Category Manager - European Transportation & MRO

Arconic is currently in search of a Category Manager - European Transportation & MRO to join our Procurement team based in Székesfehérvár.

At Arconic, we are looking for people who share our values of integrity, inclusion, and diversity, and who demonstrate agility, results commitment, and the capability to evolve themselves and others. In return, we offer the opportunity to develop together with ongoing opportunities for professional growth provided by a constantly changing environment, working alongside employees who value the people they work with just as much as the work they do. 

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Category Manager, European Transportation & MRO is responsible for the management of critical European supplier relationships in conjunction with the Procurement Operation Senior Manager. He/she serves as the point of contact for European supplier issues within Transportation, including issues related to service, commercial terms and contract disputes as well as driving cost reduction projects related to the indirect MRO spend of two major European production sites of Arconic.

Primary Responsibilities

The Category Manager, European Transportation & MRO position includes both creation of long-term vision, and tactical management including execution of the following essential functions, examples include but are not limited to: 

• Direct responsibility for spend within the Transportation Category for our European locations in Kofem - Hungary, and in Kitts Green, Birmingham UK.
• Work primarily with the Kitts Green procurement and stores teams on identifying cost reduction opportunities by analyzing stores data, running RFPs, tenders to optimize spending in MRO and achieve inventory reduction targets.
• Assist in the achievement of Procurement targets in Europe for Transportation and MRO.      Develops and executes Procurement strategies to reduce commercial expenses.
• Maintains business relationships with representatives of strategic suppliers for the category.
• Leads, co-leads, or supports commercial sourcing activity across all Transportation categories in Europe as required to meet company objectives (e.g. e-Auction, RfX processes)
• Leads, co-leads, or supports non-commercial events as required to meet objectives, including, but not limited to Kaizen workshops, Working Capital/Inventory Workshops
• Executes contract negotiations/Terms and Conditions with suppliers classified in category
• Accountable for Performance areas: Cost Savings, Supplier performance.
• Manage Freight Payment SPA in championing Accounts Payable support process for internal and external stakeholders as it pertains to freight payment in Europe. 
• Oversee carrier freight bill processing to ensure that payments are disbursed in a timely and accurate manner. 
• Ensure that carrier payments are in compliance with current contractual agreements, including the identification and resolution of any freight bill rate and accessorial charge variances.
• Identify root causes for recurring discrepancies and develop/implement timely and practical solutions.
• Develop and maintain a continuous improvement mindset with respect to the quality, efficiency and overall effectiveness of the freight audit and payment functions and related internal controls, resulting in increased accuracy and a decreased risk of fraud and errors.  Review and revise policies and procedures as necessary to accomplish such ends.
• Maintain regular and ongoing communications with carriers in order to ensure the timely receipt of all freight bills and supporting documentation, reconciliation, and resolution of all past due amounts.
• Monitor workloads of data entry and audit staff to establish and maintain consistency with respect to processing activities for each carrier.
• Develop and maintain comprehensive process documentation, as well as the development and ongoing monitoring of metrics that track key performance indicators within the freight audit and payment functions.
• Function as a systems subject matter expert within the carrier invoicing portion of the TMS.
• Coordinate the set up and maintenance of third-party carrier profiles within the TMS and ERP and the transfer of approved freight payments from the TMS to ERP. 
• Support the carrier aspects of all start-up and transitional transportation services operations.
• Supervise all Transportation Manager System (TMS) AP processes.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.
• Minimum of 3 years’ of experience in a transportation/purchasing management role.
• Minimum of 3 years’ experience operating in an organization working in a global (multi-cultural/multi-country) transportation function.
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Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in Business, Economics, Supply Chain Management, or Engineering. 
• International working experience, intercultural intelligence
• MBA in Business Administration/Economics or Engineering Project management expertise (PMP)
• Proven leadership in complex transportation organizations
• Fluency in English, Hungarian.
• Experience with Transportation Management Systems (TMS Software).
• Experience in managing complex commodities such as MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Operational supplies)
• Strong financial and business acumen