Category Manager Opportunity at Svitzer

We are looking for a hands-on Category Manager who wants to play an active role in shaping sourcing and contracting strategies, while executing regional, cluster-specific, and local initiatives across Europe. You will collaborate closely with stakeholders in a dynamic, international maritime environment.

This is a unique opportunity to join a global organisation where Procurement is continuing to strengthen its role as a strategic business partner—driving operational excellence, cost leadership, and long-term value creation.

As Category Manager, you will join the Svitzer Europe Procurement team, be based in Nordhavn, Copenhagen, and work closely with internal and external stakeholders across our clusters in the UK, Scandinavia, and Continental Europe.

About Svitzer

At Svitzer, our maritime heritage spans almost 200 years, making us a global leader in towage and terminal services.

Since 1833, we have played a key role in port and terminal operations, ensuring the safe and efficient movement of large seaborne vessels. Today, with a fleet of over 446 vessels, we support customers across 143 ports and 40 terminals in 37 countries worldwide. The Europe region makes out about 1/3 of our fleet and business.

At Svitzer, you will be part of an international and inclusive organisation that values ambition and professionalism within a supportive and collaborative culture. Our flat organisational structure fosters open communication and teamwork, while empowering employees to take ownership and drive execution.

Key responsibilities

As Category Manager in the Europe Procurement team, you will be responsible for developing and executing sourcing and category strategies across goods and services supporting towage operations throughout the Europe region.

You will work closely with regional and global stakeholders across Procurement, Technical, Operations, and Finance to drive value creation, supplier performance, and operational efficiency.

Within the categories of your responsibility, your main tasks will be:

• Develop and maintain short-, medium-, and long-term category strategies based on internal demand and market intelligence
• Drive and execute the source-to-contract process and ensure the appropriate involvement of experts (e.g. Legal, Technical, Marine Standards)
• Ensure continuous improvement and optimisation of categories to drive cost efficiencies and operational effectiveness
• Manage contracts including implementation, monitoring, optimisation, and risk management
• Manage suppliers including onboarding, performance management, and joint planning
• Support internal demand analysis, planning, and forecasting
• Analyse data and insights to identify industry trends and sourcing opportunities

Key Interfaces

• Reporting to Europe Head of Procurement
• Close collaboration with our UK-based Category Manager
• Close collaboration with Global Category Managers within Svitzer Group functions
• Close collaboration with global and regional stakeholders within Procurement, as well as our team of Procurement Specialists (Buyers)
• Close collaboration with budget holders across ports and the Technical organisation
• Close collaboration with regional and local stakeholders to align category strategies and specifications

We are looking for

A commercially driven and analytical procurement professional who thrives in a dynamic, international environment. You can balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution and enjoy collaborating across functions and cultures.

You bring strong stakeholder management skills, sound business judgement, and the ability to influence without direct authority.

Functional skills

• Experience within strategic sourcing and category management within a complex organisation
• Proven sourcing and negotiation skills
• Extensive understanding of contract development, supplier management, and procurement performance reporting
• Demand and forecast management capabilities
• Risk and opportunity management experience

Knowledge and industry understanding

• Experience within the maritime industry or a similar technical industry
• Data-driven decision making
• Compliance and contract management
• Project management
• Purchase-to-Pay processes

Personal skills

• Excellent interpersonal and negotiation skills with the ability to build and maintain positive working relationships with vendors and internal stakeholders
• Ability to influence without direct authority
• Strong strategic and analytical thinking capabilities
• A results-driven mindset combined with strong commercial acumen and business judgement

Experience & Qualifications

• 3–5 years of relevant experience
• Proven track record in managing suppliers and contracts
• Experience working in an international environment

We offer

This is an exciting opportunity to become part of a highly engaged and experienced Procurement team, with close collaboration across regional and global functions.

The position is based full-time at our offices in Nordhavn, Copenhagen. We offer flexible working arrangements and are committed to creating the right conditions for a strong employee experience and continuous professional development.

Our office facilities include a canteen, lounge areas, fitness centre, and a range of social activities.

At Svitzer, you will have the opportunity to shape your role, contribute to strategic initiatives, and work in an organisation where Procurement plays a key role in keeping our vessels moving, driving business performance and operational excellence.

You will gain exposure to a broad stakeholder landscape and a wide range of procurement activities, while developing your capabilities in a global company with a strong maritime heritage.

We strongly believe in on-the-job development, continuous learning, and frequent feedback, and we encourage our employees to take ownership of both their personal and professional growth.

Building a Diverse Workplace

In Svitzer we value the diversity of our talent and will always strive to recruit the best person for the job – we value diversity in all its forms, including but not limited to gender, age, nationality, race, sexual orientation, disability, or religious beliefs. We are proud of our diversity and see it as a genuine source of strength for building high performing teams.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that members from some under-represented groups are less likely to apply for jobs if they don’t meet every single qualification. At Svitzer we are dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles, and we are excited about hearing from you!

How to Apply

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