Regional Category Manager

Location: Austin, United States of America

In fast changing markets, customers worldwide rely on Thales. Thales is a business where brilliant people from all over the world come together to share ideas and inspire each other. In aerospace, transportation, defence, security and space, our architects design innovative solutions that make our tomorrow's possible.

Regional Category Manager

Austin - Arboretum Plaza Hybrid

Position Summary

The Category Manager for Industrial Services will represent the Procurement Organization both globally and for the Americas Region and shall be responsible for the effective creation and implementation of all the category’s strategic direction and management of the category within the scope of their responsibility (supporting the Industrial Services category strategy in managing Thales Capital Equipment purchases for large industrial purchases, and supplier relationship management). This role will be responsible for developing sourcing strategies, managing supplier relationships, as well as identifying and mitigating supply chain risk.

As Category Manager, and in full alignment with the Segment Director, the individual in this role will be responsible for managing their category, bringing procurement acumen, support and influence strategies that drive product and service innovation.

They are responsible for providing the best procurement solutions (quality, price and timing), meeting customer needs and aligning with the relevant Procurement Strategies as lead by the Global Category Managers, ensuring full compliance with all Thales policies and procedures.

Key Areas of Responsibility

• Act as the point of contact (POC) for internal and external stakeholders (e.g. Bids and Proposals, Department Heads, Suppliers, Audits, etc.) and determine the priorities for the Category within the region
• Help the Director to organize the category in such a way as to ensure a calibrated workload as well as a link to Stakeholders in order to ensure that their needs, requirements and priorities are addressed
• Ensure that Category, Procurement and Stakeholder Team members adhere to the Thales Group Purchasing policies and ensure the Category adheres to the cost and competitiveness of the good and services purchased through the Purchasing Executive Summary (PES).Establish a method and monitor the execution of Category activities.
• Act as Key Account Manager for certain global suppliers and interact and support all Thales business needs globally for such suppliers
• Monitor category markets on an on-going basis to identify and understand key players, newcomers, economic evolutions, market or regulation constraints, innovations and technology in order to support the development of the most up to date category strategies for the businesses.
• Based on the above provide insights as to how products / projects could be more competitive via the adoption of different suppliers / methodologies / technology.Help to define and monitor the schedule and deliverables associated with acquisitions
• Ensure compliance of all Stakeholders and Procurement Team Members with the “Manage Acquisition” process as per Chorus 2.0, and the use established acquisition tools in place within the organization ( e-Acquisition, ERP) for all activities.This role is a functional Category Manager position
  
  
  

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, procurement or comparable field of study with 8+ years of relevant work experience in procurement or Master’s degree in procurement or business administration with 6+ years of relevant work experience in procurement
• Understanding of Make/Buy, Should Cost Analysis approaches and inputs as well as supplier risk assessment and mitigation planning
• Ability to create and deploy category strategy to secure short and long term vision of a commodity/ies applying procurement expertise to aid in meeting the same, to make commitments and deliver on what was promised, to train, engage and influence in line with the regional and global procurement objectives, be an effective, strategic decision maker and not only see, but grasp the implications of the bigger picture and to guide and provide leadership to cross functional teams
• Strong organizational, analytical, problem-solving and strategic thinking skills
• Needs strong communication skills, both written and verbal, must have a strong executive presence,and have proven negotiation skills
  
  
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in procurement or business administration with 6+ years of relevant work experience in procurement
• French speaking would be a plus
  
  
  

Physical Demands

Typical Office Environment – so special physical requirements

Special Position Requirements

Schedule: Core Business Hours are Monday-Friday. The expectation is that you are working a full eight-hour day, adjusting your scheduled hours of work to accommodate your workload, as well as hours of work to accommodate meetings with partners throughout North America, but also to facilitate effective and timely meetings and communication with the Global partners overseas.

Physical Environment: This role has been designated as a Hybrid position, with the current expectation that, when you are not traveling, that you will physically work from your assigned Thales office at least two days each week.

Travel: Travel is required, and is anticipated to be approximately 20-25% travel annually, both domestically and internationally.

Customer Location Based or Site Visits: Position may require occasional travel to and from one or more customer sites.

What We Offer

Thales provides an extensive benefits program for all full-time employees working 30 or more hours per week and their eligible dependents, including the following:

• Elective Health, Dental, Vision, FSA/HSA, Voluntary Life and AD&D, Whole Group Life w/LTC, Critical Illness, Hospital Indemnity, Accident Insurance, Legal Plan, Identity Theft, and Pet Insurance.
• Retirement Savings Plan after 30 days of employment with a company contribution and a match, and with no vesting period.
• Company paid holidays and Paid Time Off.
• Company provided Life Insurance, AD&D, Disability, Employee Assistance Plan, and Well-being Program.
  
  
  

Why Join Us?

Say HI and learn more about working at Thales click here.

(The click here is a hyperlink (https://youtu.be/9aMF4NMhEJo) to an EVP video on our YouTube channel.)

This position will require successfully completing a post-offer background check. Qualified candidates with [a] criminal history will be considered and are not automatically disqualified, consistent with federal law, state law, and local ordinances.

Successful applicant must comply with federal contractor vaccine mandate requirements.

Thales champions inclusion and we believe diversity strengthens the fabric of our culture. We are an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected Veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.

If you need an accommodation or assistance in order to apply for a position with Thales, please contact us at talentacquisition@us.thalesgroup.com.