Assistant Manager, Category Procurement

Location: Al Rayyan Tower, Al Nahda, Sharjah (Border of Dubai & Sharjah) Job Purpose: The Assistant Manager, Category Procurement supports the Procurement Manager / Category Lead in developing and executing category strategies across assigned direct procurement categories. The role co-manages major categories within the Category Lead’s portfolio and independently manages smaller categories and subcategories, ensuring competitive sourcing, supplier performance, cost optimization, quality, availability, and compliance. By providing strong analytical, commercial, and operational support, the role increases category coverage, accelerates execution, and helps deliver sustainable value to Americana Restaurants across markets. Key Responsibilities: • Support the Category Lead in translating procurement and business priorities into category strategies, sourcing plans, supplier actions, and measurable targets. • Co-manage assigned major categories with the Category Lead, including spend analysis, sourcing preparation, supplier negotiations, contracting, implementation, and performance follow-up. • Independently manage smaller categories and subcategories within the Category Lead’s portfolio, taking ownership of sourcing activities, stakeholder alignment, supplier relationships, and agreed results. • Conduct market intelligence, benchmarking, cost-driver analysis, commodity tracking, and supplier landscape reviews to identify savings opportunities, supply risks, and innovation options. • Prepare and execute RFIs, RFQs, RFPs, e-auctions, bid evaluations, commercial comparisons, negotiation packs, and award recommendations in line with the Procurement Policy and delegation of authority. • Support supplier negotiations and contract development to secure competitive pricing, appropriate service levels, quality requirements, risk protections, and favorable commercial terms. • Monitor supplier performance against price, quality, service, delivery, innovation, sustainability, and compliance expectations; coordinate corrective actions when performance falls below target. • Partner with Supply Chain, Quality Assurance, Operations, Culinary, Marketing, NPD, Finance and other stakeholders to support continuity of supply, menu initiatives, product changes, LTOs, and new launches. • Maintain accurate category data, contracts, supplier records, savings trackers, forecasts, risk registers, and management reports to provide reliable visibility and audit readiness. • Identify supply continuity risks and support mitigation plans, including alternate suppliers, localization, specification review, inventory actions, and contingency sourcing. • Drive implementation and benefits realization after sourcing decisions, ensuring agreed prices, specifications, contracts, system updates, and operational transitions are completed. • Contribute to continuous improvement, procurement digitalization, standard templates, governance routines, and sharing of category best practices across the team. Leadership • Demonstrates ownership for assigned categories and follows through on commitments, actions, timelines, and measurable outcomes. • Influences stakeholders and suppliers through facts, commercial insight, collaboration, and constructive challenge rather than formal authority. • Supports the Category Lead by prioritizing workload, escalating material issues early, and maintaining clear communication across concurrent initiatives. • Acts with integrity, resilience, curiosity, and a continuous-improvement mindset while developing readiness for broader category leadership responsibilities. Policies & Procedures • Implements and operates within the approved Procurement Policy, delegation of authority, sourcing governance, ethical standards, contract requirements, and applicable regulatory controls. The role contributes practical feedback and improvement ideas but does not independently approve policy changes. Job Context & Major Challenges • Balancing support to the Category Lead on strategic and high-value priorities while independently delivering smaller category and subcategory responsibilities. • Managing multiple sourcing projects, supplier issues, stakeholder requests, launches, and deadlines across countries and brands with different operational requirements. • Delivering cost optimization while protecting food safety, quality, product specifications, availability, service levels, and guest experience. • Working with volatile commodity markets, foreign-exchange movements, supplier capacity constraints, geopolitical disruptions, and changing demand forecasts. • Building credibility and driving timely decisions across cross-functional stakeholders without direct authority. • Maintaining complete, accurate, and audit-ready sourcing, contracting, supplier, and savings documentation under tight timelines. Frameworks, Boundaries & Decision - Making Authority • Operates within approved category strategies, Procurement Policy, delegation of authority, ethical standards, specifications, budgets, and sourcing governance. • May lead sourcing and supplier-management activities for assigned smaller categories and subcategories within agreed scope and approval limits. • Prepares commercial analysis and recommendations; supplier awards, contracts, commitments, specification changes, and exceptions require the designated approvals. • Escalates material cost, quality, supply, compliance, contractual, or stakeholder risks to the Procurement Manager / Category Lead. • The Category Lead remains accountable for the overall category strategy and portfolio performance; the Assistant Manager owns the execution and results of delegated category responsibilities. Qualifications, Experience & Skills: • Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Procurement, Engineering, Commerce or a related field. • CIPS, MCIPS, APICS or equivalent procurement / supply-chain certification is preferred. • Typically 3–5 years of procurement, strategic sourcing, category management or supplier-management experience. • Experience in food, beverage, packaging, restaurant, hospitality, FMCG or a comparable multi-site environment is preferred. • Practical experience supporting negotiations, contracts, supplier performance, cost analysis and cross-functional projects. • Category management and strategic sourcing • Cost modelling, spend analysis and market intelligence • RFx management, bid evaluation and negotiation support • Supplier relationship and performance management • Contract lifecycle and commercial terms • Supply-risk identification and mitigation • ERP / procurement systems and advanced Excel • Project management, reporting and benefits tracking • Analytical thinking and attention to detail • Commercial acumen and problem solving • Communication, presentation and stakeholder influence • Planning, prioritization and execution discipline • Collaboration, resilience and adaptability

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Procurement, Engineering, Commerce or a related field. CIPS, MCIPS, APICS or equivalent procurement / supply-chain certification is preferred. Typically 3–5 years of procurement, strategic sourcing, category management or supplier-management experience. Experience in food, beverage, packaging, restaurant, hospitality, FMCG or a comparable multi-site environment is preferred. Practical experience supporting negotiations, contracts, supplier performance, cost analysis and cross-functional projects.

Support the Category Lead in translating procurement and business priorities into category strategies, sourcing plans, supplier actions, and measurable targets. Co-manage assigned major categories with the Category Lead, including spend analysis, sourcing preparation, supplier negotiations, contracting, implementation, and performance follow-up. Independently manage smaller categories and subcategories within the Category Lead’s portfolio, taking ownership of sourcing activities, stakeholder alignment, supplier relationships, and agreed results. Conduct market intelligence, benchmarking, cost-driver analysis, commodity tracking, and supplier landscape reviews to identify savings opportunities, supply risks, and innovation options. Prepare and execute RFIs, RFQs, RFPs, e-auctions, bid evaluations, commercial comparisons, negotiation packs, and award recommendations in line with the Procurement Policy and delegation of authority. Support supplier negotiations and contract development to secure competitive pricing, appropriate service levels, quality requirements, risk protections, and favorable commercial terms. Monitor supplier performance against price, quality, service, delivery, innovation, sustainability, and compliance expectations; coordinate corrective actions when performance falls below target. Partner with Supply Chain, Quality Assurance, Operations, Culinary, Marketing, NPD, Finance and other stakeholders to support continuity of supply, menu initiatives, product changes, LTOs, and new launches. Maintain accurate category data, contracts, supplier records, savings trackers, forecasts, risk registers, and management reports to provide reliable visibility and audit readiness. Identify supply continuity risks and support mitigation plans, including alternate suppliers, localization, specification review, inventory actions, and contingency sourcing. Drive implementation and benefits realization after sourcing decisions, ensuring agreed prices, specifications, contracts, system updates, and operational transitions are completed. Contribute to continuous improvement, procurement digitalization, standard templates, governance routines, and sharing of category best practices across the team.