Category Officer - 12 Month Fixed Term Contract

at  Oxfordshire County Council

ABOUT US

This is an exciting time for procurement at Oxfordshire County Council, with its service undergoing a significant transformation that will position it to deliver outstanding value to the councils and the communities it serves.

As a part of the council’s transformation, the new design sets out a fundamentally different operating model and structure for how the Council will deliver Provision Cycle activities in the future, focusing on:

• The establishment of a consolidated Procurement and Contract Management Hub to drive the professionalisation and consistency with which procurement and contract management activities are delivered as well as reducing fragmentation and duplication of effort.
• The implementation of a category led approach to managing spend in order to aid organisational wide decision making in relation to key areas of expenditure and break down historic service-based silos.
• Developing a single repository of contract and spend data that is trusted by all stakeholders and used to inform effective decision making in relation to third party spend.
• The establishment of effective, and appropriate governance relating to Council expenditure with third parties.
• Continuing to develop effective joint working across Oxfordshire County Council and other partners where this arises
• Implementing a future proofed model that can be quickly scaled based on increased spend/demand in a certain category, or new categories.

ABOUT YOU

• You will meet the essential requirements as listed on the Person Specification.
• You will have excellent communication skills with internal and external stakeholders, with the ability to build strong working relationships.
• You will have excellent attention to detail with the ability to ensure your work is completed to the highest standard, adhering to legislation, best practice and Service procedures.
• You will have up-to-date practical knowledge and application if the legislative and regulatory framework which applies to public sector procurement.
• You will have good analytical and report writing skills, working frequently on spreadsheets and word documents
  Please submit your CV and complete a personal statement detailing how you meet the requirements in the job description.

The role of procurement and contract management is to support the Council and the wider public sector system in Oxfordshire, to deliver effective and consistent services and ensure that products and services purchased from suppliers represent value for money.
This is a fantastic opportunity to work in a central team, supporting colleagues across the organisation in commissioning services, letting and managing contracts, and ensuring compliance with new legislation. Your contribution will enhance how the organisation manages these key activities, with a focus on achieving value for money, reducing risk and ensuring high performing provision of services, that are tailored to our community’s needs. You’ll help to foster better understanding of what good practice looks like, and how well managed procurement and contract management can add real value to our work.