Global Category Manager - Product Engineering Services

At Roche you can show up as yourself, embraced for the unique qualities you bring. Our culture encourages personal expression, open dialogue, and genuine connections,  where you are valued, accepted and respected for who you are, allowing you to thrive both personally and professionally. This is how we aim to prevent, stop and cure diseases and ensure everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Join Roche, where every voice matters.

The Position

About Our Team

We at Diagnostics Direct Procurement (DOP) are a team of about 200 enthusiastic professionals, committed to driving value with our suppliers worldwide. From locations around the world and with a diverse and multicultural team, we source, manage our supplier base, develop & execute category strategies and constantly develop & digitize processes that enable us to best support our business to grow sustainably. If you aspire to make an impact and want to be part of a high performing and world-class Procurement team, this is for you.

We are DOP. At Roche, we do now what patients need next.

The Opportunity

Are you ready to steer the long-term category roadmap and command the high-value supplier ecosystems that drive our global Instrument development  projects? As our Global Category Manager for Engineering Services based out of Sant Cugat, Spain, you will take ultimate accountability for developing strategies and leading strategic initiatives for this complex, high-value category. In this role, you will manage major engineering consultancies, technical suppliers, and service networks to ensure maximum value delivery across global business sites.

• Reporting Line: Directly reports to the Global Category Lead Capex / Engineering Services / IT within the Category organization. 

• Wider Team and Stakeholders: Engages directly with cross-functional teams composed of representatives from Category,, Procurement Center of Excellence, R&D and other global business partners. Serves as a key business partner contact point for senior functional and business stakeholders in R&D.

• Role Type: An Individual Contributor role with global category leadership position focused on strategic vision, category development, pipeline building, and relationship ecosystem management

• Impact: You deliver commercial impact by anchoring cost and developing a resilience pipeline of projects, in addition to securing our sustainability priorities. Specifically, you are accountable for:

  • Strategy & Annual Pipeline: Collating market intelligence, supplier data, and business requirements to formulate a formalized, global Category Strategy and initiative pipeline, to be aligned with leaders across the organization. 

  • Commercial Negotiations: Leading high-value commercial and contractual negotiations for strategic suppliers within the category.

  • Supplier Ecosystems: Managing key global suppliers, establishing development and innovation programs, monitoring value targets, and managing supplier risks.

  • Guidance & Content: Developing and maintaining category guidance documents to translate strategy into clear, executable content for procurement colleagues and business users.

  • Business Partnering: Building deep relationships with senior stakeholders, particularly in R&D, challenging demand/specifications to maximize value, and managing risk/CSR reviews.

  • Team & Budget Oversight: Coaching procurement colleagues, providing professional development, managing a shared Associate Category Manager within the team, and tracking budget spend.

Who you are

We look for strategic procurement champions with extensive knowledge of the global instruments development (SW development and HW engineering) markets and the matrix leadership skills needed to drive complex organizational change.

• Education: University degree required (Business or Life Sciences focus preferred); a post-graduate business-related qualification is preferred.  

• Experience: 5+ years of in-depth strategic and operational procurement experience with extensive knowledge of category management and advanced strategic sourcing. 

• Regulated Industry: 5+ years of overall business experience, working within a regulated industry like Diagnostics with familiarity of relevant legal and quality risks.  

• Market Expertise: Deep sub-category subject matter knowledge of Software Development (e.g., Instrument OS & Embedded Systems, Software Maintenance), Hardware Engineering (e.g., Product Design) and Testing (e.g., SW/HW Testing, Testing Automation, Verification & Validation (V&V))

• Systems & Analytics: Expert proficiency in navigating enterprise systems, P2P tools, and procurement systems for sourcing events and contract negotiations (e.g., eSourcing, eAuction).  

• AI & Digitalization: Advanced knowledge in AI application and a strong affinity to explore AI-driven solutions broadly, particularly regarding the digital transformation of operations (Digital 2.0 / Industry 4.0).

• Financial Acumen: Proven financial and business acumen, with grounding in total cost of ownership (TCO) and cost modeling. 

• Leadership & Change: Strong communication, project management, and change management skills with a demonstrated ability to lead global cross-functional teams in a fluid environment. 

• Languages: Business-level fluency in English is required.  

• Travel: High flexibility and willingness to travel both domestically and internationally up to 30%. 

Ready for the next step? We look forward to hearing from you.

Apply now to discover this exciting opportunity!

Who we are

A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100’000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.

Let’s build a healthier future, together.

Roche is an Equal Opportunity Employer.