Tactical Category Manager (6 months contract)

Continental · Shanghai

Continental is a leading tire manufacturer and industry specialist. Founded in 1871, the company generated sales of €39.7 billion in 2024 and currently employs around 95,000 people in 54 countries and markets.
Tire solutions from the Tires group sector make mobility safer, smarter, and more sustainable. Its premium portfolio encompasses car, truck, bus, two-wheel, and specialty tires as well as smart solutions and services for fleets and tire retailers. Continental has been delivering top performance for more than 150 years and is one of the world’s largest tire manufacturers. In fiscal 2024, the Tires group sector generated sales of 13.9 billion euros. Continental's tire division employs more than 57,000 people worldwide and has 20 production and 16 development sites.

Source to contract

Identification and implementation of high and complex difficulty tenders in coordination with Global Category Management and internal clients/specialist departments
Analysis of offers, creation of comparisons of offers, cost and price analysis, conducting negotiations
Documentation of the sourcing decision in a comparison matrix to ensure the necessary transparency of the awarded decision regarding compliance guidelines.
Frame contract management
Increase the number of cost-optimized price and framework agreements in legal, logistical, commercial and technical terms (requirements specifications, specifications, standards) in close coordination with the relevant specialties and the Global Integrated Category Management.
Support Savings targets.
Setting of alternative sources of procurement. Ensuring the highest possible synergies through volume bundling
Coordination with strategic and tactical category management to sustainably reduce purchasing prices while taking into account functional and quality requirements and utilizing the best possible bundling effects within material responsibility.
Drive and monitor catalogue implementation and update based on Frame contract negotiation

Category management (Plan to strategy)

Co-develop regional procurement strategies (Category Strategy Paper, CSP) together with the Global Category Manager including sustainability aspects to improve market transparency at national and international level in order to ensure long-term and cost-effective supply (make or buy) for the region.
Pushing the regional strategy in the region and ensuring the optimal balance between competition and bundling in order to achieve the best possible synergy effects for the Group.
Communicate the regional sourcing strategy between the Operation Center, Regional Sourcing Center, Global Integrated Category and internal customers to ensure transparency in the procurement/sourcing process

Stakeholder Partnership

Act as interface and represent the interests of Continental and the Purchasing Community towards all internal and external stakeholders (e.g. Engineering, Plants, Suppliers)
Understands the business and purchasing strategy to derive actions for own managed category
Guide, support and train local and central stakeholders to execute with the right tools, methods and processes

Supplier Management

Implements and maintains sustainable supplier relationship and conducts Strategic Supplier Meetings to deploy the regional category strategy
Responsible for steering the annual supplier evaluation and derives development programs where needed
Performs annual and regular negotiations to constantly improve the cost situation for respective category, actively drives improvement or Total Cost of Ownership programs with suppliers, analyzing/performing supplier classification
Monitor if supplier acts in line with Continentals Business Partner Code of Conduct (BPCoC), responsible value chain (RVC) rules and processes and takes actions accordingly

Project Management

▪ Lead or participate in projects with relevance for owned category, within the purchasing organization or cross functional projects

Degree in business administration, engineering or comparable qualification
Language skills (English spoken and written) and regional languages preferred mandatory
Minimum 3 years of professional experience in Purchasing, respective material group preferred
Specific professional experience in purchasing within Automotive (Supplier) Industry, Tire Production and Manufacturing Industry, 3 years' purchasing experience
Experience in purchasing processes. Ability to analyze, assertiveness, teamwork and result orientation
Knowledge of MS Office tools as well as in SAP R/3 and World Class Sourcing Platforms and presentation techniques
Strong negotiating skills, persuasion and communication skills
Ability to work under pressure, driving execution
Creativity, reliability, integrity, teamwork, operates with global perspective

Ready to drive with Continental? Take the first step and fill in the online application.