Category Manager

Overview:

• Full-time

• Continuing position

• Salary Professional HEW9 + 17% Superannuation and Flexible Working Arrangements

• Based at the Melbourne CBD campus, and hybrid ways of working

About You
As a Category Manager, you will provide strategic leadership across assigned procurement categories, developing and implementing category strategies that deliver value for money, manage risk, improve supplier performance and support RMIT’s broader organisational priorities.

With University expenditure on goods and services of approximately $420 million, Procurement plays a critical role in identifying cost improvement opportunities, leveraging RMIT’s collective purchasing power, rationalising the vendor base and building strategic supplier relationships.

About the role

Reporting to the Associate Director, Category and Vendor Management, you will take end-to-end ownership of your assigned categories and strategic supplier relationships.

You will work closely with senior stakeholders across RMIT to understand business requirements, assess supply markets and develop category plans that deliver sustainable commercial and operational outcomes.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Developing and implementing strategic category plans aligned to organisational priorities, demand forecasts, market insights and whole-of-life cost considerations.

• Developing sourcing pipelines and partnering with Strategic Sourcing Specialists to deliver effective go-to-market initiatives.

• Identifying opportunities to improve spend, demand management and procurement compliance.

• Building trusted relationships with senior stakeholders and influencing procurement decisions across Portfolios and Colleges.

• Managing commercial, contractual, operational, financial, reputational, ethical and supply chain risks.

• Providing expert procurement and category advice to stakeholders and supporting innovative approaches to procurement.

You are an experienced procurement and category management professional with strong commercial judgement and the ability to operate confidently in a complex, highly stakeholder-driven environment.

You will bring:

• Demonstrated experience leading complex category and vendor management activities, including category strategies, sourcing pipelines and go-to-market initiatives.

• A strong track record of delivering sustainable commercial outcomes, including value for money, cost improvement, supplier performance and risk management.

• Strong commercial acumen and the ability to apply procurement expertise, policy and process improvement to complex business challenges.

• Proven ability to build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders, suppliers and cross-functional teams, using influence and sound judgement to achieve outcomes.

• Strong analytical capability, with experience using spend data, market intelligence and performance insights to identify opportunities and inform decisions.

• Sound knowledge of relevant procurement categories, or the ability to quickly develop category expertise and translate it into effective strategies.

Please Note: Appointment to this position is subject to passing a Working with Children and National Police Check.

About the Group

You’ll be part of a Procurement team with the opportunity to influence significant university-wide expenditure, work with senior stakeholders and suppliers, and contribute to initiatives that improve value, efficiency and commercial outcomes across RMIT. Our people are at the heart of what we do. We value Inclusion, Imagination, Integrity, Courage, Passion and Impact — values that shape how we work and the outcomes we deliver.

To Apply 

Please submit your CV and covering letter addressing your suitability for this position by clicking on the ‘Apply’ link at the top of this page.

For further information about this position, please see the Position Description hyperlinked below or contact Justin Bolton, Senior Talent Advisor via email [email protected]

Position Description is here

Please note, if you are viewing this advert from an external site, please click ‘apply’ and you will be redirected to RMIT's Jobs website to access the Position Description at the bottom of the page. Due to recent upgrades, position description links may not work on LinkedIn advertisements.  

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Applications Close:

27 Aug 2026 11.59 pm

RMIT is an equal opportunity employer committed to being a child safe organisation. We are dedicated to attracting, retaining and developing our people regardless of gender identity, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability and age. Applications are encouraged from all sectors of the community, and we strongly encourage applications from the Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander community. 

 

In line with RMIT University’s commitment to a safe, respectful and inclusive environment, from 1 January 2026, the University will also consider gender-based violence (GBV) risk factors as part of our recruitment processes.  All applicants will be required to complete a gender‑based violence declaration in accordance with the National Higher Education Code to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence.  Preferred candidates will also be required to undertake relevant pre‑employment background checks, including Working With Children Checks. Information provided will be treated confidentially and considered only for its relevance to the role and RMIT’s safety obligations.

 

At RMIT, we are committed to supporting adjustments throughout the recruitment and selection process, as well as during employment. We actively support and encourage people with disability to apply to RMIT (including alternate formats of application forms). To discuss adjustment requirements, please contact Dani, via [email protected] or visit our Careers page for more contact information - https://www.rmit.edu.au/careers.

 

We are a Circle Back Initiative Employer – we commit to respond to every applicant.