Strategic Procurement Officer

About The Organisation

Here at NHS Lanarkshire, we put the patient at the heart of everything we do. Each colleague within the organisation plays a key role in how we deliver our healthcare services.

We proudly serve a population of 655,000 across rural and urban communities in both North and South Lanarkshire. NHS Lanarkshire is comprised of Acute Services (which currently provide hospital based services over 3 main sites), Corporate & Property & Support Services, North and South Lanarkshire Health and Social Care Partnerships which provide integrated primary healthcare and social care services to local communities and surrounding areas.

The Role

NHS Lanarkshire's Procurement service is responsible for delivering contracts in accordance with Public Procurement legislation whilst meeting the needs of the health board across all spend categories including corporate services, social/health services, estates, laboratories, medical and surgical categories. The service also manages the implementation of NHS Scotland (NHSS) National Procurement frameworks, working with stakeholders locally and nationally to achieve maximum benefit for the health board and NHSS.

The Strategic Procurement Officer will be expected to manage an agreed work plan of procurements and contract implementations, providing detailed progress reports on the procurement strategies and implementation plans at relevant forums. A key element of the role will involve identifying savings opportunities and turning them into realisable savings, requiring a high level of interface with key stakeholders and end users to understand their requirements, quantify needs and ensure that appropriate clinical and technical advice has been sought. In addition, areas of process redesign are expected to be identified to relevant stakeholders.

Fundamental to the successful outcomes of the contracting process is professional procurement expertise and understanding of supply markets.

Once in place contracts are managed to ensure performance meets the agreed criteria. This requires effective negotiation to ensure advantage is taken of market movements, ongoing customer interface to ensure contracts continue to reflect our changing needs or reflect advances in product innovation, and supplier relationship management to ensure suppliers deliver to the contract and develop services with us.

Strategic Procurement

Within Lanarkshire the post holder will be influential in shaping procurement policy and direction, creating an environment for the adoption of best procurement practice, key supplier relationship management and the realisation of cost saving and quality improvement opportunities.

Operational Procurement

The Procurement team shape the strategic direction and will implement the improved contracts, purchase to pay processes and supplies services as part of a continuous improvement programme designed to release funds for frontline patient services.

This role is a fixed term contract until 8th December 2026 with the possibility of extension beyond that.

In this key role, you will:

• Provide professional expertise and guidance to end users to meet business needs, ensuring that the Procurement service maintains the technical and commercial competencies required through appropriate training and development in order to maximise efficiency and deliver the service levels required to ensure the quality and continuity of service to stakeholders.
• Take a leading role in developing and implementing specialist price and quality performance monitoring techniques and procedures including benchmarking, commodity profiling and benefits tracking to ensure compliance with policies, procedures, compliance with contracts and validation of savings. The post holder must ensure that these activities comply with all relevant legislative and other standards, demonstrating a high level of probity and identifying opportunities and areas for improvement.
• Responsible for developing and managing key relationships with a growing portfolio of suppliers, and assessing supplier performance against agreed criteria.
• Develop working relationships with other areas of the organization where purchasing takes place, making recommendations as to best practice and best organization of the procurement function.
• Ensuring supply needs in terms of quality; availability and timeliness are met and continually developed through market and supplier analysis.
• Managing the procurement of goods and services within a broad portfolio to obtain best value for money for NHS Lanarkshire in its supply spend, working within Public Procurement Law and Standing Financial Instructions.

What You'll Bring:

• Professional knowledge acquired through degree or equivalent i.e. Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (MCIPS) or Scottish Vocational Qualification Level 4, (SVQ4) and or specialist knowledge acquired through continual education and training.
• Project Management skills, Negotiation skills and literate in modern IT systems to provide analysis of information and presentations to senior managers.
• Purchasing and or contract experience.
• Experience of Procurement and Supply chain management activity.

From 1 April 2026, the Agenda for Change full-time working week will reduce from 37 hours to 36 hours. Part-time working hours will be reduced on a pro-rata basis. A corresponding increase in the hourly rate will apply, ensuring that overall pay remains unchanged.

What we Offer

As a valued employee of NHS Lanarkshire, you can enjoy an extensive range of benefits including:

• Annual Leave - 35 days including public holidays
• Generous NHS pension scheme
• Annual incremental salary progression
• Paid sick leave increasing with length of service
• NHS discounts and more.

NHS Lanarkshire is dedicated to building a diverse workforce where everyone can thrive, develop, and succeed based on their skills, knowledge, and talent - regardless of race, disability, gender, sexual orientation, or care experience* or any other dimension that can be used to differentiate people from one another.

*Care experienced applicants include those who have lived with foster parents, kinship carers, or in residential/secure children's settings.

For informal discussion, please contact Yvonne Ward, Deputy General Manager Procurement on [email protected].

If you have any questions about the recruitment process or require support with your application, contact Lynn Deas, Recruitment Administrator on [email protected].

Interested?

Full details about the role are provided in the attached Job Description and Person Specification.

Please review our Application Guidance which explain key information including closing dates, amendments, right-to-work requirements, sponsorship eligibility and important points to be aware of before submitting your application

You can also learn more about working with NHS Lanarkshire by viewing our Information Pack

Unless otherwise stated, the deadline for applications is 23:59 hours on the closing date. Please note, CVs will not be accepted.