General Manager, Procurement

Head of Procurement

Role Overview

This position owns the bank's entire sourcing cycle — from setting category strategies and negotiating with vendors through to contract governance and supplier performance management. Day to day, the holder works shoulder to shoulder with business units to translate their needs into clear specifications, and with Legal to make sure every material contract protects the bank's interests. The role matters because every shilling saved on goods and services, and every supplier risk caught early, flows directly into the bank's cost base and operational resilience.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and execute sourcing strategies for the categories of goods and services the bank consumes, balancing cost, quality, delivery timelines and continuity of supply.
• Own relationships with the bank's key suppliers, including routine engagement, escalation of performance issues and periodic formal evaluation of how each vendor delivers against agreed terms.
• Convert the bank's overall business strategy into an annual procurement plan, then monitor progress against it and report on variances.
• Negotiate, document and maintain service level agreements with user departments so that expectations around turnaround times, specifications and quality standards are explicit on both sides.
• Conduct know-your-customer and due diligence checks on all material suppliers, and build risk management procedures that limit exposure to supplier failure, non-delivery or substandard performance.
• Partner with the Legal department to review all significant supplier contracts, ensuring terms, conditions and remedies favour the bank.
• Act as secretary to the Procurement Committee — preparing papers, recording decisions and following through on resolutions.
• Provide day-to-day leadership to the procurement team, covering workload allocation, technical guidance, coaching and performance management.
• Engage peers in the wider industry to benchmark pricing, processes and emerging best practice, and feed those insights back into the bank's approach.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Procurement and Supply Chain Management; alternatively, a business-related degree combined with a Diploma in Procurement and Supply Chain Management.
• Current membership of the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management is compulsory.
• At least five years of progressive experience within a procurement function, of which a minimum of two years was spent in a supervisory or team-leading capacity.
• Demonstrated strategy development capability, with the ability to shape multi-year sourcing direction rather than simply execute transactions.
• Strong negotiation track record and the analytical and presentation skills needed to build a case, defend it before a committee and win stakeholder buy-in.
• Working knowledge of the fundamentals of contract law, plus a deep grounding in procurement and purchasing best practice.
• Familiarity with the bank's products and services, and the judgement to align procurement activity with broader commercial objectives.
• Effective written and verbal communication, sound interpersonal skills, and the credibility to deal with staff at every level as well as external suppliers.
• Personal attributes: high integrity, attention to detail, results orientation, business awareness, self-drive and comfort working with minimal supervision, plus a genuine team-player mindset.

Why Join / What This Role Offers

• Full ownership of the procurement function, with the authority to set strategy rather than inherit it.
• Direct, regular exposure to senior leadership through Procurement Committee work and engagement with every department in the bank.
• A structured platform for external benchmarking and industry networking that keeps your market knowledge current.
• The chance to build lasting risk and supplier governance frameworks that outlast your tenure.