Head of Procurement

Description
Who is Defined.ai? Well, from a technical point of view, we leverage the power of a global crowd to provide some of the world’s biggest companies with the high-quality data they need to power their artificial intelligence. We’re instrumental to the progression and development of artificial intelligence and we couldn’t be prouder or more inspired to be involved in an industry that is changing the world.
From a personal point of view, we’re a group of big thinkers, high achievers and creative problem solvers. We bond over our shared love of software engineering, data science, and strong coffee. We like online gaming, running marathons, and team drinks. We celebrate authenticity and diversity and we’re invested in what we do. Our mission? World domination, obviously!
About the Role
We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced Head of Procurement to lead our team and play a key role in sourcing and managing strategic service providers. You will be responsible for the entire procurement lifecycle for services, from identifying needs and developing specifications to negotiating contracts, managing suppliers, and ensuring service delivery meets organizational goals. This is a challenging and rewarding opportunity for a procurement professional who thrives in a dynamic environment and is passionate about delivering cost-effective, high-quality solutions.
What you’ll do

• Develop and implement sourcing strategies for complex and critical services, ensuring alignment with business objectives and risk management practices.
• Conduct market research, identify qualified service providers, and manage the Request for Proposal (RFP) process.
• Contract negotiations to secure the best possible terms and conditions, prioritizing value, quality, and risk mitigation.
• Lead a small team, fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Analyze existing processes, market trends and supplier performance to identify opportunities for cost savings and process improvements.
• Manage supplier relationships throughout the contract lifecycle, fostering collaboration and ensuring adherence to agreements.
• Define performance metrics (KPI’s) and service level agreements (SLAs), monitor, identify and addressing any issues promptly.
• Select and implement the best tools to improve organization and processes.
• Analyse procurement data, identify cost-saving opportunities, and recommend process improvements.
• Ability to analyse and create solutions for new areas and services.
• Stay up to date on industry trends and best practices in service procurement, particularly in the field of studio recording.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of procurement policies and procedures.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in service procurement, with a proven track record of success in complex contract negotiations.
• Strong understanding of procurement best practices, contract law, and risk management principles.
• Excellent negotiation, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Proven experience managing a team.
• Proficient in MS Office Suite, Jira and Salesforce or equivalent.
• Experience with data analysis and reporting tools preferred.
• Experience with Procurement Software.
• Knowledge of specific industry standards and regulations relevant to Artificial Intelligence (a plus).
• Experience in studio recording and/or audio engineering (a plus).
• Knowledge about the area of AI, particularly Speech and Studio work. (a plus)

Benefits
You spend a lot of your time at work, so it should be challenging, fun and interesting. At Defined.ai it will be all of those things and more. Here’s what we offer:

• Flexible working schedule and hybrid model. We know comfort can boost creativity and performance, so you can manage your schedule and work both from one of our modern office spaces or home.
• Excellent career development opportunities in a high growth company. With us, you can accomplish your career goals and follow a well-described career path with the support of your supervisor.
• Culture of feedback and continuous improvement. AI is a fast-paced area, so we keep track of tech trends, and we always ask for feedback.
• An international and diverse team. We have more than 30 nationalities at our 3 locations, and we provide language classes.
• Continuous training opportunities. You can choose from many options: leveraging hand-on workshops, unlimited access to Udemy and formal development opportunities.
• We love to have fun together. We joke a lot, and we can't imagine work without fun activities – we already surfed, raced carts and played soccer together.

About Us
Defined.ai offers a platform with multiple data delivery options that leverages machine learning technology and human intelligence to deliver quality-guaranteed training data for AI systems. The platform offers self-service and fully customizable solutions that deliver high-quality project-specific training data, enabling AI products reach market quicker. It is this business model that has allowed Defined.ai to raise a total of $63.6M in funding over 4 rounds. Our value proposition is quality, privacy, speed and scale, covering more than 50 different languages. With strong expertise in speech and natural language processing technologies, we have been serving AI companies and Fortune 500 companies since day one. Defined.ai was founded in Seattle and has an office in Lisbon.
Privacy Notice: https://defined.ai/dataset/privacy-notice-career