About the Role:

A highly driven Procurement Manager to lead strategic sourcing and procurement initiatives across business and technology functions. The role requires an experienced procurement professional with strong commercial acumen, expertise in vendor negotiations, contract management, supplier governance, and procurement transformation within a regulated financial services environment.

The ideal candidate should have demonstrated experience in driving procurement excellence, optimizing spend, managing strategic supplier relationships, and ensuring compliance with procurement policies while supporting business growth.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Procurement & Sourcing:

- Lead end-to-end procurement lifecycle including demand planning, sourcing strategy, RFI/RFP/RFQ management, commercial evaluation, negotiations, contracting, purchase order management, and vendor onboarding.

- Develop category-specific sourcing strategies to maximize value, reduce costs, and improve supplier performance.

- Drive strategic sourcing initiatives across Technology, Digital Products, Operations, Corporate Services, Marketing, Professional Services, Facilities, and Business Functions.

- Identify opportunities for cost optimization, value engineering, and procurement process improvements.

Vendor & Supplier Management:

- Build and manage long-term relationships with strategic suppliers and service partners.

- Evaluate supplier capabilities, financial stability, operational risks, and compliance before onboarding.

- Establish supplier scorecards, KPIs, SLAs, and periodic performance reviews.

- Drive supplier development initiatives to improve service quality, innovation, and business continuity.

Commercial Negotiation & Contract Management:

- Lead commercial negotiations to achieve the best pricing, payment terms, service levels, warranties, and contractual protections.

- Partner with Legal, Finance, Compliance, Risk, and Information Security teams for contract review and execution.

- Manage contract lifecycle including renewals, amendments, and vendor governance.

- Ensure commercial agreements effectively mitigate legal, operational, and financial risks.

Procurement Governance & Compliance:

- Ensure procurement activities comply with internal policies, regulatory requirements, audit standards, and governance frameworks.

- Support internal and external audits by maintaining procurement documentation and compliance records.

- Monitor procurement risks and implement appropriate mitigation strategies.

Stakeholder Management:

- Partner closely with Business Heads, Technology, Product, Finance, Legal, Risk, Compliance, and Operations teams to understand procurement requirements and deliver timely sourcing solutions.

- Act as a trusted procurement advisor to internal stakeholders.

- Balance commercial objectives with business priorities while maintaining procurement governance.

Reporting & Process Excellence:

- Prepare procurement dashboards, spend analytics, savings reports, supplier performance metrics, and management MIS.

- Monitor procurement KPIs including cost savings, sourcing cycle time, contract compliance, supplier performance, and procurement efficiency.

- Drive procurement digitization, automation, and continuous improvement initiatives using procurement technologies and ERP platforms.

Required Qualifications:

- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Commerce, Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, or a related discipline.

- MBA (Operations/Supply Chain/Finance) or equivalent qualification is preferred.

- 58 years of relevant procurement experience within FinTech, Banking, NBFC, Insurance, Payments, or Financial Services organizations.

- Experience handling strategic sourcing and procurement for technology and business categories in a regulated environment.

Preferred Experience:

- 5-10 years of procurement experience in FinTech, Banking, NBFC, Payments, Insurance, or Financial Services.

- Proven experience in strategic sourcing, vendor management, and contract negotiations.

- Hands-on experience managing Technology, IT, Software/SaaS, Cloud, Digital Products, Professional Services, and Corporate Services procurement.

- Strong understanding of procurement governance, regulatory compliance, and supplier risk management.

- Experience working with ERP/Procurement platforms such as SAP, SAP Ariba, Oracle, or Coupa.

- Demonstrated ability to deliver cost optimization, process improvements, and supplier performance management initiatives.

What We're Looking For:

- A procurement professional who combines strong commercial expertise with strategic thinking.

- Proven ability to negotiate high-value contracts and manage complex vendor ecosystems.

- Experience partnering with cross-functional leadership teams to deliver business value.

- Strong understanding of procurement governance within regulated financial institutions.

- Passion for driving operational excellence, supplier innovation, and sustainable cost optimization.