Category Specialist, Paper & Liner Team

Job Description:

Category Specialist

Collaborate with Innovative 3Mers Around the World

Choosing where to start and grow your career has a major impact on your professional and personal life, so it’s equally important you know that the company that you choose to work at, and its leaders, will support and guide you. With a wide variety of people, global locations, technologies and products, 3M is a place where you can collaborate with other curious, creative 3Mers.

This position provides an opportunity to transition from other private, public, government or military experience to a 3M career.

The Impact You’ll Make in this Role

As a Category Specialist, you will have the opportunity to tap into your curiosity and collaborate with some of the most innovative people around the world. Here, you will make an impact by:

Sourcing Category Leadership:

• Providing end-to-end sub-category leadership, serving as the global leader for the Repositionable Paper (Post-it®) and Wood Pulp procurement sub-categories
• Developing and implementing the global sub-category strategy to ensure business continuity, resilience, and value creation
• Driving year over year profitability & free cash flow improvements through moderate to complex supplier negotiation and development
• Influencing internal stakeholders to prioritize activities that drive cost reduction, working capital improvement, risk reduction, efficiency, and competitiveness for the global category
• Establishing and managing strategic supplier relationships that provide access to leading technologies and capabilities
• Negotiating and establishing moderate to complex vendor contract agreements, holding suppliers accountable to competitive prices, high quality and best in class service
• Creating solutions for moderate multi-faceted problems, which requires ingenuity, creativity, innovation, and strong analytical skills
• Business reviews with key stakeholders to support collaboration, service, capacity, market insights, savings pipeline, and performance improvement
• Managing change through effective project goal definition, scenario planning, data analysis, action tracking, and stakeholder alignment
• Participate, lead or recommend continuous improvement projects at suppliers, businesses or client sites
• Ensure the integration of sustainability and corporate responsibility into category strategies.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory and organizational policies.

Your Skills and Expertise 

To set you up for success in this role from day one, 3M requires (at a minimum) the following qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher (completed and verified prior to start)
• Two (2) years of combined experience in Sourcing, Procurement, Logistics, Supply Chain, Engineering and/or Manufacturing in a private, public, government or military environment

Additional qualifications that could help you succeed even further in this role include:

• Paper Science Degree
• Experience working with paper or other raw material roll-goods (e.g., films, nonwovens, etc.)
• Proven category leadership
• Demonstrated skills in category strategy development and managing stakeholders
• Strong negotiation skills and attention to detail
• Strong problem-solving skills
• Initiative, self-starter with a positive & proactive approach
• Excellent verbal and written communications
• Appropriately engages stakeholders at all levels of the organization
• Experience successfully collaborating with internal and external stakeholders on complex projects.
• Strong business, contract language and financial acumen with an understanding of end-to-end supply chain operations

Work location:

• On-site (4 days) Maplewood, MN

Travel: May include up to 15% domestic/international

Relocation Assistance: Not authorized

Must be legally authorized to work in country of employment without sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g., H1B status).

Supporting Your Well-being 

3M offers many programs to help you live your best life – both physically and financially. To ensure competitive pay and benefits, 3M regularly benchmarks with other companies that are comparable in size and scope. 

Chat with Max

For assistance with searching through our current job openings or for more information about all things 3M, visit Max, our virtual recruiting on 3M.com/careers. 

Applicable to US Applicants Only:The expected compensation range for this position is $109,202 - $133,469, which includes base pay plus variable incentive pay, if eligible. This range represents a good faith estimate for this position. The specific compensation offered to a candidate may vary based on factors including, but not limited to, the candidate’s relevant knowledge, training, skills, work location, and/or experience. In addition, this position may be eligible for a range of benefits (e.g., Medical, Dental & Vision, Health Savings Accounts, Health Care & Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts, Disability Benefits, Life Insurance, Voluntary Benefits, Paid Absences and Retirement Benefits, etc.). Additional information is available at: https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/careers-us/working-at-3m/benefits/.

Good Faith Posting Date Range 07/25/2025 To 08/24/2025 Or until filled

All US-based 3M full time employees will need to sign an employee agreement as a condition of employment with 3M. This agreement lays out key terms on using 3M Confidential Information and Trade Secrets. It also has provisions discussing conflicts of interest and how inventions are assigned. Employees that are Job Grade 7 or equivalent and above may also have obligations to not compete against 3M or solicit its employees or customers, both during their employment, and for a period after they leave 3M.

Learn more about 3M’s creative solutions to the world’s problems at www.3M.com or on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @3M.

Responsibilities of this position include that corporate policies, procedures and security standards are complied with while performing assigned duties.

Safety is a core value at 3M. All employees are expected to contribute to a strong Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) culture by following safety policies, identifying hazards, and engaging in continuous improvement.

Pay & Benefits Overview: https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/careers-us/working-at-3m/benefits/

3M does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Please note: your application may not be considered if you do not provide your education and work history, either by: 1) uploading a resume, or 2) entering the information into the application fields directly.

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