Regional Category Manager (Procurement) - Quincy, IL

Regional Category Manager (Procurement) – Animal & Pet Nutrition

Location: Harvard, IL; Quincy, IL; or Effingham, IL

Reports to: Global Animal and Pet Nutrition Director

Role

We are seeking a Regional Category Manager (Procurement) to lead sourcing, systems and people across North America for animal and pet nutrition categories, including vitamins, proteins, and grains, with annual spend exceeding $300 million (NA). In this role, you will define and execute sourcing strategies, manage supply risk, and leverage market intelligence to secure critical materials. You will collaborate with regional and global teams, suppliers, and business stakeholders to drive value, compliance, and continuous improvement, while influencing key decisions at the leadership level.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and deliver the North America Category Procurement Strategy in alignment with global objectives.
• Lead sourcing strategies across vitamins, amino acids, and minerals managing a combined spend of $300M+.
• Establish and drive category KPIs, including cost savings, working capital improvements, and supply continuity metrics.
• Anticipate and manage category risks while capitalizing on market opportunities using robust market intelligence.
• Build contingency plans to safeguard supply continuity.
• Develop and execute annual category plans aligned to business goals and productivity targets.

Supplier & Market Engagement

• Build and lead strategic supplier relationship management programs to improve performance, innovation, and long-term value.
• Lead complex negotiations, supplier selection, and contract management for high-value, strategic categories.
• Leverage deep market intelligence (commodity trends, global supply/demand dynamics, cost drivers) to inform sourcing decisions and negotiations.

Operational Excellence

• Drive cost savings initiatives and value creation across a $300M+ spend portfolio.
• Streamline pricing and procure-to-pay (P2P) processes to improve efficiency and compliance.
• Utilize spend analytics, supplier performance tools, and contract management systems to enhance decision-making.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives across the category.

Stakeholder Collaboration & Leadership

• Partner with cross-functional stakeholders to understand business needs and shape sourcing strategies.
• Present category strategies, financial impact, and market insights to senior leadership with clarity and influence.
• Demonstrate strong people leadership acumen, including the ability to influence without authority, develop talent, and lead through complexity.
• Ensure alignment across procurement, operations, and business units.

Performance Management

• Define, track, and report category KPIs to regional and global leadership.
• Deliver measurable cost savings, value creation, working capital improvements and supply assurance.
• Hold suppliers and internal stakeholders accountable to performance expectations.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Business, Agricultural Economics, or related field (Master's preferred).
• 7+ years of procurement or category management experience, ideally within animal or pet nutrition, agriculture, or food-related industries.
• Direct experience managing high-spend categories such as vitamins, proteins, grains, or other commodity-based portfolios preferred.
• Demonstrated success delivering cost savings, leading negotiations, and managing strategic supplier relationships.
• Strong analytical and financial acumen with experience in cost modeling and market analysis.
• Proven ability to leverage market intelligence to drive sourcing decisions and business outcomes.
• Experience presenting to and influencing senior leadership.
• Demonstrated people leadership acumen, including influencing cross-functional teams and developing talent.
• Experience with procurement and ERP systems (e.g., Coupa, Ariba, SAP, JDE); familiarity with e-sourcing tools.
• Strong commercial acumen with knowledge of contract law and negotiation frameworks (e.g., BATNA).
• Global mindset with awareness of cultural, currency, and geopolitical factors.
• Fluent in English; additional languages are a plus.

Excited about this role but don't think you meet every requirement listed? We encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this role or another one of our openings.ADM requires the successful completion of a background check. REF:107853BR