Strategic Procurement Manager - Tech & Telco

About the role

Circles is looking for an experienced procurement professional to support strategic sourcing and vendor negotiations across technology, telco business systems, SaaS, cloud, AI, hardware, software, and professional services. This is an individual contributor role to start with , focused on hands-on sourcing, negotiation, stakeholder management, and vendor performance. There will be an opportunity for this person to help shape the procurement operating model and potentially grow into a team leadership role. The ideal candidate should have experience negotiating with technology and telco solution vendors such as Oracle, Huawei, Zendesk, hyperscale cloud providers, SaaS vendors, system integrators, and professional services providers. They should be comfortable working in a fast-paced, dynamic environment and able to manage issues independently while knowing when to escalate. The candidate will be working on procurement operations for multiple markets at the same time

Responsibilities

• Lead sourcing and negotiation for technology and telco-related spend e.g. hardware, software, SaaS, cloud, AI services, and professional services.
• Support procurement for new SaaS implementation projects, including vendor evaluation, commercial negotiation, pricing review, contract support, and implementation-related services.
• Manage key and critical vendor renewals for SaaS and enterprise platforms to ensure competitive pricing, service continuity, and strong commercial terms.
• Partner with Engineering, Product, IT, Finance, Legal, and business owners to understand technical requirements, business needs, timelines, and risks.
• Drive cost optimization across the spend e.g. SaaS, cloud, AI, software licensing, vendor renewals, and professional services.
• Support contract review and governance, including commercial terms, SLAs, renewal controls, termination rights, compliance, and risk protections.
• Track supplier performance, including cost, quality, delivery, responsiveness, and service levels.
• Work closely with the procurement operations team to ensure smooth execution, documentation, approvals, and follow-through.

Requirements

• Min 8-10 years of procurement, strategic sourcing, vendor management, or commercial management experience, preferably in telco, technology, SaaS, cloud, or enterprise software.
• Experience negotiating with major technology or telco vendors such as Oracle, Huawei, Zendesk, hyperscale cloud providers, SaaS vendors, system integrators, and professional services providers..
• Strong understanding of SaaS, software licensing, cloud/AI services, hardware, support, maintenance, and professional services commercial models.
• Proven experience in cost optimization, vendor negotiation, renewals, commercial benchmarking, or demand management.
• Ability to work with technical stakeholders and translate business and technical needs into sourcing and negotiation plans.
• Strong stakeholder management, communication, negotiation, and problem-solving skills.
• Able to work independently in a fast-paced environment, manage stress well, resolve issues proactively, and seek guidance when appropriate.
• Experience with telco BSS/OSS, billing, charging, CRM,, cloud infrastructure, AI platforms, or enterp

Additional Information

Founded in 2014, Circles is a global technology company reimagining the telco industry with its innovative SaaS platform, empowering telco operators worldwide to effortlessly launch innovative digital brands or refresh existing ones, accelerating their transformation into techcos. Today, Circles partners with leading telco operators across multiple countries and continents, including KDDI Corporation, Etisalat Group (e&), AT&T, and Telkomsel, creating blueprints for future telco and digital experiences enjoyed by millions of consumers globally. Besides its SaaS business, Circles operates three other distinct businesses: Circles.Life : A wholly-owned digital lifestyle telco brand based in Singapore, Circles.Life is powered by Circles ' SaaS platform and pioneering go-to-market strategies. It is the digital market leader in Singapore and has won numerous awards for marketing, customer service, and innovative product offerings beyond connectivity. Circles Aspire : A global provider of Communications Platform-as-a-Service (CPaaS) solutions. Its cloud-based Experience Cloud platform enables enterprises, service providers and developers to deliver and scale mobile, messaging, IoT, and connectivity services worldwide. Jetpac : Specializing in travel tech solutions, Jetpac provides seamless eSIM roaming for over 200 destinations and innovative travel lifestyle products, redefining connectivity for digital travelers. Jetpac was awarded Travel eSIM of the Year. Circles is backed by renowned global investors, including Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia), Warburg Pincus, Founders Fund, and EDBI (the investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board), with a track record of backing industry challengers.

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