Senior Category Manager - Products & Payments

Role OVO-View

Team: Procurement & Supply (Finance)

Salary banding: £60,000-£80,000

Experience: Expert

Working pattern: Full-Time

Reporting to: Category Department Lead

Sponsorship: Unfortunately we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.

This role in 3 words: Relationships, Commercial, Solutions-orientated

Top 3 qualities for this role: Influence, Self-Solving, Tenacious

Where you’ll work: Depending on the needs of your business area, hub-based people are expected to be in the office at least once a week and attend OVO Connection events in person. You’ll be assigned to the nearest hub office (Bristol, Glasgow, or London) unless your role requires field-based work. Each hub has accessible spaces to park a laptop and is designed to inspire collaboration and big ideas.

Belonging and values: Everyone belongs at OVO. We are on a mission to solve the climate crisis and value diverse backgrounds. We focus on Plan Zero and sustainable, ethical sourcing.

This role in a nutshell: We’re hiring a Senior Category Manager to drive strategic management of the procurement categories of Products (supporting OVO’s Electric Vehicle and Solar & Heating Franchise Business Units) and Payments (including Merchant services, Fintech & Consumer Financing). You’ll oversee category strategies, foster supplier relationships, and ensure procurement processes deliver value. You’ll also mentor a small team and align with OVO’s Plan Zero ambitions, focusing on sustainable sourcing. You’ll partner with the Commercial Leadership Team (CCO organisation) and report to the Category Department Lead, helping set objectives and drive results.

Category Management Team objectives:

• Drive commercial benefits to support OVO’s EBITDA targets.
• Reduce risks, drive compliance, and maintain agility in procurement operations.
• Procure goods and services sustainably, in line with Plan Zero.
• Develop knowledge of supply markets, products, technologies, and trends.
• Lead supplier relationships through the contract lifetime with governance and issue resolution.
• Continuously improve commercial value, process efficiency, and risk mitigation.
• Partner effectively with internal stakeholders.
• Support procurement systems implementation to enable opportunities while reducing risks and improving compliance.

Your key outcomes will be:

• Develop OVO’s supplier ecosystem in Products and Payments, sourcing the right partners to scale with propositions.
• Lead and develop a team of two Category Managers, ensuring best-in-class procurement practices.
• Oversee robust category strategies aligned to stakeholder objectives.
• Ensure end-to-end procurement processes across assigned categories.
• Drive supplier negotiations for optimal terms and long-term partnerships.
• Foster continuous improvement and innovative category management approaches.
• Monitor supplier performance and address escalations as needed.
• Standardise processes across categories for consistency.
• Act as escalation point for critical supplier or category issues.
• Align team objectives with sustainability goals and ethical sourcing.
• Provide strategic direction and support transformation activities.

Additional duties:

• Identify and mitigate risks to deliver sustainable cost-quality-speed solutions.
• Use data-driven insights on category spend and supplier performance.
• Lead RFx exercises and ensure project management best practices.
• Present commercial initiatives to C-suite / VP / Director level with your team.
• Deliver effective Supplier Management strategies and contract lifecycle management.
• Develop procurement tools, processes, and systems with KPI-driven efficiency.
• Align team efforts with Plan Zero objectives and demonstrate measurable contributions.

What makes you successful:

• Navigate ambiguity with judgment and problem-solving.
• Strategic thinker who can execute hands-on with at least 5 years in procurement or category management.
• Influence stakeholders across levels and secure buy-in.
• Excel at strategic supplier relationship management and innovation.
• Experience leading high-performing teams.
• Use data analytics to drive value and improvements.
• Commitment to sustainability and ethical procurement.
• Thrives in a dynamic environment and across uncertainty.
• Team player with pragmatic leadership and collaboration.
• CIPS qualification desirable.
• Proficiency in procurement systems (e.g., Workday Strategic Sourcing).
• Deep sourcing expertise, with energy sector exposure advantageous.

You won’t like this role if you:

• You are uncomfortable leading initiatives with high corporate exposure.
• You cannot challenge the status quo effectively.
• You are uncomfortable giving/receiving constructive feedback.
• You lack strong procurement technical knowledge.
• You cannot influence a wider team and stakeholders effectively.
• You lack commercial acumen or deal sense.
• You cannot promote procurement benefits to colleagues and peers.

Let’s talk about what’s in it for you:

• Salary £60,000-£80,000 depending on experience.
• On-target bonus of 15% under the OVO plan focused on Plan Zero outcomes.
• Green benefits, progressive policies, and flexible pay; 9% Flex Pay with pension auto-enrollment and flexible benefit choices.
• 34 days holiday (including bank holidays) and benefits for health, wellbeing, lifestyle, home, commute, and belonging networks.
• Opportunity to participate in Belonging Networks and contribute to an inclusive workplace.

How to apply:

We’d be thrilled if you tick off all our boxes, yet if you think you have most of what we’re looking for but not every single thing, go ahead and hit apply. If you have additional requirements, there’s a space on the application form to note them.

Note: Some sections listing other jobs and locations have been omitted for clarity and relevance to this role.