Category Lead

Category Lead/Manager – Fleet & Indirect Procurement

Location: Flexible / Hybrid (Finsbury Park, London)

Reporting to: Head of Procurement

About the Role:

WPS is seeking an experienced Category Manager – Fleet & Indirect Procurement to take ownership of one of our most critical spend categories while supporting wider indirect procurement activities across the business.

This is a highly autonomous role, with approximately 60% of your time focused on fleet procurement and fleet management activities and the remaining 40% dedicated to broader indirect procurement categories such as IT, HR Services, Professional Services, Office Supplies, PPE and other overhead spend.

We are looking for a procurement professional who can operate independently, build strong stakeholder relationships, and bring proven experience managing a large operational vehicle fleet.

Key Responsibilities:

Fleet Procurement (Primary Focus)

• Lead the procurement and category management of a fleet of approximately 2,000 operational vehicles.
• Develop fleet strategies that deliver cost savings, operational efficiency and compliance.
• Manage vehicle procurement, specification, fit-out and supplier selection.
• Evaluate and recommend funding options including leasing, purchasing and financing.
• Build robust business cases for fleet investment and replacement programmes.
• Manage key fleet spend areas including:
• Vans and operational vehicles
• Telematics
• Fuel and EV solutions
• Company cars
• Salary sacrifice schemes
• Vehicle maintenance and repair contracts
• Monitor supplier performance and drive continuous improvement.

Indirect Procurement:

• Develop and implement category strategies across indirect spend areas.
• Identify opportunities for cost reduction, cost avoidance and value creation.
• Manage categories including:
• IT Services
• Recruitment
• HR Services
• Professional Services
• Office Supplies & Stationery
• PPE
• Utilities
• Travel and associated overhead spend
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders to align procurement strategies with business objectives.

Stakeholder & Supplier Management:

• Build strong relationships across the business and with external suppliers.
• Influence decision-making at all levels of the organisation.
• Support operational teams with supplier management and procurement best practice.
• Lead commercial negotiations and contract discussions.

About You:

We're looking for someone who can hit the ground running and confidently manage a large fleet category whilst balancing wider indirect procurement responsibilities.

Essential Experience:

• Proven experience in Fleet Procurement or Fleet Category Management.
• Experience managing operational fleet vehicles and vans.
• Previous responsibility for a fleet of approximately 2,000 vehicles or similar scale.
• Strong indirect procurement/category management experience.
• Experience delivering cost savings, rebates and commercial value.
• Ability to work independently and manage multiple priorities.

Skills & Knowledge:

• Excellent negotiation and supplier management skills.
• Strong analytical and commercial acumen.
• Experience using procurement and reporting tools.
• Knowledge of compliance, governance and risk management.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Understanding of sustainable procurement and fleet strategies.

Qualifications:

• Degree level education or equivalent experience preferred.
• CIPS qualification or working towards CIPS would be advantageous.

Why Join WPS?

• Opportunity to lead a significant fleet spend portfolio of approximately £18m annually.
• Influence procurement strategy across a broader indirect spend portfolio of approximately £60m annually.
• Work closely with senior business leaders.
• Be part of a collaborative procurement team driving meaningful business value.

If you are an experienced fleet procurement professional looking for a broad category management role with genuine strategic impact, we'd love to hear from you.

Our commitments: 

WPS is proud to be an employer where anyone can thrive, and we welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds.  We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet every requirement, as we value transferable skills and assess all applications fairly.

We don't discriminate based on a criminal record; all applications are reviewed on an individual basis against the requirements of the role. Some roles may require additional checks, due to the nature of the work.  As a Disability Confident Leader, we offer an interview to applicants with a disability who meet the minimum criteria for the role and opt in to the Disability Confident scheme.  Reasonable adjustments are available, please contact us at wpsrecruitment@wates.co.uk