Global Category Manager – direct materials Ref. PL25- R805 – S02 Location: Katowice (hybrid – 2 days home office per week)

Global Category Manager – direct materials Ref. PL25- R805 – S02 Location: Katowice (hybrid – 2 days home office per week) | Big Fish Sp. z o.o.
02.01.2026

Global Category Manager – direct materials Ref. PL25- R805 – S02 Location: Katowice (hybrid – 2 days home office per week)

Job location:
Katowice (hybrid – 2 days home office per week)

Ref:
PL25- R805 – S02

Global Category Manager – direct materials Ref.  PL25- R805 – S02 Location: Katowice (hybrid – 2 days home office per week)

Our Client: 

Our Client is a global leader in analytical testing and life sciences services, supporting customers across food, environment, pharmaceutical, clinical and industrial markets to make life and the environment safer, healthier and more sustainable.

The global purchasing function manages a spend of around EUR 0.5 billion and operates through a Global Service Centre structure with hubs in Katowice, China and Belgium. The global team covers is  working closely with local purchasing teams in more than 60 countries. The environment is highly complex and fast-paced, driven by continuous M&A, a very fragmented supplier base and diverse local regulatory requirements.

You will join the global consumables category team, responsible for strategic sourcing and category management across a network of more than 1,000 facilities worldwide. Main sub-categories include chemicals, plastic & glassware, microbiology, diagnostic kits and filtration products. 

Position Overview

The Category Manager – is responsible for defining and executing global category strategies for a portfolio of laboratory consumables which are in this case direct materials. You will build robust category plans, drive sourcing projects and supplier negotiations, and secure measurable financial impact on P&L, cash and risk.

Working as part of the global consumables team, you will collaborate closely with local purchasing teams, technical experts and quality functions to harmonise needs, leverage Group scale and support business growth. The role requires strong analytical capabilities, excellent stakeholder management in a multicultural environment and the ability to translate complex data into clear priorities and actions.

Key Responsibilities

Category strategy & planning

  • Build and maintain global category strategies and multi-year roadmaps for assigned consumables sub-categories, using tools such as Kraljic portfolio, AT Kearney matrices, SWOT, Pareto and risk assessments.
  • Define clear savings, cash and risk-mitigation targets and translate them into a prioritised project pipeline.
  • Consolidate requirements across laboratories and countries, balancing standardisation with local regulatory needs. 

Sourcing & supplier management

  • Lead global sourcing projects (RFI/RFP, e-auctions where relevant) and negotiate contracts and commercial conditions with key suppliers, in line with Group policies and TCO approach.
  • Reduce supplier fragmentation by identifying consolidation and tail-spend optimisation opportunities while safeguarding innovation and supply security.
  • Develop and manage strategic supplier relationships, including regular performance reviews, corrective action plans and joint improvement initiatives (cost, service, quality, innovation, sustainability).
  • Support integration of newly acquired laboratories into the global consumables sourcing framework.

Performance management & analytics

  • Track category performance against key KPIs (savings, cash improvement, supplier-base reduction, contractual coverage, service/quality metrics) and provide clear, data-driven reporting to management.
  • Use Coupa and advanced dashboards to analyse spend, identify opportunities and monitor compliance, leveraging a high level of data quality provided by the analytics team.
  • Drive continuous improvement and share best practices within the global purchasing community.

Stakeholder collaboration

  • Partner with laboratory leaders, technical experts, quality and finance to ensure that sourcing solutions meet operational needs and support business growth.
  • Communicate category strategies and project progress in a concise, numbers-driven way to senior stakeholders.
  • Support change management and adoption of global agreements across the network, balancing local expectations with global objectives.

ESG & risk

  • Embed ESG criteria into sourcing decisions and support Group sustainability objectives across the consumables category.
  • Identify category risks (supply, quality, regulatory, financial) and implement mitigation plans including dual sourcing, business continuity and contractual protections.

Qualifications & Profile

Education & experience

  • University degree in Business, Finance, or related field  from reputable universities; postgraduate/MBA is an advantage.
  • Minimum 6–8 years of experience in strategic procurement and category management for direct materials, ideally within chemicals, laboratory products, or other high-complexity direct categories, operating at regional (minimum EMEA) or global level.
  • Proven track record of leading global sourcing initiatives, delivering measurable cost savings and cash-flow improvements in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment.
  • Experience managing large, fragmented supplier bases and high-complexity spend (multi-country, multi-region, multi-entity, including M&A environments).

Technical skills

  • Solid knowledge of category management methodology and strategic sourcing tools (RFI/RFP, TCO, cost breakdowns, should-costs).
  • Strong financial acumen with good understanding of EBITDA, working capital and their levers from a purchasing perspective.
  • Very good analytical skills; advanced proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint; experience with Procure-to-Pay tools such as Coupa or Ariba.
  • Comfortable working with data and dashboards to derive insights and prioritise actions.

Personal competencies

  • Strong communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work effectively across cultures and organisational levels.
  • High level of curiosity and willingness to deep-dive into complex topics and details, combined with the ability to “connect the dots” and see the bigger picture.
  • Resilient, calm under pressure and able to navigate tensions and conflicting priorities while keeping a constructive, solution-oriented mindset.
  • Self-starter, comfortable in an entrepreneurial, fast-paced environment and able to manage multiple projects in parallel.

    Why Apply? 
  • Opportunity to manage a high-impact global spend portfolio in one of the core categories for the business, directly influencing Group profitability, cash flow and supplier landscape.
  • Exposure to a truly international, multicultural network of laboratories and stakeholders, with a high level of autonomy and visibility at senior management level.
  • Chance to work in a fast-growing, entrepreneurial company where procurement is recognised as a key driver of value and where data quality, tools and dashboards support decision making.
  • Complex, intellectually challenging environment created by continuous acquisitions, diverse regulations and a highly fragmented supplier base – ideal for candidates who enjoy solving sophisticated problems and “making sense of complexity”.
  • Culture that combines entrepreneurial mindset with strong performance orientation and a clear ESG ambition, including well-defined sustainability targets.

Interested?
If this opportunity sounds like the right fit for your experience and aspirations, we warmly invite you to apply by sending your CV to agnieszkapiatkowska@e-bigfish.com

Application Note: Please include the following clause  directly in your CV: “I hereby agree to the processing of personal data included in my application for the needs necessary to carry out the recruitment process conducted by Big Fish Polska Sp. z o.o. in accordance with art. 6 par. 1 lit. a Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation). I also consent to processing of my personal data for the purposes of any future recruitment processes.”

Big Fish is an international recruitment and skills development company for procurement professionals – proudly serving the market for over 20 years. www.e-bigfish.com.pl

If you wish to apply, than send us your CV in English to: agnieszkapiatkowska@e-bigfish.com

Please introduce in your CV the following clause:

"I hereby agree to the processing of personal data included in my application for the needs necessary to carry out the recruitment process carried out by Big Fish Polska Sp. z o.o in accordance with art. 6 par. 1 lit. a Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation). I also consent to processing of my personal data for the purposes of any future recruitment processes.