Freelance Category Manager (Finland)

Robert Half Italia is a leading company operating in the field of recruitment & selection and project management, and is authorized on a permanent basis for temporary employment agency work under Ministerial Authorization Prot. no. dated 03/08/2018.

We are looking for an experienced and highly strategic Freelance Category Lead/Manager based in Finland to join our PaaS (Procurement as a Service) ecosystem. In this role, you will partner closely with our stakeholders and client teams during the critical program start-up phase. This project has a minimum duration of one year.

You will have deep category expertise and will be fully responsible for leading sourcing strategies, managing end-to-end procurement projects, and optimizing high-value supplier relationships.

Key Responsibilities

• Sourcing Strategy: Define, develop, and execute category strategies and manage end-to-end sourcing projects for assigned categories.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborate closely with internal and external stakeholders to ensure category profiles and strategies align perfectly with business needs.
• Category Profiling: Develop and maintain detailed category profiles with a robust short-, mid-, and long-term outlook.
• Spend & Data Analysis: Analyze complex spend data to identify strategic opportunities for cost reduction, efficiency, and process improvement.
• Supplier & Contract Management: Conduct objective supplier evaluations, drive commercial negotiations, and oversee contract management.

Requirements & Profile

• Experience: 6-10 years of solid experience in strategic sourcing and a proven track record in deep category management.
• Sector Expertise: Proven experience or strong knowledge in procurement and supply contracts for Data Center construction or within the engineering sector is highly preferred.
• Contract Status: Must be registered (or eligible to register) as an independent contractor/freelancer in Finland (eg, Toiminimi or through a limited company Oy), able to issue standard invoices.
• Skills: Strong analytical mindset, advanced contract negotiation capabilities, and hands-on experience in managing complex vendor relationships.
• Autonomy: Ability to lead projects independently within a fast-paced, start-up environment.
• Languages: Professional fluency in English is mandatory (the main operating language of the project). Professional proficiency in Finnish is highly valued.

What We Offer

• A high-impact freelance assignment within a leading-edge procurement program with a minimum contract duration of 12 months.
• Flexible working model (Remote first with occasional alignment meetings).
• Competitive daily/hourly market rate based on experience.

Candidates of both sexes (Legislative Decree no. 198/2006) are invited to read the privacy policy pursuant to Articles 13 and 14 of EU Regulation 679/2016 available on our website. Please also be advised that CVs may be considered for other vacant positions and could be managed and shared through our proprietary tools and/or those of the client company.