Category Manager - IT

Hawards Heath / Crawley areaHybrid after on-boarding period£55,000-£68,000 base + 10% bonus + bens package

Are you ready to take ownership of a high-impact category within a cutting-edge HPC and data centre environment?If you're passionate about strategic sourcing, vendor negotiation, and high-performance computing technologies, this is an opportunity you won't want to miss.

You'll step into a global procurement function where your expertise will directly shape the sourcing and delivery of mission-critical HPC infrastructure. This includes servers, compute, storage, networking, GPUs, CPUs and more-working closely with engineering, IT, operations, and finance teams.

• Lead end-to-end sourcing across HPC hardware categories, including servers, GPUs/CPUs, networking and storage.
• Develop sourcing strategies, run RFx processes, negotiate commercial agreements and deliver TCO-optimised outcomes.
• Collaborate closely with engineering, IT and business stakeholders to understand requirements and shape effective category plans.
• Build and manage supplier relationships, oversee performance, and support contract renewals.
• Stay up to date with market trends and emerging HPC technologies.
• Support CAPEX/OPEX planning and budgeting, and oversee purchase order activities.

• Experience in strategic sourcing, procurement or category management.
• Knowledge of data centre hardware - servers, GPUs/CPUs, networking, storage.
• Proven supplier negotiation and vendor management expertise.
• Strong financial/commercial acumen, with experience analysing cost models and TCO.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication skills.
• Ability to work autonomously across multiple concurrent projects.

• £55,000-£68,000 base salary + 10% annual bonus
• Hybrid working after onboarding (3 days onsite)
• 22 days holiday + buy/sell scheme
• Strong pension with employer contribution
• Private Medical & Dental options
• Wellbeing support platform
• Flexible benefits, discounts, gym membership schemes
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Visa sponsorship/relocation support available
• On-site gym and relaxed dress code
• Regular social and reward events
• Excellent learning & development pathways

You'll join an organisation investing heavily in next-generation HPC and data centre capabilities, giving you the platform to influence strategy, drive high-value commercial outcomes, and work at the forefront of cutting-edge compute technologies.

If you're an experienced category manager with a passion for IT Infrastructure and data centre hardware, we'd love to hear from you.Apply now to explore this opportunity further.

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