What are the responsibilities and job description for the Indirect Procurement Category Manager position at Waymo?
Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with the mission to be the world's most trusted driver. Since its start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has focused on building the Waymo Driver-The World's Most Experienced Driver-to improve access to mobility while saving thousands of lives now lost to traffic crashes. The Waymo Driver powers Waymo's fully autonomous ride-hail service and can also be applied to a range of vehicle platforms and product use cases. The Waymo Driver has provided over ten million rider-only trips, enabled by its experience autonomously driving over 100 million miles on public roads and tens of billions in simulation across 15 U.S. states.
Waymo's Procurement and Vendor Enablement Office is a diverse, collaborative, and service-oriented group with a mission to efficiently procure indirect goods and services, build supplier relationships, and support outsourcing excellence to achieve Waymo's growth goals. In this highly visible role, you will be the strategic procurement lead for two of our most critical growth engines: Marketing Services and Operational Center Services (our core Rider Support for autonomous vehicle operations). You will design the external workforce and agency architecture that scales our brand and ensures an impeccable, safe experience for every Waymo rider.
You will:
- Portfolio Versatility: Lead end-to-end category management for a highly diverse portfolio, balancing SLA-driven Rider Support/Call Center BPOs with subjective, ROI-driven Marketing and Creative Agency partnerships.
- Operational Center Strategy: Partner with Operations leaders to design and procure the external footprint for our Rider Support centers, ensuring hyper-scalable, high-quality customer experience (CX) vendor solutions as we launch in new cities.
- Marketing Agency Management: Lead complex negotiations for creative, media, and PR agency retainers, establishing outcome-based commercial models and ensuring strict IP and brand protection.
- Strategic Sourcing: Lead the end-to-end RFX process, build multi-year category strategies, and oversee complex, Waymo-wide supplier relations to maximize value creation and total cost of ownership (TCO).
- Risk & Governance:Negotiate and draft Master Services Agreements (MSAs) and Statements of Work (SOWs) that minimize business risk, specifically focusing on data privacy for Rider Support and liability caps for Marketing output.
You have:
- At least 10 years of procurement experience, including 7 years focusing heavily on Marketing Services, BPO/Call Center Operations, or Customer Experience (CX) outsourcing.
- Expertise in managing large-scale global BPO deals, including cost-per-productive-hour (CPPH) models, staffing ratios, and rigorous SLA/penalty frameworks.
- Deep understanding of marketing procurement nuances, including agency fee models (retainer vs. project), media buying transparency, and creative production costs.
- Proven ability to perform make-versus-buy outsourcing analyses and develop TCO models for high-headcount operations.
- Excellent executive presence with the ability to influence creative marketing leaders and highly analytical operations directors alike.
We prefer:
- Experience in the autonomous vehicle, rideshare, or hyper-growth tech sectors partnering with suppliers to deliver 24/7 customer support.
- Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Supply Chain, or equivalent education and work experience.
- Internal or external business consulting experience related to organizational design or vendor ecosystem transformation.
Please note that Waymo may not be able to employ remotely in all locations. Please speak with your recruiter about your preferred location for remote work when you begin the interview process.
The expected base salary range for this full-time position across US locations is listed below. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the role location or, if the role can be performed remote, the specific salary range for your preferred location, during the hiring process.
Waymo employees are also eligible to participate in Waymo's discretionary annual bonus program, equity incentive plan, and generous Company benefits program, subject to eligibility requirements.
Salary : $190,000 - $234,000