Category Manager - Professional Services and Consulting

About the role

Air Liquide France Industrie, which produces and markets industrial gases in France, is looking for a Category Manager for Professional Services and Consulting. Reporting directly to the Procurement Director, you will be the strategic architect for all external intellectual services across Europe (strategic advisory, tax and legal, audit, HR services and engineering design offices). You will act as a trusted partner to C-suite leaders and functional heads, moving the company from transactional sourcing to strategic demand management, and will deliver measurable financial performance.

Key responsibilities

• Define, deploy and govern multi-year European category strategies that consolidate spend, reduce supplier fragmentation and increase covered spend.
• Lead the European rollout of the GP10 advisory governance framework and shape executive demand by challenging internal requirements and demanding rigorous business cases.
• Drive the European expansion of digital marketplace platforms for freelance, engineering and advisory sourcing, and work with IT and Global Business Services to integrate them with ERP and buying models.
• Leverage AI tools, BI dashboards and chatbots to improve spend visibility and automate buying processes.
• Negotiate complex Master Services Agreements, performance-based fee structures and gain-share models with top-tier strategy firms and advisors.
• Expand cross-border cash recovery initiatives across the UK, Austria, Switzerland and other European entities, and deliver structural OPEX savings while protecting IP, data privacy and co-employment risks.
• Act as an executive advisor to Directors General, CFOs, directors of tax and HR, and mentor national buyers in Europe; build C-level alliances with consulting firms and digital platforms.

Required profile

• 7+ years of progressive strategic procurement leadership.
• At least 3-5 years managing complex professional services, legal, tax or intellectual services portfolios in a regional or European matrix.
• Demonstrated expertise in executive demand management, MSA negotiation, performance-based pricing and governance frameworks.