Category Manager

Job overview

The category of Major Capital Projects or Hard Facilities Management, dependent on experience.

Devon Procurement Service | Hybrid (Devon-wide)

We are looking for a commercially astute Category Manager to lead strategic procurement across a high profile portfolio spanning Major Capital Projects or Hard FM, which underpins the safe, compliant, and effective operation of healthcare facilities across the Devon Health Care System.

From the delivery of major infrastructure programmes and refurbishment schemes to critical engineering services, statutory compliance, and lifecycle maintenance, this role sits at the centre of how healthcare environments are built, maintained, and improved, directly impacting patient care and operational resilience.

We contract on behalf of:

• Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Torbay & South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
• Devon Partnership NHS Trust
• University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
• Livewell Community Services

Working within a newly formed and progressive shared service, you will operate across organisational boundaries, influencing procurement strategy at system level, driving innovation in delivery models, and leading complex programmes from concept through to delivery and ongoing performance.

Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS at Risk staff throughout Devon who is able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.

Main duties of the job

The Role

You will take ownership of a diverse and evolving portfolio across major capital projects or Hard FM, depending on your experience, leading procurement activity with the team across the full lifecycle from early market engagement and route to market strategy through to contract award, mobilisation, and performance management.

You will:

• Lead category strategy development across major capital projects or Hard FM services, aligned to organisational priorities
• Design and deliver procurement routes including frameworks, further competitions, and open procedures
• Structure and negotiate complex contracts, including construction, consultancy (JCT / NEC) and/or service models (TFM, term service, specialist compliance)
• Work closely with estates, clinical, and operational teams to shape specifications, delivery models, and performance regimes
• Provide commercial leadership on business cases, affordability, outsourcing models, and risk allocation
• Ensure compliance with the Procurement Act 2023 and NHS governance requirements
• Drive value beyond cost, including social value, sustainability, supply chain resilience and SME engagement

This is a role with genuine influence you will be expected to challenge, shape, and lead, not simply deliver procurement processes.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Background to the Devon Procurement Service:

Devon Procurement Service (“DPS”) hosted at University Hospital Plymouth (“UHP") is part of Devon Integrated Care System (ICS) and provides procurement and supply chain management services across all its members (“Partner Trusts”).

As a shared service, all members of the DPS are expected to ensure consistency and parity of service provision, prioritisation and commitment to all Partner Trusts.  All DPS staff will ensure proportionate resources are deployed to meet each Partner Trust's service requirements.

Job Purpose:

The Category Manager is responsible for leading and managing procurement activities within their designated category across all Partner Trusts. This role involves developing and implementing category strategies that align with the Trust's objectives, ensuring value for money, and managing supplier relationships to meet contractual obligations and service level agreements. The Category Manager will work closely with internal stakeholders to understand their needs and ensure procurement activities support their objectives. Additionally, the role requires overseeing the development, negotiation, and management of contracts to ensure compliance and optimal performance, as well as monitoring supplier performance against agreed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

The Category Manager will lead a team of procurement professionals to deliver the category strategies. They will work closely with all areas of DPS to ensure that the stakeholders within their category receive a high-quality service that creates financial savings and ensures that goods and services are readily available to support the provision of healthcare across the sector. The Category Manager will also ensure compliance with procurement policies and regulations, promote sustainable procurement practices, and mitigate procurement risks.

Why this role stands out

• Breadth and impact - Exposure across both capital delivery and operational estates services
• System wide scale - Work across a multi-trust shared service with a significant and varied pipeline
• End to end ownership - From early strategy through to delivery, performance, and optimisation
• Strategic influence - Direct engagement with senior estates, finance, and programme leadership
• Variety - From live hospital refurbishments and infrastructure programmes to critical service delivery models
• Build and shape a new service - Be part of the newly established Devon Procurement Service, with a genuine opportunity to influence the long term strategy from the outset

About You

You are an experienced procurement or commercial professional with a strong track record in either capital projects / construction or Hard FM / estates services, and the ability or ambition to operate across both.

You will bring:

• Proven experience delivering capital, construction, or Hard FM procurement in a complex environment
• Strong knowledge of public procurement regulations (Procurement Act 2023)
• Experience working with construction contracts (JCT / NEC) and/or service contracts (maintenance, compliance, lifecycle, TFM)
• Strong commercial acumen, including contract structuring, pricing models, and risk management
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and challenge constructively
• A strategic mindset able to link procurement decisions to delivery and operational outcomes
• MCIPS (or working towards) or equivalent commercial experience

What success looks like

• Procurement is recognised as a strategic partner across both capital and estates delivery
• Projects and services are delivered through robust, compliant, and commercially sound approaches
• Stakeholders are engaged, informed, and confident in procurement led solutions
• Measurable benefits are delivered across cost, quality, performance, and resilience
• Supply chains are high performing, collaborative, and aligned to NHS priorities

Working with us

We offer flexible hybrid working across Devon, with a base at any of our main sites (Plymouth, Exeter, Torbay, Barnstaple). Occasional travel to other sites will be required.

You will be part of a friendly, supportive, and high performing team with a clear ambition: to transform how procurement enables healthcare delivery.

Interested?

If you are looking for a role where you can influence both major capital investment and critical estates services, operate at pace, and play a key role in shaping a growing procurement service this is an opportunity with real impact and visibility.

Please see the attached job description