MEA Operations Buyer - Indirects

Job Description

Job Description:

What are we looking for?

We are seeking a professional who will execute cross-segment strategies across the Petcare, Food, Mars Wrigley Confections, and Multi-Sales segments within MEA, reporting directly to the Commercial Operations Manager MEA. This individual will collaborate and align with the MEA Category Manager and APMEA Sourcing Category Leaders to implement sourcing strategies locally for MEA, ensuring alignment with regional and global contracts. The role requires leveraging supplier relationships and strategic partnerships to drive standardization across regions and segments where appropriate.

The successful candidate will optimize investments across cost, quality, risk, and availability in accordance with the Mars Commercial Manual and MGS Commercial Governance processes. They will ensure strong supplier performance management and serve as the first point of contact for suppliers and internal stakeholders.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business, Supply Chain, Procurement, or a related field

• Fluency in English

• 1–3 years of category management experience, ideally including supplier and/or customer management and strong financial acumen

• Experience in direct or indirect procurement preferred

What will be your key responsibilities?

• Execute the MEA Annual Execution Plan (AEP) across multiple categories and subcategories, delivering value creation through P&L impact, cost avoidance, productivity initiatives, cash optimization, and drive innovation through excellence in category management.

• Collaborate with MEA Category Leads to incorporate local market insights into global and regional strategies and implement the MSSM process in alignment with local market conditions.

• Participate in the regional category community across APMEA (China, ANZ, NSEA India, and MEA) to support delivery of category AEP objectives.

• Lead sourcing activities by securing competitive pricing, capacity, and service levels in line with business commitments, applying sourcing tools such as negotiations, e-procurement, strategic collaborations, and RFPs.

• Conduct category spend analysis using market and financial insights and execute a 3-year sourcing roadmap focused on cost savings, process improvements, and supplier performance.

• Develop local category insights, benchmark externally, and implement best practices while sharing knowledge across APMEA Sourcing and Operations teams.

• Manage relationships with local suppliers to drive performance, continuous quality improvement, cost efficiency, and supplier-enabled innovation.

• Act as a key contact for supplier relationships. Ensure the supplier base is optimized to enable the implementation of Keystone which is an end-to-end procure to pay process in category management

• Develop and implement supply base strategies, ensuring effective risk management through robust contracts and KPI monitoring aligned with business and P&L objectives.

• Build strong relationships with functional stakeholders, to ensure understanding of their needs and to facilitate the appropriate level of challenge for alignment with regional strategies. provide market and financial insights to support planning and review processes.

• Review and approve Purchase Requisitions above agreed thresholds and act as custodian of the Procure-to-Pay (P2P) process, ensuring operational compliance.

• Serve as the primary point of contact for stakeholders and suppliers on operational matters, including vendor registration, contract management, supplier performance, and payment issues.

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives ensuring knowledge shared with regional team and monitor performance to sustain results.

• Ensure compliance with Mars policies, systems, and controls while proactively communicating risks and opportunities.

What can you expect from Mars?

Work with diverse and talented Associates, all guided by the Five Principles. Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today. A strong focus on learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University. An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.

In this role, you will be part of a virtual team of 5–10 Country Cluster Operations Buyers/Managers across the APMEA region, working in a highly collaborative environment.

You will partner closely with Category Leads within your cluster to deliver the Annual Execution Plan (AEP) and associated value creation initiatives. The role includes travel across MEA to engage with key stakeholders across Petcare, Food, Mars Wrigley Confections, and Multi-Sales segments.

You will also lead local supplier relationships, including contractual and financial negotiations with senior supplier executives

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