Global Category Director (HR & Professional Services)

We Are:

Procurement Plus (P+) partners with Accenture’s business teams to deliver strategic procurement solutions that drive value, optimize costs, manage risk, and improve service quality. Through global category management, strategic sourcing, and supplier relationship management, P+ aligns procurement activities with business priorities while promoting compliance, operational excellence, and continuous improvement.

You Are:

The P+ HR & Professional Services Category Lead, responsible for developing and executing global category strategies across HR and Professional Services. You will build executive-level relationships, partner with senior business stakeholders, and lead strategic sourcing initiatives that deliver measurable value for Accenture. You will also provide functional and people leadership to the global category team, driving stakeholder alignment, category performance, compliance, and continuous improvement across Markets and Market Units.

The Work:

• Develop and execute global category strategies, vision, and multi-year plans across HR and Professional Services, aligning with business needs and broader P+ objectives.

• Establish and maintain executive-level relationships with the Procurement Executive Leadership Team, business stakeholders, budget owners, and suppliers to build alignment and support strategic decision-making.

• Apply category and industry expertise across HR subcategories, including Employee Benefits, Payroll, HR Consulting, Training, and Research/Knowledge Management, and Professional Services subcategories, including Marketing, Legal, Finance Services (Audit, Tax, and Immigration), and Advisory.

• Leverage market trends, industry insights, and business requirements to identify opportunities and develop proactive category strategies.

• Lead the implementation of global category and domain strategies, ensuring sourcing activities align with established priorities and deliver measurable business value.

• Drive category performance, service excellence, and compliance with procurement policies and category strategies.

• Manage the sourcing project pipeline and forecast activities across both category clusters.

• Identify and implement opportunities to optimize sourcing initiatives, buying channels, specifications, and procurement processes while addressing compliance gaps and purchasing leakage.

• Provide functional and managerial leadership to global P+ Category team members, including setting objectives, conducting performance reviews, and supporting career development and training.

• Coach and mentor team leads to strengthen stakeholder and project management, collaboration, customer focus, delivery excellence, and continuous improvement.

• Assess the impact of evolving business requirements, legislation, and policies on category strategies and procurement execution.

• Develop and maintain strong stakeholder and supplier relationships through regular executive meetings, business reviews, and ongoing engagement.

• Establish and monitor annual action plans, implementation plans, performance measures, and reporting to improve category performance and support Global, Market, and Market Unit initiatives.

• Coordinate resources and support the rollout of global and local category development initiatives to ensure effective implementation.

• Identify, support, and implement procurement improvement initiatives, including specification optimization and buying channel adoption.

• Promote cross-category collaboration by sharing knowledge, insights, and best practices across the broader Procurement organization.

Here's what you need:

• A minimum of 12 years of Procurement sourcing and/or category management experience

• A minimum of 8 years of experience in the HR Services category, including at least 5 years of experience in the Professional Services category across Marketing, Legal, and Finance Services subcategories at scale.

Bonus points if:

• Experience leading cross functional teams through a defined sourcing process.

• Excellent communication, organization time management, and problem solving skills.

• Exceptional track record of building stakeholder relationships resulting in high customer satisfaction.

• Knowledge of end to end processes Category Management, Sourcing, Contracting, P2P, Account Management with a strong inclination toward process improvement.

• General business acumen and ability to manage overall sourcing delivery.

• Knowledge of when and how to escalate appropriately.

Professional Skills:

• Demonstrated capability working in a multi function team environment within a large global multinational of similar scale and complexity.

• Proven ability to lead formal strategic sourcing efforts across both HR and Professional Services categories.

• Comfort with ambiguity and a track record of independently figuring things out in complex environments.

• Ability to act independently and interface with customers and suppliers through strong written and verbal communication.

• Proven ability to build, manage, and foster a team oriented environment.

• Proven ability to work creatively and analytically in a problem solving environment.

• Ability to drive transformational change at a global scale.

• Strong ability to manage effectively within a matrix organizational structure with multiple internal clients.

• Ability to adapt to varied corporate cultures and organizational structures.

Compensation at Accenture varies depending on a wide array of factors, which may include but are not limited to the specific office location, role, skill set, and level of experience. As required by local law, Accenture provides a reasonable range of compensation for roles that may be hired as set forth below. We anticipate this job posting will be posted until 11/06/2026.Accenture offers a market competitive suite of benefits including medical, dental, vision, life, and long-term disability coverage, a 401(k) plan, bonus opportunities, paid holidays, and paid time off. See more information on our benefits here:

U.S. Employee Benefits | Accenture (https://www.accenture.com/us-en/careers/local/benefits)

Role Location Annual Salary RangeCalifornia $163,000 to $413,600Colorado $163,000 to $357,400Connecticut $163,000 to $357,400District of Columbia $173,500 to $380,500Illinois $150,900 to $357,400Maine $138,800 to $304,400Maryland $163,000 to $357,400Massachusetts $163,000 to $380,500Minnesota $163,000 to $357,400New York $150,900 to $413,600New Jersey $173,500 to $413,600Ohio $150,900 to $330,900Virginia $150,900 to $380,500Washington $173,500 to $380,500

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