Senior Associate - Vendor Management

Position: Senior Associate - Vendor Management
Overview: This role owns end-to-end vendor governance and offline marketing execution, ensuring cost efficiency, service quality, and consistent brand presence across all physical touchpoints. The scope includes vendor selection, onboarding, contract negotiation, performance management, and risk mitigation, along with planning and delivering offline campaigns, enforcing branding standards, and driving high-impact on-ground experiences What you will do: 1. Vendor Management (Primary Responsibility – ~70%)Key Responsibilities1. Vendor Selection & OnboardingIdentify, evaluate, and qualify new vendors based on business requirements.Conduct RFPs/RFQs, vendor due-diligence, and capability assessments. Facilitate onboarding, ensuring all legal, compliance, and security requirements are met.2. Contract & Commercial ManagementNegotiate contracts, pricing, service-level agreements (SLAs), and terms & conditions.Collaborate with legal and finance teams to finalize vendor agreements.Monitor contract renewals, amendments, and terminations.3. Vendor Performance & Relationship Management.Maintain strong ongoing relationships with key suppliers. Track vendor performance against KPIs & SLAs. Conduct quarterly business reviews (QBRs).Resolve escalated vendor issues and disputes promptly.4. Risk Management & ComplianceIdentify financial, operational, cybersecurity, and regulatory risks related to vendors. Ensure vendors comply with company policies, quality standards, and industry regulations.Maintain vendor risk documentation and audit trails.5. Cost Optimization & Value Delivery Analyze spend data to identify cost-saving opportunities.Drive continuous improvement initiatives with vendors.Benchmark pricing and market trends.6. Reporting & Documentation Maintain an up-to-date vendor database and contract repository.Prepare management reports on vendor performance, risk, spend, and KPIs. Support internal audits and compliance checks.2. Offline Brand Marketing (Secondary Responsibility – ~30%) Establish and enforce branding guidelines for offline assets. Conduct regular audits to maintain quality and consistency in brand execution across all offline touchpoints. Plan and manage offline campaigns, including hoardings, transit branding, and agent activations, coordinating with vendors for on-time, on-budget delivery.Drive on-ground innovations at terminals and lounges to enhance the customer experience and engagement. Track performance of offline initiatives to assess and improve engagement, ROI, and the impact of vendor partnerships.What we are looking for: Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain/Business/Finance with 2–4 years of vendor management or procurement experience.Experience with Vendor Management Systems (VMS), e-procurement tools, or ERP platforms.Understanding of branding execution, offline activation, and operational alignment; certifications like CPSM/CSCP/PMP are a bonus.Strong negotiation, contract management, and vendor relationship skills.Knowledge of procurement processes (RFP, RFQ, SOW, SLAs, KPIs) and risk mitigation.Excellent communication with the ability to manage internal and external stakeholders effectively.'