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The Position About the Opportunity
At Roche, we believe in connecting innovative business needs with external market capabilities to deliver sustainable value for healthcare. We are seeking a Strategic Procurement Partner to join our Finance Chapter in South Africa. In this role, you will act as a key commercial partner, aligning local business goals with smart, sustainable sourcing solutions. By cultivating strong supplier relationships and optimising company resources, you will directly help unlock capacity to invest in what matters most: pioneering treatments and improving patient lives.
What You’ll Do
Strategic Sourcing & Category Planning
• Partner closely with internal teams to understand their goals and translate them into actionable, high-value procurement strategies.
• Lead strategic sourcing initiatives across diverse spend areas, including but not limited to: events and creative agencies, fleet & travel, IT, supply chain, patient support programs, and utilities.
• Analyse market dynamics and spend patterns to connect business needs with capable, sustainable external partners.
• Lead commercial negotiations with vendors to secure favorable terms, clear performance deliverables, and year-on-year cost efficiencies.
Business Partnering & Global Alignment
• Act as a trusted commercial advisor to Squad Leads, Chapter Leads, and internal decision-makers.
• Collaborate closely with Africa Regional and Global Procurement networks to co-create initiatives, adopt global best practices, and roll them out effectively within the South African affiliate.
• Collaborate with Legal, Healthcare Compliance, Quality, and Finance teams to safeguard the organisation and maintain strict policy adherence.
Procurement Systems & Operational Excellence
• Oversee the full procurement lifecycle from onboarding new vendors to contract closure within budget boundaries.
• Manage the Purchase Order (PO) process and procurement system in the affiliate to ensure full compliance with Global Standards.
• Review and approve purchase orders across categories based on defined authorisation thresholds.
• Serve as the local custodian for vendor master data and onboarding due diligence.
• Guide business teams on contract compliance, Service Provider Management, and Outsourcing SOPs.
Who You Are
• Strategic & Agile: You translate business needs into practical commercial strategies and spot opportunities to simplify and optimise processes.
• Collaborative Influencer: You build positive, trust-based relationships across multidisciplinary teams and external partner networks through clear communication and empathy.
• Analytical & Commercial: You possess strong analytical capabilities to evaluate total cost of ownership, structure favorable commercial terms, and unlock sustainable value.
• Ethical & Patient-Centered: You lead by example with uncompromising business integrity, corporate governance, and dedication to the patient journey.
Experience & Qualifications
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Commerce, Finance, Economics, or a related field (an MBA or relevant postgraduate qualification is an advantage).
• Experience: A minimum of 5 to 7 years of hands-on experience in an end-to-end procurement role.
• Procurement Mastery: Proven experience across the procurement lifecycle, including Category Management, Strategic Sourcing, Supplier Relationship Management, and Business Partnering.
• B-BBEE & ESG Knowledge: Demonstrated experience integrating B-BBEE imperatives, supplier diversity, and ESG principles into supplier qualification and selection.
• Systems & Digital Tools: Hands-on proficiency with digital procurement platforms (e-sourcing suites, P2P systems) and leveraging spend data for actionable business insights.
• Project Leadership: Demonstrated ability to lead multi-stakeholder projects, manage change, and deliver results within matrix organisations.
Who we are A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100’000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.
Let’s build a healthier future, together.
Roche is an Equal Opportunity Employer.