Market Category Specialist, Marketing (East Africa) at Diageo

About the role:

As a Market Category Specialist at Diageo, you will be pivotal in driving procurement outcomes through strategic business partnering and collaboration within our Procurement Centre of Excellence. Your role involves applying strategic procurement excellence to develop category strategies, leading sourcing activities in East Africa, and executing these strategies globally. You will cultivate subject-matter expertise, utilize supply market insights, and work across flexible resource pools for seamless demand management and career growth. Additionally, you'll actively participate in a global network of procurement professionals to align strategies, enhance capabilities, and share best practices.

Key accountabilities

• Applied Expertise: Build and share expertise in spend categories; become a subject-matter expert to drive value for Diageo.
• Category Excellence: Lead development of market data, category strategies, and sourcing events; improve tools and techniques.
• Business Partnering: Develop relationships with stakeholders and suppliers for insights and collaboration.
• Strategy Development: Support category strategy evolution by capturing business requirements, analyzing market dynamics, and proposing solutions.
• Best-in-Class Capabilities: Generate insights from benchmarking, develop cost models, and enhance analytics capabilities.
• Strategy Execution: Execute category strategies across boundaries; track progress with detailed KPI data.
• Support to Global CoEs: Ensure local market data is addressed in global strategy development.
• Sourcing Activities:
  • Execute sourcing for Above the Line (ATL) categories using best practices.
  • Support contract negotiations and manage compliance throughout contract lifecycles.\
• Risk Management:
  • Identify and mitigate strategic risks as part of category execution.
  • Address sourcing risks with effective mitigations involving all stakeholders.
• Supplier Relationship Management & Supply Chain Excellence:
  • Maintain adherence to Source-to-Pay processes with proven performance management experience.
  • Continuously develop skills through available learning resources.

Experience / skills required:

• Educational Background: Graduate or equivalent qualification; open to diverse educational paths, including membership in professional bodies like CIPS.
• Diverse Experience: 4–6 years in Procurement, Marketing Agency, Media, Creative Agency, FMCG Commercial, or other relevant roles. We welcome varied backgrounds that bring unique perspectives.
• Project and Strategy Expertise: Proven performance in projects and cross-market teams; experience or interest in developing and executing category and procurement strategies.
• Supplier Management Skills: Skilled in managing and negotiating with suppliers, valuing diverse approaches to relationship-building.
• Analytical Abilities: Strong analytical skills with financial awareness; an understanding of AOP requirements and financial goals. Diverse problem-solving methods are welcomed.
• Insight Generation: Ability to generate insights that influence decision-making; strong commercial acumen with an appreciation for different viewpoints.
• Systems Knowledge: Proficient in SAP, PRDM, MS Office, E-collaborate, or similar tools. Open to those eager to learn new systems.
• Communication Skills: Strong verbal, written, presentation, and interpersonal skills. We value communication styles that foster inclusivity and collaboration.
• Consistent Performance: Proven track record of consistent performance and delivery; we support diverse work experiences that contribute to success.