Supplier Assurance Manager

£46,400 - £58,000 (Work Level 5) plus great benefits

Manchester – We’re now working in a hybrid way, with colleagues dividing their time between home/remote working and the office. You can find out more about our hybrid working policy at https://jobs.coop.co.uk/hybrid-working-policy 

We’re looking for a Supplier Assurance Manager to join our Co-op Business Services team. In this role, you’ll work closely with our service line leaders and our procurement teams, focusing on a diverse range of suppliers to ensure a seamless transition from their work to yours with the goal of ensuring the right results for Co-op.

You’ll bridge the gaps by building structured frameworks that keep both external partners and internal teams on track, ensuring everyone not only follows the process but fully understands the data you present to drive key commercial decisions. This is a unique opportunity where you’ll help shape how we work in the future, ensuring we stay commercially savvy while managing how we get services in and handle internal service provisions.

If you’re the kind of person who’s all about smoothing out the bumps, creating frameworks that set us up for long-term success, and making sure everything works like clockwork, then this role is tailor-made for you. Ready to make an impact? We thought so.

What you’ll do 

• Support and challenge senior management teams to ensure that the right sourcing choices are made
• Ensure our colleagues comply with developed frameworks, holding them accountable for adherence and performance.
• Influence senior stakeholders by translating complex data into actionable insights, presenting it clearly to drive key commercial decisions and continuous improvement across the business.
• Categorise suppliers, maintaining a balance between strong performers and those requiring improvement, ensuring decisions are based on accurate and up-to-date information.
• Define and implement structured frameworks, turning strategy into reality while using data to monitor progress and ensure smooth execution.
• Identify and address performance gaps, driving improvements where necessary to enhance supplier relationships and overall service delivery.
• Foster collaboration between internal teams and suppliers to maintain alignment and ensure smooth operation of supplier assurance processes.
• Track and report on both internal and external service performance, regularly assessing key metrics to identify areas for improvement. Proactively ensure corrective actions are implemented when performance falls short, collaborating with relevant teams to maintain and exceed high standards of service delivery.
• Promote and embed best practices, ensuring processes are efficient, sustainable, and scalable for the future.

This role would suit people who have

• Strong supplier management experience and a commercial mindset
• A proven ability to influence key stakeholders and drive key decisions
• A solid understanding of governance, compliance and accountability
• The ability to multi-task with competing priorities in a fast-paced environment
• Experience supporting change programmes and driving continuous improvements

Why Co-op?

If you’ve got the skills and experience we’re looking for, we can offer you a competitive salary and great benefits package which includes 30% off Co-op branded products in our food stores (as well as other discounts on Co-op products and services). You’ll also get:

• Private healthcare
• An annual bonus (based on personal and business performance)
• 28 days holiday (rising to 32 with service) plus bank holidays
• A pension with up to 10% employer contributions
• Access to a subsidised onsite gym (at our Manchester HQ)
• Coaching and training to support your career development
• Wagestream – a money management app that gives you access to a percentage of your pay as you earn it
• Grocery Aid – 24/7 access to a range of emotional, financial, and practical support services for you and your family

Building an inclusive work environment

We’re actively building diverse teams and we welcome applications from everyone. If you have a disability, we can make reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process according to your needs. We're also part of the Disability Confident scheme, meaning we'll always offer an interview to disabled candidates who apply through the scheme if they meet the minimum criteria for a job.

We'll ask whether you’d like to be considered under the Disability Confident scheme when you apply.

If we invite you to take part in the recruitment process for any of our jobs, we’ll ask you if you need any reasonable adjustments to enable you to participate.

You can find out more about our recruitment process at jobs.coop.co.uk/apply-process

You can find out more about the Disability Confident scheme and all our commitments to diversity and inclusion at colleagues.coop.co.uk/diversity-inclusion-and-wellbeing

Please note that we may close applications for this role early.

As part of your application, you'll need to complete an online assessment. This assessment typically takes between 45-60 minutes. If you're a current Co-op colleague, this does not need to be completed.