Global Category Manager Jobs in USA with Visa Sponsorship
Global Category Manager roles qualify for H-1B visa sponsorship as a specialty occupation, typically requiring a bachelor's degree in supply chain, business, or a related field. Employers in procurement-heavy industries file LCAs through DOL before sponsoring, making verified filing history a reliable signal of genuine sponsorship intent.
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Get Access To All JobsINTRODUCTION
Ecolab is seeking a Global Category Manager, Marketing Agency Procurement to join our Global Indirect Procurement organization in St. Paul, Minnesota. Reporting to the Senior Manager, Global Marketing, Travel & Fleet Procurement, you will own category management for global media, creative, public relations, digital and experiential agency services. As a trusted commercial advisor to global and regional Marketing leaders, you will translate marketing priorities, campaign requirements and business objectives into sourcing strategies and agency models that balance brand impact, speed, innovation, quality, risk and total value.
This individual-contributor role leads through influence across Marketing, Finance, Legal, Communications, Digital, Sales and regional teams. As business needs evolve, you may assume responsibility for additional marketing services categories or broader enterprise priorities.
What You Will Do:
- Own global category strategies for media, creative, public relations, digital and experiential agency services, including sourcing plans, market intelligence, supplier segmentation, value delivery, risk and compliance.
- Establish global frameworks while partnering with regional Procurement and Marketing teams on local requirements, sourcing execution, implementation and adoption.
- Maintain a global view of agency spend, demand, contracts, capabilities, geographic coverage and performance; align category strategies with brand, growth, demand-generation, customer-engagement and communications priorities.
- Evaluate agency operating models, including agency-of-record, roster, holding-company, specialist and project-based approaches, and recommend the right model based on business needs.
- Lead complex agency reviews, requests for proposal, supplier evaluations, negotiations, contracting, implementation and benefits realization.
- Develop business requirements, scopes of work, evaluation criteria and commercial models; assess fees, rate cards, staffing plans, production markups, incentives, pass-through costs, media buying economics, data access, measurement, audit rights and transparency provisions.
- Negotiate pricing, service levels, intellectual property and usage rights, data and measurement provisions, cancellation terms, audit rights and other commercial protections in partnership with Legal, Finance, Privacy, Information Security and control functions.
- Build trusted relationships with Marketing leaders, provide agency-market insights and executive-ready recommendations, and constructively challenge briefs, scopes and agency recommendations to improve competition, transparency, accountability and outcomes.
- Own supplier strategy and governance for key agencies through performance reviews, scorecards, issue resolution and improvement plans; monitor service, staffing quality, cost, innovation, compliance and stakeholder satisfaction.
- Use spend, rate, scope, utilization and performance data to identify opportunities, validate savings and cost avoidance with Finance, improve visibility into working and non-working investment, and support informed reinvestment decisions.
- Lead cross-functional implementation and change management following agency selections, operating-model changes and contract transitions while improving sourcing effectiveness, cycle time, quality and the agency experience.
- Drive adoption of procurement policies, systems and contracting standards, and escalate material risks, resource constraints and decisions with clear facts, options and recommendations.
Position Details:
- Hybrid Role (3 days onsite at St. Paul, MN)
- Open to Relocation to St. Paul, MN
- Work schedule: Role requires flexibility to collaborate across multiple time zones.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing, Communications, Finance or a related discipline.
- 7 years of experience in procurement, strategic sourcing, category management, marketing operations or agency commercial management, with progressive responsibility in a global or matrixed organization.
- Experience owning category strategies and leading end-to-end sourcing initiatives, including market analysis, competitive bidding, negotiation, contracting, implementation and supplier performance management.
- Experience sourcing and managing commercial arrangements for marketing agency services across at least two of the following areas: media, creative, public relations, digital or experiential agencies.
- Experience building relationships with senior Marketing stakeholders and influencing decisions across business, creative and control functions.
- Strong analytical, financial, project-management and communication skills.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience supporting business-to-business or account-based marketing, including targeted-account strategies, integrated campaigns, sales alignment, agency delivery models and performance measurement.
- Experience sourcing experiential marketing, events, activations, trade shows or production services.
- Experience with global media agency relationships, media buying economics, measurement, transparency and governance.
- Experience with creative, digital and public relations agency reviews and commercial models.
- Knowledge of agency scopes, rate cards, staffing plans, production markups, intellectual property and usage rights.
- Experience establishing agency rosters, governance routines, performance scorecards and supplier development plans.
- Experience working across global brands, business units and regions in a business-to-business environment.
- Experience implementing agency selections, including transition planning, onboarding, knowledge transfer, governance and change management.
- Professional certification in procurement, supply chain, project management or marketing.
Annual or Hourly Compensation Range
The base salary range for this position is $107,600.00 - $161,500.00. This position is eligible for annual bonus pay based on performance, per plan terms. Many factors are taken into consideration when determining compensation, such as experience, education, training, geography, etc. We comply with all minimum wage and overtime laws.
Benefits
Ecolab strives to provide comprehensive and market-competitive benefits to meet the needs of our associates and their families.
If you are viewing this posting on a site other than our Ecolab Career website, view our benefits at jobs.ecolab.com/working-here.
Potential Customer Requirements Notice
To meet customer requirements and comply with local or state regulations, applicants for certain customer-facing roles may need to:
- Undergo additional background screens and/or drug/alcohol testing for customer credentialing.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Ecolab will provide reasonable accommodation (such as a qualified sign language interpreter or other personal assistance) with our application process upon request as required to comply with applicable laws. If you have a disability and require accommodation assistance in this application process, please visit the Recruiting Support link in the footer of each page of our career website.
Our Commitment to a Culture of Inclusion & Belonging
At Ecolab, we believe the best teams are inclusive. We are on a journey to create a workplace where every associate can grow and achieve their best. We are committed to fair and equal treatment of associates and applicants and recruit, hire, promote, transfer and provide opportunities for advancement based on individual qualifications and job performance. In all matters affecting employment, compensation, benefits, working conditions, and opportunities for advancement, we will not discriminate against any associate or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, creed, national origin, citizenship status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expressions, genetic information, marital status, age, disability, or status as a covered veteran.
In addition, we are committed to furthering the principles of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) through Affirmative Action (AA).
We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the New York City Fair Chance Act.
INTRODUCTION
Ecolab is seeking a Global Category Manager, Marketing Agency Procurement to join our Global Indirect Procurement organization in St. Paul, Minnesota. Reporting to the Senior Manager, Global Marketing, Travel & Fleet Procurement, you will own category management for global media, creative, public relations, digital and experiential agency services. As a trusted commercial advisor to global and regional Marketing leaders, you will translate marketing priorities, campaign requirements and business objectives into sourcing strategies and agency models that balance brand impact, speed, innovation, quality, risk and total value.
This individual-contributor role leads through influence across Marketing, Finance, Legal, Communications, Digital, Sales and regional teams. As business needs evolve, you may assume responsibility for additional marketing services categories or broader enterprise priorities.
What You Will Do:
- Own global category strategies for media, creative, public relations, digital and experiential agency services, including sourcing plans, market intelligence, supplier segmentation, value delivery, risk and compliance.
- Establish global frameworks while partnering with regional Procurement and Marketing teams on local requirements, sourcing execution, implementation and adoption.
- Maintain a global view of agency spend, demand, contracts, capabilities, geographic coverage and performance; align category strategies with brand, growth, demand-generation, customer-engagement and communications priorities.
- Evaluate agency operating models, including agency-of-record, roster, holding-company, specialist and project-based approaches, and recommend the right model based on business needs.
- Lead complex agency reviews, requests for proposal, supplier evaluations, negotiations, contracting, implementation and benefits realization.
- Develop business requirements, scopes of work, evaluation criteria and commercial models; assess fees, rate cards, staffing plans, production markups, incentives, pass-through costs, media buying economics, data access, measurement, audit rights and transparency provisions.
- Negotiate pricing, service levels, intellectual property and usage rights, data and measurement provisions, cancellation terms, audit rights and other commercial protections in partnership with Legal, Finance, Privacy, Information Security and control functions.
- Build trusted relationships with Marketing leaders, provide agency-market insights and executive-ready recommendations, and constructively challenge briefs, scopes and agency recommendations to improve competition, transparency, accountability and outcomes.
- Own supplier strategy and governance for key agencies through performance reviews, scorecards, issue resolution and improvement plans; monitor service, staffing quality, cost, innovation, compliance and stakeholder satisfaction.
- Use spend, rate, scope, utilization and performance data to identify opportunities, validate savings and cost avoidance with Finance, improve visibility into working and non-working investment, and support informed reinvestment decisions.
- Lead cross-functional implementation and change management following agency selections, operating-model changes and contract transitions while improving sourcing effectiveness, cycle time, quality and the agency experience.
- Drive adoption of procurement policies, systems and contracting standards, and escalate material risks, resource constraints and decisions with clear facts, options and recommendations.
Position Details:
- Hybrid Role (3 days onsite at St. Paul, MN)
- Open to Relocation to St. Paul, MN
- Work schedule: Role requires flexibility to collaborate across multiple time zones.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Procurement, Marketing, Communications, Finance or a related discipline.
- 7 years of experience in procurement, strategic sourcing, category management, marketing operations or agency commercial management, with progressive responsibility in a global or matrixed organization.
- Experience owning category strategies and leading end-to-end sourcing initiatives, including market analysis, competitive bidding, negotiation, contracting, implementation and supplier performance management.
- Experience sourcing and managing commercial arrangements for marketing agency services across at least two of the following areas: media, creative, public relations, digital or experiential agencies.
- Experience building relationships with senior Marketing stakeholders and influencing decisions across business, creative and control functions.
- Strong analytical, financial, project-management and communication skills.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience supporting business-to-business or account-based marketing, including targeted-account strategies, integrated campaigns, sales alignment, agency delivery models and performance measurement.
- Experience sourcing experiential marketing, events, activations, trade shows or production services.
- Experience with global media agency relationships, media buying economics, measurement, transparency and governance.
- Experience with creative, digital and public relations agency reviews and commercial models.
- Knowledge of agency scopes, rate cards, staffing plans, production markups, intellectual property and usage rights.
- Experience establishing agency rosters, governance routines, performance scorecards and supplier development plans.
- Experience working across global brands, business units and regions in a business-to-business environment.
- Experience implementing agency selections, including transition planning, onboarding, knowledge transfer, governance and change management.
- Professional certification in procurement, supply chain, project management or marketing.
Annual or Hourly Compensation Range
The base salary range for this position is $107,600.00 - $161,500.00. This position is eligible for annual bonus pay based on performance, per plan terms. Many factors are taken into consideration when determining compensation, such as experience, education, training, geography, etc. We comply with all minimum wage and overtime laws.
Benefits
Ecolab strives to provide comprehensive and market-competitive benefits to meet the needs of our associates and their families.
If you are viewing this posting on a site other than our Ecolab Career website, view our benefits at jobs.ecolab.com/working-here.
Potential Customer Requirements Notice
To meet customer requirements and comply with local or state regulations, applicants for certain customer-facing roles may need to:
- Undergo additional background screens and/or drug/alcohol testing for customer credentialing.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Ecolab will provide reasonable accommodation (such as a qualified sign language interpreter or other personal assistance) with our application process upon request as required to comply with applicable laws. If you have a disability and require accommodation assistance in this application process, please visit the Recruiting Support link in the footer of each page of our career website.
Our Commitment to a Culture of Inclusion & Belonging
At Ecolab, we believe the best teams are inclusive. We are on a journey to create a workplace where every associate can grow and achieve their best. We are committed to fair and equal treatment of associates and applicants and recruit, hire, promote, transfer and provide opportunities for advancement based on individual qualifications and job performance. In all matters affecting employment, compensation, benefits, working conditions, and opportunities for advancement, we will not discriminate against any associate or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, creed, national origin, citizenship status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expressions, genetic information, marital status, age, disability, or status as a covered veteran.
In addition, we are committed to furthering the principles of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) through Affirmative Action (AA).
We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the New York City Fair Chance Act.
See all Global Category Manager Jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new Global Category Manager roles.
Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding Visa Sponsorship as a Global Category Manager
Frame your degree for specialty occupation
H-1B eligibility requires a degree directly tied to the role. A supply chain, business, or economics degree aligns cleanly. If yours is in a tangential field, document how your coursework maps to category management functions before an employer files.
Search employers with active LCA filings
Use Migrate Mate to find employers with verified LCA filing history for procurement and category management roles, so you're targeting companies that have already navigated the sponsorship process, not ones encountering it for the first time.
Verify prevailing wage before negotiating
Your employer must pay at least the DOL prevailing wage for your location and role level. Run the OFLC Wage Search for your target metro area before salary discussions so you understand the floor and can negotiate from an informed position.
Distinguish strategic from operational scope in your resume
USCIS adjudicators look for specialty occupation indicators. Category Manager roles that show cross-functional strategy, supplier negotiation, and spend analysis read more clearly as specialty occupations than those describing transactional purchasing tasks.
Ask about PERM timeline early in the process
If you want a path to a green card, ask prospective employers whether they've run PERM labor certifications for similar roles. PERM for procurement positions can take over a year before USCIS even receives the petition, so early planning matters.
Use O*NET to anchor your specialty occupation case
O*NET lists the core tasks and required education for procurement and category management occupations. Reference the relevant O*NET profile when preparing your petition materials to give the employer a defensible basis for the specialty occupation classification.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Global Category Manager role qualify as a specialty occupation for H-1B purposes?
Yes, Global Category Manager roles generally qualify as specialty occupations because they typically require at least a bachelor's degree in supply chain management, business, finance, or a related field. The key is that the degree must be directly relevant to the role, not just a general prerequisite. Employers often document this connection in the LCA filing by referencing job duties that require specialized academic knowledge.
Which visa types can sponsor a Global Category Manager working in the U.S.?
The H-1B is the primary option for most nationalities. Australian citizens can use the E-3 visa, which has a separate cap and no lottery. Canadian and Mexican citizens may qualify under TN visa if the role fits a USMCA-listed occupation like management consultant or engineer, though TN classification for category managers can require careful positioning. All three require a qualifying degree and a U.S. employer willing to file.
How do I find employers who actively sponsor Global Category Manager roles?
Migrate Mate lists employers with verified sponsorship filing history for procurement and category management roles, letting you focus your search on companies that have already committed to sponsoring similar positions rather than approaching employers who may be unfamiliar with the process.
Does the type of industry affect my chances of getting H-1B sponsorship as a Category Manager?
Industry matters because it shapes how clearly the role reads as a specialty occupation. Category Manager positions in pharmaceuticals, aerospace, and technology tend to involve complex technical supplier management and strategic sourcing that maps cleanly to degree-required work. Retail or logistics procurement roles may require more careful framing to demonstrate that a specific bachelor's degree is a genuine requirement rather than a preference.
What degree is typically required for visa sponsorship in a Global Category Manager role?
Most employers sponsor under H-1B by designating the role as requiring a bachelor's degree in supply chain management, business administration, finance, or a directly related field. Degrees in unrelated disciplines can complicate the specialty occupation argument. USCIS may issue a Request for Evidence if the degree field doesn't align with the job duties, so the connection between your academic background and the role's strategic functions needs to be explicit in the petition.
What is the prevailing wage requirement for sponsored Global Category Manager jobs?
U.S. employers sponsoring a visa must pay at least the prevailing wage, which is what workers in the same role, area, and experience level typically earn. The Department of Labor sets this rate to make sure companies aren't hiring foreign workers simply because they'd accept lower pay than a U.S. worker. It varies by job title, location, and experience. You can look up current prevailing wage rates for any occupation and location using the OFLC Wage Search page.