Head of category

Band 8c · Category manager · 646 job evaluation points

Leads category management across the organisation's spending, setting the category approach and managing the category team.

Responsibilities

Set the category management approach and the pipeline of procurements across the organisation.
Lead and manage category managers and their teams.
Make sure category strategies support the organisation's digital, clinical, and financial plans.
Report savings, value for money, social value, and commercial risks to executive committees.
Lead relationships with public sector buying organisations and framework providers.
Hold the budget for the category team.
Advise executive directors on category priorities and the commercial risks of major investments.

Skills

Skill	Expected level	What this level means
Category managementThis reference	Expert (4)	You can: set the category management approach for the organisation lead categories with the highest spend and risk, and align them with organisational strategy work with other organisations on collaborative buying
Technology and cloud procurementThis reference	Expert (4)	You can: set the organisation's commercial strategy for technology and cloud lead negotiations on enterprise agreements and strategic platforms advise digital leaders on the commercial risks of technology choices
Commercial negotiationThis reference	Expert (4)	You can: lead high-value, high-risk negotiations with strategic suppliers coach others in negotiation and set the organisation's negotiation approach
Public procurement rules and policyThis reference	Expert (4)	You can: interpret new procurement rules and lead the organisation's response advise the board on procurement compliance and risk manage formal challenges with legal advisers
Social value and sustainable procurementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: set social value and sustainability criteria that fit the contract manage supplier commitments, such as local jobs, skills, and carbon reduction check supply chains for risks such as forced labour and other human rights abuses
Commercial managementUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: act as the escalation point and resolve large or high risk commercial management issues coach others in appropriate commercial management
Creating value for moneyUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: develop and own a business case and iterate it throughout the life cycle coach others on identifying benefits whilst balancing user and business needs communicate the delivery of incremental value build the case for an organisational approach to value through product strategy coach and empower teams to take a value for money approach
Leadership and guidanceUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: change organisational structures to fixable and sustainable designs lead on the strategy for the whole organisation, marrying business needs with innovative analysis make and justify decisions characterised by high levels of risk, impact and complexity build consensus between organisations (private or public) or highly independent and diverse stakeholders solve and unblock issues between teams or departments at the highest level understand the psychology of a team and have strong mediation skills coach the organisation on team dynamics and conflict resolution
People managementThis reference	Expert (4)	You can: lead managers and shape the culture of a large area design workforce plans and organisational change coach leaders and resolve complex people issues
Budget managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: hold and manage a budget, forecasting and explaining variances build a business case with costs and benefits

Typical qualifications and experience

A recognised procurement professional qualification at advanced level, or a master's degree in a related subject, or equivalent experience.
Extensive experience of leading category teams.

Band 8c outline

Knowledge: Expert knowledge, and wide organisational and sector understanding.
Autonomy: Sets strategy for a function; accountable to a director.
Scope: A function or department.
Leadership: Leads a function through several management layers.
Accountability: A function's performance, workforce, and budget.

Job evaluation (illustrative)

Factor	Level	Level summary	Points
Communication and relationship skills	6	Gives highly complex, highly contentious information where there are significant barriers to acceptance, using the highest level of communication skills.	60
Knowledge, training, and experience	7	Highly developed specialist knowledge across the range of the specialism (master's level or equivalent).	196
Analytical and judgemental skills	5	Judgements on highly complex facts or situations needing analysis, interpretation, and comparison of options.	60
Planning and organisational skills	5	Forms long-term strategic plans, with uncertainty and effects across the organisation.	60
Physical skills	2	Skills gained through practice, such as standard keyboard use or driving.	15
Responsibility for patient and client care	1	Helps patients, clients, or relatives during incidental contact.	4
Responsibility for policy and service development	5	Implements and develops a range of policies or services for a directorate.	45
Responsibility for financial and physical resources	5	Holds or sets budgets, or manages assets, for several services.	45
Responsibility for people	4	Line manages a function or department, designs training programmes as a main duty, or delivers a full range of HR services.	32
Responsibility for information resources	4	Adapts or designs information systems to others' specifications, or runs information systems for a department as the main duty.	24
Responsibility for research and development	2	Regularly does research, development, trials, or equipment and system testing as part of the job.	12
Freedom to act	6	Interprets overall policy and strategy to set goals and standards.	60
Physical effort	1	Sitting, standing, and walking, with little physical effort.	3
Mental effort	4	Frequent prolonged concentration, or occasional intense concentration.	18
Emotional effort	1	Rare exposure, or occasional indirect exposure, to distressing circumstances.	5
Working conditions	2	Occasional unpleasant conditions, frequent travel or outdoor work, or near-continuous screen use on most days.	7
Total (Band 8c: 630 to 674)			646

Health-sector adverts place this role at Band 8c. Communication is level 6 for highly contentious negotiations and executive reporting; policy is level 5 and freedom to act level 6 because the job sets the category management approach for the whole organisation. Financial resources is level 5 because the job sets how spending is bought across several services.