Category Management Specialist-Packaging & Specialty Materials

We anticipate the application window for this opening will close on - 5 Jul 2026

Careers that change lives start here. Medtronic is a global leader in healthcare technology with a Mission to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life. Our 95,000 employees work across more than 150 countries to put patients first - developing innovative medical technologies that improve the lives of 72+ million patients each year. Your unique talents will help shape the future of healthcare while building a career grounded in purpose, growth, and impact.

** A Day in the Life*
* At Medtronic, we not only get the opportunity to manage categories for the largest medical device company in the world, but we also get to experience the immense sense of purpose that comes from knowing that the money we save is reinvested into technology that helps alleviate pain, restore health and extend lives of millions of patients across the world.  The work we do supports the Medtronic Mission and it matters.

This is a global role that allows you to partner with stakeholders across many functions, regions, and businesses to drive value.  Strong business acumen and prior sourcing experience are a must as you will be called upon to support complex engagements with strategic partners.

The Category Management Specialist is a key contributor within Medtronic's Global Materials & Contract Manufacturing organization. In this role, you will help shape and execute category strategies, manage inflationary pressures, drive cost‑savings initiatives, support contract negotiations, and enable pan‑Medtronic category management processes. Your work will directly influence cost, continuity of supply, and supplier performance across the enterprise.

At Medtronic, we bring bold ideas forward with speed and decisiveness to put patients first in everything we do. In-person exchanges are invaluable to our work. We're working a minimum of 4 days a week onsite as part of our commitment to fostering a culture of professional growth and cross-functional collaboration as we work together to engineer the extraordinary. 

Our team culture is grounded in the principle of "Lead from Every Seat." Regardless of level or title, everyone is expected to be bold, curious, accountable, and proactive in tackling challenges and bringing forward solutions. The successful candidate will be comfortable working both independently and collaboratively, will build trust with cross‑functional and external partners, and will confidently influence decisions through strong insights, clear communication, and disciplined execution.

As a Category Management Specialist, you will:

** Support Supplier Relationship Management*
* + Strengthen supplier relationships while partnering closely with internal stakeholders

+ Actively engage suppliers to support performance, alignment, and issue resolution

** Unlock Category Strategy Through Execution*
* + Execute category strategies and convert implementation plans into business results.

+ Support strategy development and execution across defined sub‑categories and initiatives.

** Turn Market Intelligence into Advantage*
* + Monitor market intelligence and industry trends to anticipate risks and opportunities.

+ Convert insights into proactive, actionable sourcing strategies.

** Manage Inflation and Drive Savings*
* + Negotiate supplier price changes and tariff requests using data‑driven insights and category strategies to limit inflationary impact.

+ Engage suppliers and Medtronic stakeholders to unlock process, technical, and commercial savings levers

** Enable High Impact Negotiations*
* + Support negotiations by preparing RFx packages, cost models, and negotiation strategies.

+ Participate in supplier discussions and ensure commercial commitments translate into year-over-year performance improvements.

** Lead Continuous Improvement & Strategic Initiatives*
* + Develop and deploy standard work, drive continuous improvement and strategic initiatives, and apply benchmarking and industry best practices to enhance category performance.

+ Lead and manage cross‑functional initiatives, preparing and delivering clear updates on progress, risks, and results to…