Senior Vendor Manager (m/f/d)

About us:  

Passion for food. Hunger for tech. We make METRO digital.  

Today technology is driving the world. And at METRO.digital we are driving the technology for one of the leading international wholesalers specializing in food - METRO. From e-commerce to checkout, to delivery software, we work on a wide range of products to make each day a success for our customers and colleagues. With passion and ownership, we build the future of wholesale.   

You are driving to create smart solutions for customers around the globe? You want to grow in a flexible environment? Let the right career opportunity find you and join us!  

How will you make an impact?  

As Senior Vendor Manager for Strategic IT Services, you will own and shape our end-to-end vendor governance model and act as the single point of accountability for our most critical IT service partners, which are global leaders in the IT services industry. This role is not operational or technical support, it is a senior role with direct influence on external service quality, commercial outcomes and long-term partner strategy. 

You will operate at operational, tactical and strategic levels, ensuring that our partners consistently deliver business value to METRO while meeting required performance, contracted quality and commercial expectations. 

Your Responsibilities:  

Strategic IT Partner Ownership 

• Own the Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) for a defined set of strategic IT services partners (e.g. cloud and infrastructure services, application services, managed services, development partners). 
• Act as the counterpart to senior vendor leadership, driving long-term collaboration and continuous improvement. 
• Contribute to define and steer partner strategies, including vendor positioning, consolidation and capability development. 

Governance & Performance Management 

• Design, run and continuously improve the vendor governance framework:                                               - Operational reviews (service quality, incidents, delivery performance)                                                  - Tactical reviews (KPIs, SLAs, financials, demand outlook)                                                                    - Strategic reviews (roadmaps, innovation, risk, transformation) 
• Ensure transparent, data-driven performance management using KPIs, scorecards, and service reporting. 
• Lead escalation management, conflict resolution and structured back-to-green plans when performance deviates. 

Required key competencies and qualifications: 

• 5+ years of professional experience in Vendor Management, IT Procurement, IT Service Management or a comparable role. 
• Proven track record managing large, international, complex IT service providers in a global or enterprise environment. 
• Extensive knowledge of IT service delivery models including managed services, time and materials (T&M) and outcome-based approaches. Certifications such as ITIL and SIAM along with practical experience in ServiceNow demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning and maintaining knowledge. 
• Strong experience with governance structures, SLAs, KPIs, and executive-level reviews. 
• Ability to challenge vendors constructively and drive outcomes without formal authority. 

Leadership & Mindset 

• presence and confidence in interactions with executives—internally and externally. 
• Structured, analytical and fact-based decision-maker. 
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity, conflicts and high-stakes situations. 
• Clear communicator who can translate complexity into actions. 

Languages 

• Fluent in English and German (both mandatory).

What we offer at METRO.digital?    

• Hybrid and agile work: thrive in a flexible, multicultural environment.

At METRO.digital, we promote work-life balance through a hybrid working model. You’ll be part of self-organizing, multicultural teams that collaborate in an agile setup.

• People development: when you grow so do we!

We want you to become the best version of yourself with individual and company-wide programs and trainings for people development. Focused among other on development, leadership, appreciation ... it´s time to upskill your career.

• Support with individual solutions: we are people-caring!

We offer support whenever you need it - at every stage of your professional journey.

Want to know more about all our benefits? Discover more here. 

Let´s connect soon. Apply for the role now!    

Position grade within our career framework: Procurement Consultant Grade 4 (Md8).