Head of Procurement – Group Procurement & Strategic Sourcing

We’ve launched a newly established, centralized Group Procurement function, and we’re looking for the leader to build it. This is a ground-floor opportunity to shape procurement strategy, governance, and sourcing standards across the Group from day one.Role snapshot:🔹 Position: Head of Procurement, Group Procurement & Strategic Sourcing🔹 Department: Administration & Purchasing🔹 Location: Dubai, UAE🔹 Reports to: General Manager, Administration & PurchasingJob PurposeAl Khayyat Investments (AKI) is strengthening its newly established centralized procurement function to improve procurement governance, expenditure control, strategic sourcing, and cost optimization across its diversified business operations.The Group has recently implemented Coupa as its Procure-to-Pay (P2P) platform and is currently consolidating historical spending, collecting existing supplier contracts, standardizing procurement processes, and developing a unified purchasing framework across its business divisions.The Head of Procurement will be responsible for establishing a structured, transparent, and fully controlled procurement environment, ensuring that all applicable purchases are processed through approved channels, unauthorized and off-system purchasing is eliminated, and measurable commercial value is delivered to the Group.The successful candidate must demonstrate proven experience in procurement transformation, process enforcement, spend analytics, strategic sourcing, supplier management, and stakeholder engagement within a large, diversified organization.Key ResponsibilitiesA. Procurement Governance & Expenditure Control – Critical PriorityEstablish and enforce a Group-wide procurement policy, standard operating procedures, approval authority matrix, and purchasing controls.Eliminate unauthorized, direct, retrospective, and off-system purchases, ensuring all applicable expenditure follows the approved procurement process.Implement effective controls to prevent purchase order bypassing, purchase splitting, unauthorized supplier engagement, and non-compliant spending.Establish clear accountability across business divisions for compliance with procurement policies and approval procedures.Work closely with Finance to identify purchases made outside approved procurement channels and implement preventive controls.Develop a controlled exception and emergency purchasing process with proper approvals, justification, and audit trails.Regularly monitor procurement compliance, investigate deviations, and escalate repeated violations to management.Ensure appropriate segregation of duties and transparency throughout the procurement lifecycle.B. Coupa P2P Platform & Procurement DigitalizationTake ownership of procurement process adoption, compliance, and continuous improvement within the recently implemented Coupa platform.Ensure effective utilization of Coupa for purchase requisitions, sourcing events, purchase orders, supplier management, contracts, and catalogues, as applicable.Prior hands-on experience with Coupa is a significant advantage, particularly in P2P implementation, process configuration, adoption, reporting, and optimization.Collaborate with IT, Finance, and implementation partners to improve workflows, approval structures, reporting, and system controls.Drive user adoption across business divisions and reduce manual and off-system transactions.Identify opportunities to automate repetitive procurement activities and improve purchasing efficiency.Develop procurement dashboards to monitor expenditure, compliance, sourcing performance, and supplier activity.C. Spend Analysis & Procurement TransformationLead the consolidation, validation, and classification of historical and current expenditure across the Group.Coordinate with Finance and business divisions to reconcile procurement data, identify addressable spend, andestablish a reliable procurement baseline.Identify fragmented spending, supplier duplication, uncontrolled expenditure, and consolidation opportunities.Develop category-level spend analysis and prioritize high-value procurement opportunities.Establish a Group-wide procurement strategy and annual sourcing plan based on validated expenditure and businessrequirements.Support the collection and review of existing supplier contracts and planned purchasing requirements across business divisions.D. Strategic Sourcing & Cost OptimizationLead strategic sourcing, competitive tendering, supplier evaluation, and commercial negotiations across major indirect procurement categories.Manage sourcing activities covering facilities management, outsourced manpower, fleet services, logistics, IT, marketing, printing, professional services, and other corporate expenditure.Identify opportunities for supplier consolidation, economies of scale, competitive pricing, and sustainable cost reduction.Develop category strategies based on expenditure, market conditions, supplier capabilities, and operational requirements.Evaluate annual agreements, framework contracts, and catalogue pricing where commercially beneficial, without creating unnecessary long-term cost commitments.Ensure sourcing decisions are supported by documented technical and commercial evaluations.Deliver measurable and Finance-validated savings while maintaining quality, service levels, and business continuity.E. Supplier & Contract ManagementEstablish a structured supplier registration, qualification, evaluation, and performance management framework.Develop and maintain a centralized supplier and contract database.Negotiate favorable commercial terms, payment conditions, service-level agreements, warranties, and contractualprotections.Monitor supplier performance against agreed quality, cost, delivery, and service standards.Coordinate with Legal and relevant stakeholders on contract reviews, renewals, and supplier-related risks.Develop preferred supplier arrangements and approved catalogues for frequently purchased goods and services.F. Stakeholder Management & Team LeadershipLead and develop the procurement team, establishing clear responsibilities, performance expectations, and accountability.Work closely with Finance, IT, Legal, and AKI business divisions to align procurement requirements with operational priorities.Challenge unjustified purchasing requests and recommend alternative solutions where commercially appropriate.Establish effective communication and escalation mechanisms to resolve procurement issues.Promote a culture of procurement discipline, transparency, compliance, and commercial accountability.Ensure procurement delivers timely service to business units without compromising governance and controls.Qualifications & ExperienceBachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Procurement, Business Administration, Finance, or a related discipline.Minimum 10–12 years of progressive procurement experience, including at least 5 years in a senior procurement leadership role.Proven experience establishing, centralizing, or transforming procurement functions within large, diversified organizations.Demonstrated success in implementing procurement governance, preventing off-system purchasing, and enforcing P2P compliance.Strong experience in strategic sourcing, indirect procurement, spend analysis, contract negotiation, and supplier management.Practical experience with enterprise P2P platforms; hands-on Coupa experience is highly preferred and will be a major advantage.Experience managing significant procurement expenditure across multiple business divisions and legal entities.Strong knowledge of UAE procurement practices, supplier markets, and commercial contracting.Professional qualifications such as MCIPS, CPSM, or equivalent are advantageous.Excellent leadership, negotiation, analytical, communication, and stakeholder management skills.Arabic-speaking is preferredExperience in family businesses and diversified business groupsKey Expectations – First Six MonthsThe successful candidate will be expected to:Procurement Governance: Assess existing procurement practices and implement controls to eliminate unauthorized, retrospective, and off-system purchases.Spend Visibility: Establish a consolidated, Finance-validated addressable procurement spend baseline across all business divisions.Contract & Catalogue Adoption: Develop and execute a structured plan to move at least 85% of eligible purchases through approved contracts and catalogue items in Coupa, prioritizing recurring and high-value categories.Savings Target: Establish and deliver against a procurement savings plan targeting a minimum 5% annualized savings on validated addressable spend, with savings verified by Finance and supported by measurable sourcing initiatives.Supplier Consolidation: Review existing suppliers and contracts, eliminate unnecessary duplication, and establish preferred supplier agreements where commercially beneficial.Coupa Optimization: Improve platform adoption, automate purchasing workflows, and maximize compliance with approved procurement procedures.Strategic Sourcing: Identify and initiate sourcing initiatives for major expenditure categories, with clear savings opportunities and implementation timelines.Performance Reporting: Introduce monthly procurement dashboards covering compliance, contract and catalogue utilization, expenditure, savings, supplier performance, and outstanding sourcing activities.Transformation Roadmap: Present a structured 12-month procurement development plan with measurable milestones