Category Manager Safety

ABOUT THE ROLE

BirlaPivot is the B2B e-commerce and distribution platform of Grasim Industries (Aditya Birla Group). We are building a razor-focused Safety category asset-light and margin-accretive serving manufacturers pharma and EPC/infrastructure buyers across India.

This is a builders role. You will run the category ramp-up from the front: sign the OEM ecosystem set the assortment and pricing guarantee fulfilment and own the P&L. We are looking for a rock-solid operator who can take the category from launch to a multi-crore monthly run-rate and set the playbook while doing it.

WHAT WE NEED THE NON-NEGOTIABLES

The right person brings all six of these on day one:

1.Safety OEM ecosystem. A deep understanding of the safety OEM landscape having worked with all the top brands across every safety category with the relationships to back it.

2.Post-order mastery (OTIF). A deep grasp of the post-order journey and a demonstrated ability to deliver 99% OTIF against demand.

3.Ownership & hustle. Rolls up the sleeves and gets it done takes 100% ownership of every enquiry and every order that comes in.

4.Gross-margin track record. A proven record of improving gross margin by leveraging best industry practices.

5.Thrives in ambiguity. Operates in a large ambiguous environment and still drives high-performance high- impact outcomes for the category.

6.Growth across KPIs. Demonstrated growth across all core category KPIs not one metric the whole scorecard.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Supplier & OEM ecosystem Onboard and manage the top safety brands; negotiate commercial terms rebates and preferred/exclusive arrangements; build a reliable redundant supply base so we never miss demand.

Assortment pricing & margin Own the SKU strategy and right-spec selection; build the pricing and quote-to-order architecture with clear discount governance; relentlessly expand gross margin.

Private label / own brand Build the own-brand range as the categorys margin engine spec source certify and position value products against branded alternatives.

Fulfilment & post-order excellence Own OTIF (target 99%); design the post-order journey with operations and logistics; manage returns replacements and quality complaints to protect trust.

Enquiry & order ownership Take end-to-end ownership of every enquiry and order quote fast unblock issues and be the single escalation owner until its delivered and invoiced.

Category P&L & growth Own category revenue gross margin and contribution; deliver the ramp plan and grow every core KPI quarter on quarter. Cross-functional leadership Orchestrate sales and tele-calling operations finance/credit and product/tech to convert demand into fulfilled profitable orders and support the dedicated KAM motion.

Systems data & ERP Run the category on data build the dashboards work the platform/ERP and help integrate customers ERPs to make BirlaPivot their default for safety.

Compliance & quality Guarantee genuine certified products (BIS/ISI CE EN) and full regulatory adherence; zero tolerance on counterfeits.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE (FIRST 12 MONTHS)

You will be measured on the whole scorecard not a single line:

Revenue & run-rate deliver the category ramp to the agreed monthly run-rate.

Gross margin % expand margin via mix negotiation and private label.

OTIF sustain 99% on-time in-full against demand.

Supplier base active brands onboarded and year-on-year improvement in commercial terms.

Quote-to-order conversion & fill rate speed and reliability on every enquiry.

Private-label mix % grow own-brand share of category revenue.

Customer retention repeat rate & NPS turn first orders into standing accounts.

Working-capital efficiency keep the model asset-light and cash-smart.

MUST-HAVE QUALIFICATIONS

812 years in category management B2B distribution or industrial/safety products (adjust to band).

Direct experience in safety / PPE / industrial MRO strongly preferred with live OEM relationships.

Proven 01 or hyper-growth category scaling with hard numbers on revenue and margin.

Strong negotiation commercial acumen and data/analytics fluency (Excel/BI).

Bachelors in engineering or business; MBA preferred.

NICE TO HAVE

Exposure to private-label development and sourcing.

Familiarity with credit- and working-capital-led B2B models.

Experience building and leading a small category team.

Understanding of safety standards and certification regimes.

WHO YOU ARE

Owners mindset with a strong bias to action. Comfortable in ambiguity and energised by building. Data-driven customer-obsessed and uncompromising on integrity especially on genuine certified product. The kind of operator who runs toward the hard order not away from it.

Required Experience:

Manager