Procurement Client Partner in Knutsford

hackajob is collaborating with Barclays to connect them with exceptional professionals for this role. Join us as a Procurement Client Partner – Strategic Projects. In this role, you will join a high‑performing procurement team, working across a broad portfolio of strategic initiatives including acquisition activity, major change programmes, and cost optimisation efforts. You will operate across the team with flexibility, supporting priority engagements and driving delivery across multiple workstreams in a dynamic, fast‑paced environment.

You will play a key role in leading and supporting procurement‑led programmes, bringing strong sourcing or Third‑Party Risk Management expertise, while partnering with senior stakeholders across the business. The role requires the ability to navigate complexity, influence at senior levels, and contribute to the delivery of transformation outcomes across procurement and wider business initiatives.

This is a varied role with no single category ownership, requiring someone adaptable, proactive, and comfortable operating across multiple priorities and ambiguous environments.

Procurement at Barclays operates across 40+ countries and five business units, managing a supply base of approximately £6bn. The function plays a critical role in delivering commercial value, supporting business priorities and shaping supplier strategies across the organisation, providing exposure to a diverse mix of strategic sourcing, business partnering and high‑profile commercial activity.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in procurement, with a focus on sourcing and/or Third‑Party Risk Management.
• Proven experience delivering or supporting programmes and projects, including programme or portfolio management activity.
• Strong change management capability, contributing to transformation initiatives across complex organisations.
• Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to engage senior leaders and drive alignment across procurement domains.
• A self‑starter mindset, with the ability to operate independently and manage priorities across multiple workstreams.

Highly Valued Skills and Experience

• Experience in mergers, acquisitions, or major commercial activity (M&A/MMA).
• Exposure to transformation programmes, particularly within procurement or cost optimisation initiatives.
• Experience working in a regulated or financial services environment.
• Strong adaptability, with a learning mindset and the ability to thrive in roles with variety and ambiguity.

This role can be based in Northampton or Radbroke.

Purpose of the role

To partner with key stakeholders and forums to oversee Procurement service delivery, provide advice and develop procurement strategy to meet both the needs of the business and Procurement.

Accountabilities

• Development & implementation of the wider Procurement strategy in collaboration with stakeholders and Procurement domains.
• Implementation of the procurement strategy aligned to the bank’s objectives and relevant regulators, through the prioritisation and use of Procurement resources.
• Provide expertise on Procurement policies and procedures, third party risk, sourcing strategy and supplier relations to business stakeholders through education.
• Act as a point of escalation for Procurement service and delivery issues for business stakeholders.
• Act as the primary interface for Procurement with senior stakeholders in the business, developing & utilising relationships and influence to deliver improvements in key indicators and objectives.
• Identification of & where applicable, delivery of opportunities for business cost savings, client experience, service improvement & Procurement efficiency.
• Voice of the business with Procurement domains, developing and utilising relationships & influence to impact Procurement service delivery.
• Provide insights and actionable intelligence to business stakeholders to support business decision making to improve the commercial & risk profile of the business.
• Support the business with strategic activity acting as the Procurement representative for key business change programmes, acquisitions and divestments.

Vice President Expectations

• To contribute or set strategy, drive requirements and make recommendations for change. Plan resources, budgets, and policies; manage and maintain policies/ processes; deliver continuous improvements and elevate breaches of policies/procedures.
• If managing a team, they define jobs and responsibilities, planning for the department’s future needs and operations, counselling employees on performance and contributing to employee pay decisions/ changes. They may also lead a number of specialists to influence the operations of a department, in alignment with strategic as well as tactical priorities, while balancing short and long term goals and ensuring that budgets and schedules meet corporate requirements.
• If the position has leadership responsibilities, People Leaders are expected to demonstrate a clear set of leadership behaviours to create an environment for colleagues to thrive and deliver to a consistently excellent standard. The four LEAD behaviours are: L – Listen and be authentic, E – Energise and inspire, A – Align across the enterprise, D – Develop others.
• OR for an individual contributor, they will be a subject matter expert within own discipline and will guide technical direction. They will lead collaborative, multi‑year assignments and guide team members through structured assignments, identify the need for the inclusion of other areas of specialisation to complete assignments. They will train, guide and coach less experienced specialists and provide information affecting long term profits, organisational risks and strategic decisions.
• Advise key stakeholders, including functional leadership teams and senior management on functional and cross functional areas of impact and alignment.
• Manage and mitigate risks through assessment, in support of the control and governance agenda.
• Demonstrate leadership and accountability for managing risk and strengthening controls in relation to the work your team does.
• Demonstrate comprehensive understanding of the organisation functions to contribute to achieving the goals of the business.
• Collaborate with other areas of work, for business aligned support areas to keep up to speed with business activity and the business strategies.
• Create solutions based on sophisticated analytical thought comparing and selecting complex alternatives. In‑depth analysis with interpretative thinking will be required to define problems and develop innovative solutions.
• Adopt and include the outcomes of extensive research in problem solving processes.
• Seek out, build and maintain trusting relationships and partnerships with internal and external stakeholders in order to accomplish key business objectives, using influencing and negotiating skills to achieve outcomes.

All colleagues will be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Values of Respect, Integrity, Service, Excellence and Stewardship – our moral compass, helping us do what we believe is right. They will also be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Mindset – to Empower, Challenge and Drive – the operating manual for how we behave.