| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Procurement and Purchase |
| Level | Senior management |
| Reports to | Chief Procurement Officer |
| Direct reports | Category Manager, Sourcing Manager, Procurement Manager, Contracts Manager |
| Experience | 10 to 15 years in procurement with category and team leadership |
Head of Procurement job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Head of Procurement
Department: Procurement and Purchase
Reports to: Chief Procurement Officer
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Head of Procurement runs the procurement department and its source to pay process. They own the annual savings plan, lead the category and sourcing managers, and make sure every rupee is spent under an approved contract and process. The role usually reports to the Chief Procurement Officer or the Chief Financial Officer. A good head of procurement builds a strong supplier base, delivers savings without supply gaps, keeps buying compliant and clean, and gives finance accurate spend and commitment data.
Key responsibilities
- Own the source to pay process end to end, from requisition and sourcing through purchase order, receipt and payment.
- Build and deliver the annual savings plan, breaking targets down by category and tracking them month on month.
- Approve sourcing decisions and contracts within the delegated limits, and escalate the rest to the CPO with a recommendation.
- Set supplier evaluation and onboarding standards, and keep a rated panel of approved suppliers for each category.
- Run monthly supplier performance reviews on quality, delivery, price and service, and drive corrective action.
- Standardise specifications and consolidate spend to gain volume leverage and reduce the tail of small suppliers.
- Enforce the procurement policy and approval limits, and shut down off contract and single quote buying.
- Give finance clean spend, commitment and accrual data for budgeting, cash flow and audit.
- Improve the buying system and catalogues so common items are ordered against contracts without repeat negotiation.
- Develop the team through training and clear goals, and plan cover so no category is left unmanaged.
Requirements
- Graduate in engineering, commerce or science
- MBA in supply chain or operations
- A procurement certification is an advantage
- 10 to 15 years in procurement with category and team leadership
KRAs and KPIs for a Head of Procurement
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Savings delivery | Annual savings plan achieved with monthly tracking by category |
| Process compliance | Purchase orders raised before delivery above the agreed compliance level each month |
| Supplier base | Every category has a rated panel with at least two approved suppliers |
| Cycle time | Average requisition to purchase order time within the service standard |
| Supplier performance | On time in full delivery from key suppliers above the agreed threshold |
| Spend visibility | Commitment and accrual data given to finance accurate and on schedule |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: SAP Ariba, SAP MM, Coupa, MS Excel, Spend analysis dashboards.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Chief Procurement Officer, Vice President Procurement, General Manager Purchase
Interview questions for a Head of Procurement
- How do you turn a company savings target into category level plans and track delivery?
- What does a healthy source to pay process look like and where does it usually break?
- How would you consolidate a long tail of small suppliers without losing flexibility?
- How do you run a supplier performance review that actually changes behaviour?
- A department keeps buying off contract. How do you bring that spend back under control?
- How do you give finance accurate commitment and accrual numbers each month?
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What does a Head of Procurement do?
A Head of Procurement runs the buying department and the source to pay process. They own the savings plan, lead category and sourcing managers, set supplier standards, enforce policy and give finance accurate spend data. The job is steady savings and supply with clean, compliant buying.
What is the difference between a Head of Procurement and a CPO?
A Head of Procurement leads the department and delivers the operating plan: savings, process, supplier performance and compliance. A Chief Procurement Officer sits on the leadership team and owns strategy, policy, targets and board reporting for the whole company. The head usually reports to the CPO.
What skills does a Head of Procurement need?
The role needs strong category management, negotiation and spend analysis, a firm grip on the source to pay process, and the ability to set and deliver a savings plan. Alongside these it needs stakeholder management, contract governance and the leadership to develop a team.