Procurement - Technology Lead

Established in 1981 with a single store in the Northwest of England, the JD Group is a leading omni‑channel retailer of Sports Fashion, Outdoors and Gyms with our colleagues working in stores across several retail fascias in many markets around the world. JD Sports Fashion Plc was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1996 and has been a FTSE100 publicly quoted company since 2019 and continues to grow in the UK and internationally. We want to be the leading global omnichannel retailer in the sports and outdoor industry. To be a part of this successful company and help us to achieve this you will have the desire to ingrain our strategic goals of being a people‑led, innovative and customer‑focused organisation which provides operational excellence whilst identifying new areas of growth as part of our day to day objectives. This is a senior leadership role within the JD Group Procurement function, accountable for all technology procurement activity across the Group. The Tech Procurement Lead will have direct ownership of the Infrastructure and Professional Services category whilst also providing strategic direction and day‑to‑day leadership to the Procurement Manager for Digital (SaaS & Digital) and the Technology Supplier Relationship Manager, ensuring a cohesive and commercially aligned technology procurement strategy is delivered across all categories. The Tech Procurement Lead will operate at executive level, acting as a key commercial partner to the CTO and Technology leadership team. This role requires the confidence and gravitas to engage credibly at C‑suite level — advising on commercial strategy, challenging technology investment decisions, and representing the Procurement function in senior forums. The successful candidate will be comfortable sitting alongside the CTO in supplier negotiations, steering groups and executive‑led discussions, bringing commercial insight that directly shapes the Group's technology agenda. Within the role, the successful candidate will drive margin, operational, and performance improvements to support our technology sourcing strategy. Lead, develop and provide day‑to‑day direction to the Procurement Manager – Digital (SaaS & Digital), ensuring consistent procurement standards, commercial rigour and strategic alignment across all technology categories. Refine and own the overarching technology procurement strategy, aligning Infrastructure, Professional Services and Digital categories into a coherent, prioritised plan. Operate as the primary commercial interface for the CTO and Technology leadership team, providing executive‑level counsel on supplier strategy, commercial risk, and investment decisions — with the presence and credibility to influence at the highest levels of the business. Close engagement with senior colleagues including Technology leadership, Finance and Legal on matters including revenue/CapEx budgets, embedding savings, and supporting business cases for new projects and/or investments. Utilise Group Finance platforms and templates for Purchase Orders, tenders and eAuctions to ensure financial and operational transparency. Regular engagement with the Group Legal team to minimise risk and maximise commercial leverage via agreements with clearly defined service levels, KPIs and appropriate remedies for non‑performance. Engage acquisition business contacts to ensure rapid delivery of financial benefits arising from wider JD‑Group commercial leverage. Act as a trusted adviser and subject‑matter expert, leading complex procurement projects and providing strategic guidance across all technology services. Own and drive the technology procurement pipeline, ensuring the team has visibility of upcoming renewals, re‑tenders and new requirements across both Infrastructure and Digital categories. Set and maintain procurement process and policy standards across the technology team, holding team members to account for delivery and compliance. CTO and Technology leadership team — primary commercial partner; Group Procurement Director and wider Procurement leadership team — peer collaboration on category strategy, governance, reporting and savings delivery; Procurement Manager – Digital (SaaS & Digital) and Technology Supplier Relationship Manager — direct reports; technology function leads across Infrastructure, Networks, IT Operations, Core Tech and Transformation — business partners; Finance, Legal, Risk and Group Sustainability — cross‑functional partners on budgets, contractual risk, savings validation and ESG alignment; strategic external suppliers and partners across the technology supply base — relationship ownership, performance management, governance and innovation engagement. Commercial experience within fast‑paced omni‑channel retail and/or relevant commodity/services experience with the ability to manage a high level of ambiguity or change. Driven by data and analytics. Bring strong analytical skills with a passion for using data to develop innovative, effective solutions to address business needs, initiate opportunities and deliver margin improvement. A natural relationship builder – able to establish credibility quickly with senior internal stakeholders (including C‑suite), peers across the Group, and strategic suppliers, and to sustain those relationships through both commercial negotiation and day‑to‑day delivery. Organised and deadline‑driven, bringing strong project management and analytical skills. Autonomous self‑starter with high levels of drive and energy – comfortable setting own direction, prioritising across a broad portfolio and progressing multiple workstreams in parallel without close supervision. Confidence and credibility to constructively challenge senior business and Technology stakeholders, pushing back on assumptions, surfacing commercial risk, and holding the line on procurement governance while preserving strong working relationships. Degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Finance, Engineering or a related discipline; Minimum of 4+ years' experience as a Procurement Manager (or equivalent senior category role) leading technology procurement, with deep category knowledge across Infrastructure and Professional Services and exposure to SaaS & Digital categories. Demonstrable track record of leading high‑value, high‑complexity technology negotiations and contract structures — including managed services, multi‑year SaaS, professional services and outsourcing arrangements. Proven people leadership experience, including direct line management or matrix leadership of experienced procurement professionals, with the ability to coach, develop and hold to account. Excellent decision‑making and strategic thinking, with the ability to balance commercial, operational and risk considerations under tight deadlines and in ambiguous situations. Proven track record of building and sustaining complex stakeholder relationships at senior leadership and C‑suite level, both internally and across the supplier base. Thorough understanding of end‑to‑end procurement procedures, governance frameworks and best‑practice category management, with the judgement to know when to apply rigour and when to flex. Confident user of Microsoft Office (particularly Excel and PowerPoint); experience with sourcing, contract lifecycle and spend analytics tools (e.g. Coupa, Ariba, Ivalua, SAP) is advantageous. Comfortable operating in a fast‑paced, rapidly changing omni‑channel retail environment with shifting priorities and high stakeholder visibility. We offer staff discounts on JD Group and other brands within the organisation, and personal development opportunities to learn and develop at work. #