Deputy Director, Category Management
Job No.: 687153
Location: 211 Wellington Road, Mulgrave
Employment Type: Full-time
Duration: 3 year fixed-term appointment
Remuneration: $184,668 pa Level 10A (plus 17% employer superannuation)
- Amplify your impact at a world top 50 University
- Join our inclusive, collaborative community
- Be surrounded by extraordinary ideas - and the people who discover them
- Drive Strategic Procurement excellence to create and deliver value across the University
About the Office of the Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice-President
The Office of the Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice-President is one of the professional services portfolios supporting the University's core businesses of education and research. We provide best- practice financial and business advice and services to the University. These include financial accounting, taxation, budgeting, financial performance and reporting, costing, strategic procurement, insurance management, purchasing to payment, research and revenue accounting, business strategy, the University's banking relationships, investment funds and borrowings and the management of major projects with complex financial and legal dimensions. For more information on the work we do, please visit our website: http://www.monash.edu/vpfinance
The Opportunity
The Deputy Director, Category Management is a senior leadership role within Strategic Procurement, responsible for shaping, governing, and delivering University-wide category and supplier portfolio strategies that align with the University’s strategic objectives. This position provides thought leadership in category management, taking a holistic view of high-value third-party spend to maximise value, drive innovation, and support long-term priorities. The role ensures procurement activities and supplier partnerships are strategically coordinated, embedding best-practice approaches and delivering measurable benefits across faculties, portfolios, and the broader University Group. The position will play a critical role in aligning leading procurement practices across the University and Controlled Entities across the Monash Group.
This position will be responsible for leading the design and execution of integrated category portfolio and management strategies, including overseeing significant supplier categories and contracts to deliver value, innovation, and sustainable outcomes. The Deputy Director will provide commercial leadership and oversight of negotiations, acting as a trusted advisor to senior stakeholders and guiding decision-making through insights on spend, market trends, and risk. The role will also champion category-wide initiatives, including sustainability, supplier diversity, digital enablement, and risk mitigation, while embedding best-practice category management processes across the University. In addition, it will monitor performance metrics, implement robust supplier strategies, and lead a high-performing team that fosters professional growth, accountability, and continuous improvement.
To be successful in this role, you will have postgraduate qualifications or extensive senior management experience, with proven expertise in high-value and high-risk category management within complex organisations. You will demonstrate exceptional commercial and procurement management skills, strategic thinking, and a record of delivering successful procurement initiatives from design to implementation. Strong negotiation, stakeholder engagement, and influencing skills are essential, alongside people leadership experience in building high-performing teams. Knowledge of Australian procurement standards, advanced analytical and research capabilities, and the ability to deliver innovative solutions will be critical. Accreditation with the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (MCIPS or FCIPS) is also highly desirable.
About Monash University
At Monash, work feels different. There’s a sense of belonging, from contributing to something groundbreaking – a place where great things happen.
We value difference and diversity. That’s why we champion an inclusive and respectful workplace culture where everyone is supported to succeed.
Some 20,000 staff work for Monash around the world. We have 95,000 students, four Australian campuses, and campuses in Malaysia and Indonesia. We also have a major presence in India and China, and a significant centre and research foundation in Italy.
In our short history, we have skyrocketed through global university rankings and established ourselves consistently among the world's best tertiary institutions. We rank in the world’s top-50 universities in rankings, including the QS World University Rankings 2026.
Learn more about Monash.
Today, we have the momentum to create the future we need for generations to come. Accelerate your change here.
Monash supports flexible and hybrid working arrangements. We have a range of policies in place enabling staff to combine work and personal commitments. This includes supporting parents.
To Apply
For instructions on how to apply, please refer to 'How to apply for Monash Jobs'. As part of the application, please submit your CV and a cover letter addressing key selection criteria 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, 10 and 12.
Diversity is one of our greatest strengths at Monash. We encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, culturally and linguistically diverse people, people with disabilities, neurodivergent people, and people of all genders, sexualities, and age groups.
We are committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible recruitment process at Monash. If you need any reasonable adjustments, please contact us at hr-recruitment@monash.edu in an email titled 'Reasonable Adjustments Request' for a confidential discussion.
Your employment is contingent upon the satisfactory completion of all pre-employment and background checks required for the role, as determined by the University.
Enquiries: Dan Thearle, Director, Strategic Procurement, dan.thearle@monash.edu
Position Description: Deputy Director, Category Management
Applications Close: Sunday 7 December 2025, 11:55pm AEDT
Supporting a diverse workforce
