Category Manager - Directs
Shape the categories that create crave, differentiation and incremental growth across the Yum! system. Seasonings, sauces, marinades, dairy and desserts sit at the intersection of customer love, menu innovation and restaurant economics. This is a highly commercial category role with the opportunity to unlock Yum!’s bold ambition for sauces, strengthen the strategic role of desserts, and build a more competitive and resilient approach to dairy and ingredient sourcing across Europe.
You will combine deep commercial and commodity understanding with supplier innovation and category strategy, working horizontally across brands, markets, Innovation, Marketing, FSQA, Operations, Finance, franchisees and suppliers.
Yum! Europe is part of the One Yum! Supply Chain Centre of Excellence (COE), established to support KFC and Taco Bell with one supply chain, one purpose and one bold goal: unmatched profitability for every restaurant.
The COE works horizontally across brands, markets, functions, franchisees and suppliers to deliver safe, reliable and sustainable supply; improve restaurant economics; accelerate growth; and power brand strategies through world-class category management, strategic supplier partnerships, data, governance and innovation execution.
Role Puporse
Develop and execute the Seasonings, Sauces & Marinades, Dairy & Desserts category strategy for KFC and Taco Bell across UK&I and Europe, combining commercial excellence, commodity insight, supplier capability and innovation to deliver competitive advantage, growth and stronger restaurant economics.
A critical part of the role will be translating Yum!’s growth ambitions for sauces and desserts into a supplier, sourcing and commercial strategy capable of delivering at scale.
What will you do:
- Build and deliver a 3–5 year category strategy for sauces, seasonings, dairy and desserts, connecting brand growth, consumer trends, innovation, market economics and supplier capability.
Drive the growth ambitions for sauces and desserts, developing the supplier capability, commercial models and innovation pipeline needed to strengthen customer choice, differentiation and profitable growth.
Use commodity and market intelligence across dairy, oils, sugar, spices, seasonings and other key ingredients to shape sourcing decisions, manage risk and identify commercial opportunities.
Develop should-cost and cost-driver models to challenge supplier pricing and uncover value beyond traditional tendering.
Lead strategic sourcing, negotiations and supplier agreements, balancing cost, quality, innovation, capacity and supply resilience.
Build strategic supplier partnerships that unlock innovation, new products and technologies, productivity and long-term competitive advantage.
Identify opportunities to simplify specifications, aggregate demand and leverage Yum!’s European and global scale.
Manage supplier performance, commodity exposure, capacity and business continuity, acting as the category expert across Supply Chain, Marketing, Innovation, FSQA, Operations, Finance and franchisees.
What success looks like:
A clear multi-year strategy that accelerates growth across category scope.
Improved restaurant economics through savings, cost avoidance, commodity management and specification optimisation.
A stronger supplier ecosystem delivering innovation, insight, speed and commercial advantage.
Better visibility of commodity and ingredient economics, enabling smarter sourcing and pricing decisions.
Greater leverage of Yum!’s European and global scale.
Reliable supply, strong supplier performance and effective risk mitigation.
What will you bring:
8+ years’ experience in procurement, category management, strategic sourcing, commercial or supply chain roles, ideally within food, ingredients, FMCG, foodservice, QSR or retail.
Strong commercial acumen and experience using supplier economics, commodity markets and cost drivers to deliver commercial outcomes.
Knowledge of food commodity and ingredient markets such as dairy, oils, sugar, spices and seasonings.
Proven experience developing category strategies and leading complex sourcing, negotiations and long-term supplier agreements.
Experience partnering with suppliers on innovation, product commercialisation, capacity and continuous improvement.
Confidence using should-cost models, commodity indices, benchmarks and market intelligence to inform decisions.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to connect detailed ingredient economics with wider commercial and brand opportunities.
Strong stakeholder management across functions including Marketing, Innovation, FSQA, Operations and Finance.
Comfortable working with ambiguity, shaping strategy and developing categories with significant future growth potential.
How you will work:
Commercially sharp and externally curious — you understand what drives cost, where markets are moving and where new value can be created.
Consumer and restaurant focused — you connect category decisions to customer love, menu differentiation and restaurant economics.
Strategic but execution-oriented — you can define the long-term destination and translate it into sourcing decisions, supplier actions and measurable delivery.
Influential and collaborative — you bring brands, functions, markets, franchisees and suppliers together around a shared category agenda.
Working Pattern
Hybrid role based from Woking, with European market, restaurant and supplier travel as required.