Head of Procurement

About this role

Responsibilities

• As Head of Procurement, you will establish Procurement as an enabling function — built to support the business, not constrain it. Reporting directly to the COO, you will own governance, category strategy and sourcing processes for major OPEX spend categories, while setting standards and providing advisory support to functional teams on procurement best practices.
• Procurement drives the governance on the tools and best practices to actively manage key supplier relationships and lead critical negotiations, while building a network of Procurement Champions within functional teams to handle smaller, non-strategic procurement. The function does not place orders, nor does it make unilateral decisions on supplier or product selection — those decisions remain with the business. What Procurement does is bring rigour, expertise and oversight to ensure Fastned gets the best value from its supplier relationships while safeguarding the company's financial stability.
• Build the foundation
• Define how Procurement operates at Fastned — establishing the governance: processes, templates, approval frameworks and sourcing standards that the whole organisation can work with
• Set spend thresholds and approval hierarchies
• Create RFP and contract templates
• Create an overview that outlines what Procurement owns, where it plays an advisory role and where the business teams have their own responsibility.
• Develop category and supplier strategies
• Map Fastned's major indirect spend categories — from operations & maintenance to software and professional services
• Develop the framework of sourcing strategies, tailored for each category, including preferred supplier panels and framework agreements
• Use your experience in supporting the functional teams in maintaining and growing strong relationships with our most strategic partners
• Lead critical negotiations
• Take the lead on commercial and contractual negotiations with key suppliers, and critical service providers
• Work closely with Legal to ensure contracts are sound, risk is managed and business needs are well protected
• Drive supplier performance
• Put in place a structured review process for our top strategic suppliers, tracking performance on cost, quality, delivery and ESG
• Develop the escalation path when issues arise and work with the business to resolve them
• Deliver spend visibility and savings
• Build a clear picture of what Fastned spends, with whom and where the opportunities lie, in close collaboration with Finance
• Work toward measurable cost reductions on addressable indirect spend within the first 18–24 months
• Grow the team and the network
• Build and develop the Procurement team and bring in the right talent
• Establish a network of Procurement Champions embedded in functional teams — ensuring good procurement practice reaches across the organisation without centralising everything
• Your Profile
• Fluent in English; fluent Dutch would be a great advantage and fluent German or French is a nice plus
• 10+ years procurement or supply chain experience in complex, multi-geography environments
• Experience in leading procurement functions, particularly in capital-intensive or operations-heavy industries
• Strong commercial negotiation and contract management skills
• Experience in building procurement teams and establishing governance frameworks
• Knowledge of supply chain risk management and supplier relationship management
• A true builder mentality — you are energised by creating structure, comfortable with ambiguity and able to make progress without established processes or a large team behind you
• Strong stakeholder management skills and the ability to drive change through influence rather than authority — you are fun to work with and know how to bring people along, not just set the rules
• You bring a genuine passion for the energy transition — and you understand how responsible sourcing and supplier relationships can make a real difference in a sustainability-driven company like Fastned
• We know that great candidates do not always tick every box. If you are excited about this role and believe you can make an impact, we encourage you to apply even if your experience does not match every requirement.
• Join us in building a better future!
• We work hard to change the world, but we don't forget to recognise & celebrate our successes, big and small. We put a focus on work-life balance, provide you with genuine work flexibility and have family-friendly policies in place.
• Our benefits include:
• Stock option plan - we believe in shared value creation.
• Attractive Pension plan fully covered by Fastned.
• Company bonus plan.
• 29 holidays. Additionally, we give you 2 ‘Mission Days’ you can use to contribute to Fastned’s mission or to support a cause that is important to you.
• Fully electric company car.
• Yearly training budget of € 3000.
• Access to the mental health platform Nilo Health including 10 sessions with psychologists of your choice.
• Urban Sports Club Subscription.
• Additional parental benefits above legal minimum, including coaching via Foundtree.
• Accessibility to Women's Health platform Flouria.
• Daily lunches, snacks & drinks are provided at our office locations
• Company events year-round, including an exciting yearly trip abroad with all employees.
• Interested in making an impact? Apply today!
• We would love to have a conversation with you! Apply today, share your CV and explain in your motivation letter why you’re excited about joining Fastned’s mission in this impactful role. Our talent acquisition team will get back to all applicants in due time to share details about timing & structure of the upcoming recruitment process.
• Fastned stands for equity and inclusion. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, gender identities, sexual orientations, religions, neurodiversity, disabilities, parental status or any other protected characteristic that makes you unique.