotiation documents like comparative, recommendation contract agreements & terms and conditions for high-value procurements.
• Act as an escalation point for any high-risk or high-value vendor issues.
• Drive, lead, and manage any legal action or legal response related to vendors and procurements, in consultation with the Manager Legal and finance team and the vendor service/material recipient such as the Facilities team, Academic team, Admin team, etc.

4. Systems, Reporting & Budget Oversight

• Ensure full utilization of ERP platform (e.g., Microsoft D365) for procurement workflow, approvals, and analytics.
• Lead cost optimization initiatives and track annual procurement including identifying savings as well as potential optimization possibilities.
• Implement rate contracts for regular procurements as well as oversee periodic and timely renewals after documented evaluation.
• Monitor adherence to procurement budgets in collaboration with Finance (Business Analyst).

5. Compliance & Risk Management

• Ensure full compliance with procurement rules and regulations, internal policies, and GST regulations.
• Always ensure and support audit readiness by maintaining documentation, logs, and procurement records.
• Evaluate risks in contracts and high-value purchases and mitigate the risks through proper documentation, monitoring process and controls (such as vendor due diligence, vendor evaluation, periodic open and closed order evaluation, etc.)

6. Cross-Department Collaboration

• Periodically coordinate with Principals, Facilities Team, Finance Team and Operations Managers to plan and forecast procurement needs to ensure timely availability of material and/or service without impacting the programmatic and functional timelines.
• Serve as the single point of authority for all escalated procurement matters from the locations.

Preferred candidate profile:

Qualification:

Experience:

• 1015 years of procurement experience in all categories of procurement including technical projects, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership or multi-site managerial responsibility.
• Experience managing a procurement team comprising of experienced Managers and Officers.
• Familiarity with Microsoft D365 ERP platform or equivalent procurement systems.
• Strong knowledge of vendor management, contract law, and GST compliance.