Global Strategic Sourcing Senior Manager
About the job
- A university degree at Bachelor's or Master's level; Business or Procurement is preferred.
- An extensive track record, ideally 8–10 years of professional experience in procurement and commercial roles in large-scale, complex multinational environments, including 2–5+ years in a senior leadership or similar role with global exposure and strategic responsibilities.
- Strong, proven experience in marketing and sales procurement.
- Experience sourcing marketing services, market research, or insights is highly preferred.
- Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, with a track record of successfully partnering with senior business and marketing leaders.
- Strong analytical, problem-solving, and financial acumen to evaluate supplier proposals and market trends.
- A strong understanding of modern technology and a proven track record using automation and digital tools to drive productivity and streamline procurement workflows.
- Familiarity with modern artificial intelligence tools and generative technologies, including understanding their current uses and how to leverage them to work more efficiently.
- Proven project management skills and the ability to independently manage complex regional and global portfolios.
- Full fluency in written and spoken English.
- Develop and execute sourcing strategies across the Content team using the official Mars framework, with primary responsibility for the market research and insights sub-section.
- Own Marketing services subcategory spend regionally across EU, CEAB, and APMEA and globally, driving harmonization and automation as a member of the Global Category Team.
- Develop and implement regional and global contracts with marketing agencies and suppliers to secure favorable pricing, volume rebates, service levels, and delivery capacity, generating savings and efficiencies.
- Partner with and co-pilot key stakeholders, especially senior marketing leaders, to align sourcing strategies with business needs.
- Act as a subject matter expert, providing market and financial insights and applying internal and external business knowledge to improve procured services.
- Provide guidance to colleagues and support junior team members in executing projects and building the Commercial team.
- Drive projects across Mars, taking responsibility for one Demand capability area and leading broader Content team delivery within Commercial Demand for one division.
- Experience sourcing marketing services, market research, or insights is highly preferred.
- Business or Procurement is the preferred university degree field.
About the company
Mars, Incorporated makes and sells a wide range of food, confectionery, and petcare products worldwide, with brands like M&M’s, Snickers, Milky Way, Dove, Orbit, Skittles, Pedigree, and Royal Canin, and it also operates pet health services through networks such as AniCura, Banfield, BluePearl, and VCA. Its products come from integrated manufacturing and distribution systems, delivering everyday treats and meals as well as veterinary care through a global network of partners. Mars differentiates itself through its diversified portfolio, long family ownership, and the Mars Five Principles—Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency, and Freedom—that guide decisions and actions. The company aims to help communities prosper and improve social and environmental outcomes while growing its business and scale.
Company Size
10,001+
Company Stage
Debt Financing
Total Funding
$27B
Headquarters
McLean, Virginia
Founded
1911
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- Mars Impact Fund granted over $13 million in 2026 to resilience and animal wellbeing.
- Mars Snacking added 600 Chicago jobs and committed $100 million to headquarters expansion.
- Mars completed CA$180 million Ontario upgrades in 2026, lifting pet nutrition and snack capacity.
What critics are saying
- Nature's Bakery closes Hazelwood by September 2027, signaling integration waste and demand misreads.
- Mars Wrigley cut 307 Newark jobs and relocated headquarters, exposing ongoing restructuring pressure.
- A failed Kellanova integration would erase expected scale benefits and hand rivals PepsiCo share.
What makes Mars unique
- Mars runs pet care, snacking, and food with 2026 Google Cloud Gemini Enterprise rollout.
- Mars controls nine billion-dollar snacking brands after Kellanova approval on 2026-09-09.
- Mars owns VCA, Banfield, Royal Canin, and global pet distribution across 145 markets.
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Benefits
Professional Development Budget
Conference Attendance Budget
Performance Bonus
Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
10%1 year growth
10%2 year growth
10%Mars Incorporated has awarded more than $13 million in grants through its Mars Impact Fund to six organisations across Côte d'Ivoire, India, the United States and Thailand. The multi-year partnerships with Elucid, Tanager, Pratham Education Foundation, People's Action for National Integration, National 4-H Council and Worldwide Veterinary Service focus on three priorities: strengthening resilience in Mars sourcing communities, developing future scientists and improving companion animal wellbeing. Key investments include $2.07 million to Elucid for healthcare access for cocoa-farming households in Côte d'Ivoire, $5.6 million for mint-farming communities in India and $3 million to National 4-H Council to engage 200,000 young people in food and agriculture careers. The fund also committed $3 million to Worldwide Veterinary Service for rabies elimination efforts in Thailand.
Mars has appointed Christina Ruggiero as Regional President of its Pet Nutrition Division for North America, effective 1 July. She will oversee brands including Pedigree, Iams, Sheba, Cesar, Greenies, Temptations and Nutro across the United States and Canada. Ruggiero joins from Coca-Cola, where she served as President of the Global Nutrition Category, leading a $9 billion portfolio that included Minute Maid, Simply and Fairlife. She previously spent nearly four years in India as CEO of Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages, where she doubled the company's net worth. In her new role, Ruggiero will focus on science-backed innovation, omnichannel growth and digital acceleration. Mars operates a $65 billion business with approximately 170,000 associates worldwide.
Mars Wrigley will lay off 307 workers and relocate its US headquarters from Newark, New Jersey, to Chicago by mid-October. The candymaker, which produces M&M's, Snickers, Twix and Skittles, filed a WARN notice with New Jersey signalling the job cuts will end the company's presence in Newark. The move follows a $100 million investment to expand Mars Wrigley's Chicago facilities, where its global headquarters is now based. The company will continue operating its manufacturing facility in Hackettstown, New Jersey. The New Jersey Business & Industry Association warned the departure signals the state needs to improve its business climate. New Jersey has lost over 9,700 jobs through WARN notices this year, with Samsung and ExxonMobil also announcing recent departures.
Mars-owned snacks brand Nature's Bakery is permanently closing its manufacturing plant in Hazelwood, Missouri. Production will shift to other facilities, with the site expected to remain operational until a full shutdown in September 2027. According to a local government filing, 130 employees will leave on 11 September, followed by 215 more in February 2027. All affected staff have been notified and can seek alternative positions within Nature's Bakery or Mars. In January 2024, Mars announced a $237m investment in a new Nature's Bakery factory in Salt Lake City, Utah. Mars acquired Nature's Bakery in 2020 through its Kind snacking business and recently completed a $35.9bn acquisition of Kellanova in December.
Mars, Incorporated is renewing its partnership with the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings through a three-year, €1.5 million grant from the Mars Impact Fund. The funding will support fellowships for 30 young scientists annually to attend the meetings, which bring together Nobel Laureates and emerging researchers. Mars has partnered with the Meetings since 2007, but this marks the first collaboration through its Impact Fund, launched in early 2026. The grant aims to strengthen access for scientists who otherwise couldn't participate and support programming that fosters dialogue and learning. The partnership was celebrated at the 75th annual Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings in Germany, where Mars hosted events focused on interdisciplinary science. Michelle Grogg, Executive Director of the Mars Impact Fund, said the collaboration reflects the Fund's commitment to diversifying the global scientific pipeline.