Head of Cost Steering & Procurement

Allianz Benelux

Allianz Benelux is looking for a senior finance leader to take ownership of the regional cost base and procurement agenda, and to act as a trusted business partner to the CEO, Board of Management and senior executives across the Benelux region.

Who are we?

The Cost & Procurement function operates within Allianz Benelux's Finance organization and is responsible for the governance, monitoring, planning and steering of the full regional cost base, representing more than EUR 400 million annually across multiple insurance and non-insurance entities in three countries.

The team plays a critical role in enabling effective decision-making by providing high-quality cost transparency, forward-looking insights and strategic advice to senior management and Board members. In addition, the function is responsible for enforcing Allianz procurement standards and delivering value through disciplined sourcing, negotiation and supplier governance across an addressable annual spend exceeding EUR 90 million.

The Head of Cost & Procurement leads this regional function and acts as a key interface between Finance, the business and Group stakeholders.

 

Your responsibilities

Cost monitoring & reporting

• Own and oversee standardized, accurate and consistent cost reporting across Allianz Benelux, covering multiple insurance entities, non-insurance entities and the holding.
• Manage a total cost base exceeding EUR 400 million, with more than 50 cost (center) owners across three countries.
• Provide timely and high-quality reporting to the CEO, Board of Management and Board Members.
• Engage directly with Board members at the highest seniority level to ensure the regional cost base remains in line with plan.
• Challenge and hold cost owners accountable for cost discipline and spending behavior.

Cost steering & strategic advice

• Translate cost reporting into forecasts and forward-looking insights to support effective resource allocation by the Regional Allianz Board.
• Align cost reporting with insurance volume measures (e.g. policy count, GWP) to enable cost steering on a relative basis, in addition to absolute cost views.
• Maintain a deep understanding of ongoing strategic initiatives and their impact on the cost base, proactively identifying risks and opportunities.

Cost planning

• Lead the annual cost planning cycle, ensuring robust, accurate and business-aligned cost projections free of material errors.
• Embed key cost drivers such as salary inflation, indexation and workforce development into forward-looking plans.
• Ensure fair, transparent and consistent allocation of company costs across business lines, maintaining a trusted cost framework to support strategic and portfolio decisions.

Strategic initiatives & projects

• Support a wide range of strategic initiatives that impact, or are impacted by, cost planning, including corporate restructurings, M&A activity and investment business cases.
• Play a decisive role in governing and allocating the annual change budget to maximize strategic impact and value creation.

Procurement & savings

• Lead procurement negotiations covering the full Allianz Benelux spend, including contracts with values in the tens of millions of euros.
• Enforce competitive sourcing processes such as tenders, RFPs and RFQs to achieve sustainable savings and best value outcomes.
• Challenge business owners and discourage direct awards, ensuring adherence to Allianz sourcing standards.

Procurement compliance & risk management

• Ensure full compliance with procurement, legal and compliance standards in all supplier engagements.
• Guarantee 100% coverage of vendor screenings and act as first line of defense against unfavorable contractual, financial and operational risks.

 

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for a senior, credible and self-driven leader with a strong finance background and the ability to operate confidently at Board level. You combine analytical depth with strategic insight and are comfortable challenging senior stakeholders to drive disciplined cost management and value-based decision-making.

You are able to translate complex financial, cost and procurement topics into clear and concise insights, enabling executive-level decision-making. Building trusted relationships with Board members, senior management and business leaders comes naturally to you, and you are able to steer discussions constructively, even in complex or sensitive situations.

In addition to strong technical expertise, you bring leadership capabilities and experience in developing high-performing teams in an international, matrix environment.

 

Your profile

• Master's degree in Finance, Economics, Business Administration or a comparable field.
• Extensive senior-level experience in Cost Control, Finance, Procurement or Performance Steering within a complex organization.
• Proven track record in cost monitoring, cost planning and cost steering at enterprise level.
• Strong experience leading procurement negotiations and delivering savings through structured sourcing processes.
• Comfortable operating at Board level and influencing senior stakeholders.
• Fluent in English; knowledge of Dutch and/or French is considered a strong asset.

 

What we offer

Development & exposure

• A highly visible role with direct exposure to the CEO, Board of Management and Board Members.
• Access to Allianz's global Finance and Procurement community, with leadership and expert development programs.
• Strong internal mobility opportunities across Allianz entities and geographies.

People & culture

• An engaging, professional and international Finance community across the Benelux region.
• Collaboration with highly skilled teams locally and nearshore.

Freedom & trust

• Freedom to determine where and when you work - output driven.
• Room to challenge the status quo, drive improvement and shape strategic decisions.
• A culture that supports learning, development and continuous improvement.

This position can be based in the Netherlands or Belgium. We offer a competitive, market-based salary package with excellent secondary benefits.

Allianz Group is one of the most trusted insurance and asset management companies in the world. Caring for our employees, their ambitions, dreams and challenges, is what makes us a unique employer. Together we can build an environment where everyone feels empowered and has the confidence to explore, to grow and to shape a better future for our customers and the world around us. At Allianz, we stand for unity: we believe that a united world is a more prosperous world, and we are dedicated to consistently advocating for equal opportunities for all. And the foundation for this is our inclusive workplace, where people and performance both matter, and nurtures a culture grounded in integrity, fairness, inclusion and trust.We therefore welcome applications regardless of ethnicity or cultural background, age, gender, nationality, religion, social class, disability or sexual orientation, or any other characteristics protected under applicable local laws and regulations.Join us. Let's care for tomorrow.

Having different strengths, experiences, perspectives and approaches is an integral part of Allianz' company culture. One means to achieve this is a regular rotation of Allianz Executive employees across functions, Allianz entities and geographies. Therefore, the company expects from its employees a general openness and a high motivation to regularly change positions and collect experiences across Allianz Group.