Senior Manager Global Procurement-Corporate and Professional Services at International Rescue Committee at International Rescue Committee

Senior Manager Global Procurement-Corporate and Professional Services at International Rescue Committee at International Rescue Committee | Iko Kazi

Role Purpose

The Senior Manager, Global Procurement (GP) - Corporate and Professional Services provides strategic leadership across Travel, Translation, Insurance, Cash, Financial and HR Services, including payroll and benefits administration, learning and development platforms, recruitment and RPO, and global mobility and relocation.
The role establishes disciplined, forward-looking category management across this portfolio: translating business demand into sourcing strategies, shaping competitive markets, negotiating high-value agreements, and building supplier ecosystems that improve value, service quality, risk management, and staff experience. As the Senior Manager within GP for these categories, the postholder influences decisions across People & Culture, Safety & Security, Finance, Legal, Risk & Compliance, and country programs.

Key Accountabilities

Category Strategy and Portfolio Leadership

Own and execute multi-year category strategies for Travel, Translation, Insurance, Cash, HR Services, and additional corporate and professional services categories as assigned.
Convert spend, demand, market, supplier, and risk insights into clear category plans, sourcing priorities, value targets, and implementation roadmaps.
Create fit-for-purpose sourcing guide for each category, including market intelligence, pricing and commercial models, contracting approaches, evaluation criteria, and negotiation levers.
Build an integrated pipeline with business owners, aligning sourcing activity to contract expiries, renewal windows, benefits cycles, and operational priorities.
Identify and deliver measurable value through cost optimization, demand management, service improvement, risk reduction, and a stronger employee experience.

Strategic Sourcing and Commercial Delivery

Lead complex, high-value sourcing initiatives from strategy and market engagement through RFx, evaluation, negotiation, award, and implementation.
Design sourcing and negotiation strategies that strengthen competition, improve commercial terms, and reflect the operational and regulatory realities of IRC's global footprint.
Establish robust evaluation governance, ensuring transparent decision-making, clear stakeholder accountability, and complete audit trails.
Advise business owners on specifications, statements of work, service levels, pricing structures, and contract models that drive performance and protect IRC's interests.
Lead commercial escalations and resolve material supplier, service, and contractual issues in partnership with Legal, Finance, Risk & Compliance, People and Culture, and operational stakeholders.

Supplier Strategy and Performance

Develop resilient supplier pool through framework agreements, pre-qualified panels, strategic partnerships, and appropriate regional or global coverage models.
Segment suppliers by value, criticality, and risk; apply differentiated governance and relationship-management approaches across the portfolio.
Set performance expectations and lead structured business reviews using service, cost, risk, innovation, and stakeholder-experience measures.
Drive supplier accountability, corrective action, and continuous improvement, while identifying opportunities for innovation and stronger market capability.
Evaluate and document single-source or waiver recommendations when competition is not viable, ensuring a defensible rationale and full policy compliance.

Stakeholder Leadership and Business Partnership

Act as the principal Global Procurement partner to People & Culture, Safety & Security, and other corporate functions that depend on the assigned categories.
Influence senior stakeholders with evidence-based recommendations on market options, supplier strategy, commercial trade-offs, risk, and total value.
Translate functional priorities into executable procurement plans, creating clarity on scope, roles, timelines, decisions, and dependencies.
Partner with Safety & Security on travel duty of care and traveler risk-management requirements, ensuring supplier and contracting strategies support organizational obligations.
Build procurement capability among stakeholders by promoting early engagement, disciplined planning, and consistent use of category and sourcing standards.

Governance, Risk, and Performance

Ensure all sourcing and supplier-management activity complies with IRC policies, donor requirements, delegated authorities, and audit standards.
Embed privacy, information-security, ethical, and regulatory requirements into sourcing and contracting, with particular focus on HR and Insurance providers handling sensitive personal data.
Maintain accurate spend, contract, pipeline, savings, risk, and supplier-performance data; use insights to guide priorities and demonstrate portfolio impact.
Keep sourcing decisions and contract records complete, current, and audit-ready.
Contribute category expertise and market insight to enterprise-wide procurement transformation and continuous-improvement initiatives.

Person Specification

Essential

Bachelor's degree in supply chain, business administration, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
CIPS Level 4 or higher, or an equivalent procurement qualification.
At least seven years of progressively responsible procurement experience, including substantial ownership of category management and strategic sourcing.
Demonstrated success leading complex competitive sourcing, multi-supplier evaluations, commercial negotiations, and contract awards.
Strong commercial judgment and a track record of improving value, supplier performance, and risk outcomes.
Ability to influence senior stakeholders, navigate competing priorities, and convert business requirements into practical sourcing strategies.
Strong analytical capability across spend analysis, market assessment, business-case development, and performance reporting.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex issues and recommendations clearly.

Desirable

Master's degree in a relevant field.
Direct category experience in travel, insurance, HR/BPO, language services, or other corporate and professional services.
Procurement experience in an NGO or nonprofit environment, including familiarity with donor compliance frameworks.
Working knowledge of Spanish, or Arabic.

Professional Competencies

Senior Manager Global Procurement-Corporate and Professional Services at International Rescue Committee