UKI BMC Procurement Lead Associate Director in Manchester

At EY, we’re all in to shape your future with confidence. We’ll help you succeed in a globally connected powerhouse of diverse teams and take your career wherever you want it to go. Join EY and help to build a better working world. This role will be based in our EY office in either Birmingham or Manchester. Suitable candidates must be eligible and willing to work from one of these locations.

The purpose of the global EY organization is to build a better working world. The insights and services we provide help drive long-term value for clients, people, and society, and build trust in the capital markets. An essential function under EY Core Business Services (CBS), Supply Chain Services (SCS) is a global team of over 600 professionals in more than 35 countries, supporting the EY organization worldwide. This structure enables knowledge-sharing across categories and regions, streamlining efforts to seek innovative suppliers that can provide exceptional client service and maximize SCS’s value for the EY organization and the global supply chain.

A key component of SCS is Global Procurement, whose purpose is to drive significant synergies and value creation from sourcing to contract lifecycle management, deliver exceptional client experiences, and foster collaboration in managing Technology, BMC, and Brand, Marketing, and Communications (BMC) spend categories. We forge meaningful supplier relationships and strengthen supplier resilience to help EY maximize long‑term value for its people, clients, and communities.

The Brand, Marketing & Communications (BMC) UK&I Leader role sits within EY Global Procurement and supports UK&I Brand, Marketing & Communications sourcing and contracting activity. The role focuses on the effective execution of sourcing, RFPs, and contracting, ensuring activity is delivered in line with Global Procurement policies, processes, and governance. The role works closely with UK&I stakeholders and Global Procurement teams to support business demand, manage risk, and deliver measurable commercial outcomes.

Your key responsibilities:

• Act as Counselor for the BMC Sourcing Manager, supporting development, capability uplift, and alignment to Global Procurement standards.
• Lead delivery of UK&I BMC RFPs, including scope development, evaluation approach, commercial input, approvals, and award documentation.
• Lead delivery of UK&I BMC contracting activity, including drafting, review, negotiation, and execution of MSAs, SOWs, amendments, extensions, and terminations.
• Ensure contracts are completed accurately, approved in line with governance, and aligned to EY commercial, legal, and risk standards.
• Act as the procurement point of contact for UK&I Brand, Marketing & Communications stakeholders, supporting sourcing and contracting requests and managing expectations on timelines and process.
• Execute UK&I activity in line with global BMC category strategies, focusing on implementation and delivery.
• Work with Legal (GCO), Risk Management, and SRM to manage contractual risk and resolve issues during sourcing and contracting.
• Responsible for delivery of UK&I BMC procurement performance targets, including Quantitative Value, Spend under Management, and Speed to Market.
• Maintain visibility of the UK&I BMC sourcing and contracting pipeline, ensuring prioritisation, progress tracking, and escalation where required.
• Support adoption of Global Procurement policies and processes, addressing non‑compliance and driving consistent ways of working.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of sourcing and contracting processes and cycle times within the UK&I BMC portfolio.
• Own prioritisation, sequencing and delivery outcomes across the UK&I BMC sourcing and contracting pipeline, while continuing to personally deliver high‑volume transactional activity.
• Act as the point of escalation for delivery, prioritisation and contractual risk across UK&I BMC activity, making judgement calls where trade‑offs between pace, risk and governance are required.

Skills and attributes for success:

• Global mindset, able to work as collaboratively as part of a team at regional and global level.
• A strong team player and individual contributor, comfortable working collaboratively, virtually and independently.
• Business acumen and commercial skills to drive procurement and demand management strategies across a broad array of portfolios for the BMC functions.
• Strong negotiator and influencer capable of supporting leadership in driving alignment with key senior stakeholders and leaders.
• Knowledge and interest in the BMCs landscape with an understanding of regional / country offerings.
• The ability to drive changes by building strong, trusting relationships with senior stakeholders and business partners.
• Sound judgement and decision‑making abilities.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to independently manage and prioritise workload.
• Demonstrate a positive attitude and have an appetite for change and learning.

To qualify for the role, you must have:

• 7-10 years of experience in Procurement.
• A Bachelor’s and follow‑on degree in Business or similar discipline is recommended.
• Experience in a category leadership role in Procurement within a collaborative, high‑performance environment and deep experience of BMC categories.
• Strong procurement expertise and commercial acumen to drive sourcing and demand management strategies across a broad array of category services.
• Ability to align efforts with key stakeholders and influence these leaders, as necessary, and possess a global mindset.
• Experience with Source-to-Pay (“S2P”) processes and execution of online Rfx and e‑Auctions.
• Advanced English and able to lead conversations autonomously.
• Experience working collaboratively, virtually and independently.

Ideally, you’ll also have:

• CPM (US), CIPS (UK) or similar Procurement certification is welcomed but not essential.
• Experience with a global, culturally diverse organization.

What we offer you:

At EY, we’ll develop you with future‑focused skills and equip you with world‑class experiences. We’ll empower you in a flexible environment, and fuel you and your extraordinary talents in a diverse and inclusive culture of globally connected teams. To help create an equitable and inclusive experience during the recruitment process, please inform us as soon as possible about any disability‑related adjustments or accommodations you may need.