Global Category Manager - Marketing Agency Procurement

Ecolab is seeking a Global Category Manager, Marketing Agency Procurement to join our Global Indirect Procurement organization in St. Paul, Minnesota. Reporting to the Senior Manager, Global Marketing, Travel & Fleet Procurement, you will own category management for global media, creative, public relations, digital and experiential agency services. As a trusted commercial advisor to global and regional Marketing leaders, you will translate marketing priorities, campaign requirements and business objectives into sourcing strategies and agency models that balance brand impact, speed, innovation, quality, risk and total value. This individual-contributor role leads through influence across Marketing, Finance, Legal, Communications, Digital, Sales and regional teams. As business needs evolve, you may assume responsibility for additional marketing services categories or broader enterprise priorities. What You Will Do: Own global category strategies for media, creative, public relations, digital and experiential agency services, including sourcing plans, market intelligence, supplier segmentation, value delivery, risk and compliance. Establish global frameworks while partnering with regional Procurement and Marketing teams on local requirements, sourcing execution, implementation and adoption. Maintain a global view of agency spend, demand, contracts, capabilities, geographic coverage and performance; align category strategies with brand, growth, demand-generation, customer-engagement and communications priorities. Evaluate agency operating models, including agency-of-record, roster, holding-company, specialist and project-based approaches, and recommend the right model based on business needs. Lead complex agency reviews, requests for proposal, supplier evaluations, negotiations, contracting, implementation and benefits realization. Develop business requirements, scopes of work, evaluation criteria and commercial models; assess fees, rate cards, staffing plans, production markups, incentives, pass-through costs, media buying economics, data access, measurement, audit rights and transparency provisions. Negotiate pricing, service levels, intellectual property and usage rights, data and measurement provisions, cancellation terms, audit rights and other commercial protections in partnership with Legal, Finance, Privacy, Information Security and control functions. Build trusted relationships with Marketing leaders, provide agency-market insights and executive-ready recommendations, and constructively challenge briefs, scopes and agency recommendations to improve competition, transparency, accountability and outcomes. Own supplier strategy and governance for key agencies through performance reviews, scorecards, issue resolution and improvement plans; monitor service, staffing quality, cost, innovation, compliance and stakeholder satisfaction. Use spend, rate, scope, utilization and performance data to identify opportunities, validate savings and cost avoidance with Finance, improve visibility into working and non-working investment, and support informed reinvestment decisions. Lead cross-functional implementation and change management following agency selections, operating-model changes and contract transitions while improving sourcing effectiveness, cycle time, quality and the agency experience. Drive adoption of procurement policies, systems and contracting standards, and escalate material risks, resource constraints and decisions with clear facts, options and recommendations. Position Details: Hybrid Role (3 days onsite at St. Paul, MN) Open to Relocation to St. Paul, MN Work schedule: Role requires flexibility to collaborate across multiple time zones. Minimum Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing, Communications, Finance or a related discipline. 7 years of experience in procurement, strategic sourcing, category management, marketing operations or agency commercial management, with…

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