Interim Head of Corporate Procurement

Ornua is Ireland’s largest exporter of Irish dairy exports to over 110 countries with annualised sales of over €2 billion.Operating from 19 subsidiaries worldwide and employing over 2,300 staff, Ornua has sales and marketing teams working in-market across all four corners of the globe from Algiers to Beijing to Lagos and LA. The business is structured across two core platforms: Ornua Foods and Ornua Ingredients.

Ornua Foods owns the iconic Kerrygold brand, as well as the Pilgrims Choice, Dubliner, Forto and BEO Milk Powder brands. Ornua Ingredients supplies superior quality dairy ingredients to leading global food manufacturers from some of the world’s most technically advanced manufacturing and prepacking facilities located in Africa, China, Ireland, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Spain, the UK and the US.

At Ornua, we Grow Together by investing in the development of our people and providing great people leadership for all. We Achieve Together through valuing collaboration, innovation and diversity and by empowering our people to make decisions. We Belong Together by staying true to our co-operative roots, valuing each other's individual differences and remaining humble in our interactions with each other and our customers.

We want to find people that understand and work with heart, with thought, with vision, with drive – Ornua’s core values.

The role will have full ownership and responsibility for the purchase of all non dairy product and services procurement. The job holder manages and develops staff within the team and contributes to policy formation, strategy and pricing positions, as appropriate.

This a 12 month contract role. 

Key Areas of Responsibility:

• To build, lead, develop and motivate an effective team culture.  Supported by HR, plan and carry out staff development, coaching, performance management and career management for relevant staff to provide an opportunity to perform at their level of ambition and ability.
• To operate a comprehensive procurement policy in relation to all non dairy products and services supplied to Ornua.
• To manage and maintain a warehousing and logistics network which ensures Ornua’s needs are adequately met in a cost effective manner.
• To negotiate the purchase of non dairy products and services in accordance with the agreed policy and objectives.
• To build and maintain strong and sustainable relationships with all suppliers.
• Ensure suppliers add value to Ornua and are in keeping with Ornua’s values and sustainability targets.
• Ensure effective communication in Ornua with all relevant stakeholders.
• Liaise and co-ordinate with subsidiaries to facilitate effective procurement strategies.
• To keep abreast of changes in the regulatory environment and consumer insight trends relevant to the dairy sector.
• To ensure that the Procurement Team operates within the cost parameters and culture of Ornua.
• Oversee management of cost recovery from suppliers for identified performance issues.

Key requirements and competencies:

• Good stakeholder relationship management capability and the ability to build the same culture within your team.
• Strong purchasing, planning, forecasting, budgeting and pricing skills.
• Strong management skills, with the ability to provide leadership, direction, support, motivation and coaching to create a high-performance team.
• A strong role model of Ornua values and behaviours.
• Excellent negotiation skills and commercial acumen.
• Flexibility to travel to all relevant locations as needed.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.

• FORWARD LOOKING: Leads others through change and contributes to competitive challenges and functional strategy plans.

• WORKING TOGETHER: Ensures own team effectiveness, facilitates and leads cross-functional working.

• OWNERSHIP: Makes decisions about sustainable growth and/or manages performance and ensures that quality and delivery of others’ work; rewards and recognises success.

• COMMUNICATIVE: Applies advanced communication skills, considering impact on the audience and desired outcomes. An ability to present and discuss technical information in a way that establishes rapport, persuades others and gains understanding.