Vendor Manager at Apollo Life Assurance - APA Insurance

KEY PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Manage sourcing strategy and define sourcing recommendations that support business goals, in collaboration with senior management and stakeholders.
• Negotiate pricing, terms, and conditions of goods, services, and products with key suppliers, contractors and service providers.
• Monitor and benchmark the market and analyze trends in competitor vendor spending for present and future pricing, availability, lead-time, and capacity of goods and services.
• Develop, establish, implement, and enforce vendor and outsourcer guidelines, obligations, and service level agreements to the organization including researching, identifying, and qualifying potential new vendors and offering periodic oversight and execution of vendor assessment and requalification.
• Comply with all procurement policies and procedures, including those for equipment, hardware, software, and service
• Develop and deliver procurement bid proposals and tender documents
• Asset management for IT hardware, software, and equipment incl. where possible, standardize equipment to lower costs
• Collaboratively manage vendor performance to ensure the quality of service
• Leverage continuous improvement initiatives to create additional value over and above the contract requirements
• Monitor vendor contracts (incl. contract lifecycles) and ensure adherence to contractual agreements

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in procurement and supply chain management or equivalent
• A masters will be an added advantage

JOB SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS

• Leadership and Teamwork
• Negotiation Skills 
• Analytical skills 
• Strategic thinking 
• Financial Acumen
• Communication Skills

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

• CIPS and KISM membership will be an added advantage

EXPERIENCE

• 4+ years of experience in IT and IT vendor management
• Proven customer focus, interpersonal and communications skills to ensure consistent messages are communicated to internal customers/stakeholders, able to work well in a team environment and adhere to the highest ethical standards
• Advanced skills in all procurement process disciplines across the procurement lifecycle of demand management, fulfillment, sourcing, and management e.g. spend category/ commodity management, negotiation, supplier selection, supplier value management, benefits capture, requisition to payment, and acquisition integration
• An understanding of e-procurement processes and systems incl. P2P management software
• Team player experienced in working with both senior management and operational teams
• Demonstrated high-level organizational and time management skills.
• Ability to apply lateral thinking to issues and develop new and innovative solutions to problems/target areas.
• Experience in successfully conducting a range of negotiations across a variety of IT categories
• Solid working knowledge of current IT technologies, total lifecycle cost structures, and pricing mechanisms.
• Effective contract lifecycle management and negotiation skills incl. the ability to build relationships with suppliers, and contractors who provide a broad spectrum of IT products and services.