Dirección The primary responsibility of the NTT Global Sourcing Data Center Category Manager is to work with NTT Operating Company leadership teams to develop, implement and manage the Data Center management sourcing strategy across NTT globally. The primary responsibility is to develop and implement the over-arching strategy across NTT’s multi-billion annual spend and to ensure alignment with the overall NTT Global Sourcing objectives, as well as broader NTT corporate goals related to OFCI, Construction, Real Estate, Energy and Sustainability.
Responsible for all elements of the strategy, which include reduce cost, improve operational performance, mitigate risk and improve the overall financial performance of NTT through its acquisition and management of Data Center management spend. Further, it is the NTT Data Center Management Category Director’s responsibility to manage the strategy on an on-going basis, ensuring it is communicated and adhered-to across all regions and Operating Companies – which includes assembling and leading cross-functional teams to drive the Data Center Management sourcing strategy. She/he will partner with leadership in the Operating Companies, Accounts, Delivery, Alliances and Global Procurement (GP) on a number of cost savings and performance improvement initiatives. She/he will be a hands-on leader, working alongside other Procurement leaders and teams, as well as leadership across the NTT Operating Companies to analyze spend, assess current and changing market forces across Data Center management, and assess current commercial arrangements across NTT to identify/drive improvement opportunities for the business.
The NTT Global Data Center Category Manager is responsible to develop working relationships with key internal stakeholders to ensure INDIRECT requirements are defined and demand is accurately reflected. Also, she/he will team with NTT Operating Companies to drive improved operational performance – such as supply/demand planning, cycle times, forecasting, maintenance practices and contractual compliance.
Education and Experience
Technical Experience:
- Minimum of 10 years of experience in progressively challenging roles in supply chain management, strategic sourcing and/or Category Management with the majority of experience within the broad Data Center management space.
- Must have hands-on experience managing global spend of at least $50 million of spend and delivery on a global basis and be able to demonstrate a history of effectively driving cost savings and performance improvement while in such a role.
- Hands-on leader able to drive a number of major, complex cost reduction projects while driving critically important hardware projects in the Data Center categories.
- Strong understanding of Data Center suppliers and pricing models, as well as support and maintenance services - as practiced by the major suppliers across the globe. Must have demonstrated ability to effectively manage commercial and strategic relationships on a global basis with Tier-I suppliers, including proven ability to engage strategically at the VP and C-level with key suppliers.
- Experience in defining and driving key aspects of supply chain operational excellence in a global, multi-BU environment – including demand planning, forecasting, maintenance optimization, performance measurement and optimization.
Educational Requirements:
Bachelor’s degree is required, preferably in Supply Chain, Business, or an equivalent technical discipline. An advanced degree and/or an MBA is preferred.
Knowledge and Skills
- Strong analytical skills. Must be able to assess historical spend and asset usage data from multiple disparate sources, analyze the data and layout coherent, data-driven roadmaps to achieve cost reductions and/or operational improvements.
- Able to analyze the current state of practices within NTT Global Sourcing and NTT Operating Companies across all Data Center services spend involving multiple INDIRECT suppliers and collaborate with stakeholders to forge comprehensive supply chain strategies that increase leverage and drive commercial improvements with suppliers.
- Must be able to assess ‘best practices’ and ‘pricing benchmarks’ in the industry and compare these across Operating Companies, accounts, BUs and regions. Develop gap analysis relative to these practices/benchmarks to help identify savings and improvement opportunities. Develop strategies that create leverage to close gaps while delivering improved economics and/or operational performance to NTT.
- Able to analyze current agreements and assess alignment with end-customer agreements. Where misalignments exist, develop, and implement strategies that improve alignment. Collaborate with internal stakeholders to garner support for such improvement initiatives.
- Must be skilled in ability to work across multiple accounts and delivery organizations globally to build aggregated demand forecasts for selected Data Center services spend and incorporate aggregated demand into negotiation strategies to increase buying power. Demonstrated ability to manage an effective on-going demand management process and collaborate closely with colleagues in Sales and Operations (S&OP) planning to ensure ever-changing demand requirements are accurately reflected and managed.
- Must have ability to analyze the various asset acquisition practices and identify opportunities to reduce cost and/or risk by improving these practices where such opportunities exist. Further, partner with account leadership and regional delivery leads to drive such cost reduction initiatives into the accounts.
- Must have strong verbal, presentation, and written communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with Leadership within NTT and be able influence Leadership on key strategic initiatives that involve challenging ‘Change Management’ elements.
- Highly skilled in financial analysis, and able to communicate effectively with Finance organizations. This includes investment ROI analysis, lease vs. buy modeling, capital planning and justification, asset valuation analysis, make vs. buy modeling and ‘should cost’ analysis.
- Proficient in the use of all Microsoft Office products.
- Ability to foster enthusiasm and drive to succeed from team members, and lead by example.
Impact/Scope
- Manages organization-wide plans that impact multiple business units and functions globally.
- Regularly interacts with Managers, VPs, and SVPs internally and externally.
Complexity
- Works across multiple businesses and/or regions to meet business needs in a cost-effective and expedient manner.
