Procurement and Supply Apprentice

Procurement and Supply Apprentice

St Pancras Square, London, UK

Starting base salary of £23,500 + 11% benefits fund + bonus.

At AstraZeneca, we put patients first and strive to meet their unmet needs worldwide. We’re deeply committed to our strategy of being a great place to work. For us, that includes fostering an environment where everyone can be among inclusive, supportive individuals with curious minds.

A company that genuinely follows the science and values individuals at all levels, you’ll be backed and encouraged to speak up, ask questions, and share ideas to push the boundaries of science and continuously learn and explore.

Make the start of your journey a life changing one!

As part of our Early Talent Programme, you’ll be involved in projects and learning opportunities that have real impact from day one.

Being part of our journey and helping us to provide life changing medicine to patients all over the world and transform lives for the better. Making important contributions and embracing our values to deliver on our purpose. Because regardless of role or level, we all have an important part to play in making a positive difference.

About the Apprenticeship Programme

Have you ever searched for the most competitive mobile phone contract? What did you consider? The term of the contract, the cost, the data allowance, the phone?

As part of our Early Talent Programme in the Procurement function at AstraZeneca, your role will be an extension of this – we will expect you to understand, evaluate and negotiate for goods and services required by AstraZeneca with support from experienced colleagues. You’ll be involved with staff at all levels of the organisation both in the UK and abroad, you’ll be involved in projects and learning opportunities that have real impact from day one.

In addition to gaining valuable working experience you will have the opportunity to study towards professional qualifications whilst earning a competitive salary. You will be supported throughout your apprenticeship by mentors and managers committed to developing your full potential within AstraZeneca.

What does the AstraZeneca Procurement function do?

The Procurement function helps the business buy what they need across multiple categories of spend. To help visualise this, think of a supermarket with fridge, freezer, canned, dried, fresh and seasonal items on sale – each of these categories have specific elements to consider for purchase, storage and sale. In AstraZeneca we also categorise our spend into areas such as Facilities Management (the services needed to run our sites like catering, gardening, postal services) to Laboratory Equipment to Advertising Materials or Meeting and Events, this categorisation helps us understand in more detail what we are buying, who the best suppliers are for these services and it also helps us leverage our spend.  

In this role you will be ultimately reporting to the Procurement Lead at the Sales and Marketing company, where approximately 50 of our  ~360 category areas are supported.

You'll be working with procurement professionals managing a wide range of categories, all of which have a pivotal role in driving the competitive advantage of AstraZeneca as a company but in addition you will be immersed in the Sales and Marketing Company. You will interact with many staff including  - Brand Mangers, Finance Business Partners, Medical Affairs Managers, Policy Leads and Data, Insights, Digital and Innovation roles.

You will be expected to learn about the categories of spend you are supporting, so one minute you might be learning about an advertising campaign to a doctor and the next you maybe buying market research data to understand how our drugs are selling across the different areas of the UK to provide insight to our sales teams.

During this 2-year program, you'll have the opportunity to experience the full procurement lifecycle from; understanding & defining the goods & services the business needs,  developing specifications, through to selecting suppliers, requesting proposals, evaluating and negotiating, contracting, setting up suppliers in our financial systems, risk assessing suppliers, raising purchase orders, paying suppliers and managing supplier relationships, performance and improvement.

The challenge of your job will be to deliver outstanding value to AstraZeneca, ensuring every pound is spent wisely and that the goods and services we receive from our suppliers meet our needs fully.

Whichever role you perform, you will:

• Build knowledge of ~40/50 category areas & the staff of the UKMC Marketing Company

• Have an important, contributing role in the team

• Drive your own development, through formal learning and/or experience

• Be able to build core skills, such as presenting, influencing, stakeholder engagement & management etc.

• Maintain a strong peer network with your fellow apprentices & our other Early Talent employees

• Have the opportunity to get involved in activities that benefit society and our local areas, such as charity fundraising, helping school leavers decide on their next steps, building exposure of technology to students etc.

• Benefit from working in diverse, global company where we value and embrace the advantage true diversity can bring to a workplace…you may even get the opportunity to visit your colleagues in other countries

Training and Development

The apprenticeship combines working, earning a full-time salary, with fully funded part-time learning (on average 1 day/week). This will give you the opportunity to gain a CIPS Level 4 Diploma in Procurement and Supply

https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/commercial-procurement-and-supply-formerly-public-sector-commercial-professional/with the advantage of gaining relevant work-life skills and the excitement of helping to develop new medicines whilst taking your first steps towards a rewarding career.

We truly value Early Talent– their thoughts, ideas and contributions. So throughout the programme, you’ll be encouraged and inspired to speak up, have a voice and make an impact.

Skills and Capabilities

• A strong desire to learn

• Great communication and influencing skills

• A curious attitude, quick and agile thinker

• Interest in data analysis and interpretation

• The ability to work as part of a team

• Strong organisation skills

• Demonstrable initiative & self motivation

Entry Requirements

• 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) grades 9 to 4 including English and Maths

• To have achieved or predicted to achieve 3 A-level (grades CCC) or equivalent (96 UCAS points)

Benefits, open and close dates

To apply for this position, please click the apply link.

Opening date of advert: 17th June2024

Closing date of advert: 7th July 2024

Successful candidates will be asked to attend a virtual Assessment Day.

Should you require any reasonable adjustments or accommodations, please let us know on your application.

At AstraZeneca, we aim to set you up for success, and we recognise the challenges that starting a new job can bring. We therefore offer a relocation package to help with the costs and process of moving for candidates who currently live more than 60 minutes from the site location for this Apprenticeship

Should you require any reasonable adjustments or accommodations, please let us know on your application.

This is a 2 -year fixed term contract opportunity.

Start date for the apprenticeship programme is 2nd September 2024

Where can I find out more?

Our Social Media, Follow AstraZeneca on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/1603/

Inclusion & Diversity: https://careers.astrazeneca.com/inclusion-diversity

Career Site: https://careers.astrazeneca.com/