Buyer

Employment Type: Regular Full-Time

Shift: 1st Shift

Work Status: Hybrid

Position Summary

The Buyer is responsible for the sourcing and procurement of materials, goods, and services to ensure operational and customer needs are met.  They develop an understanding of the goods they procure and the economic indicators that impact them.  They create supply sources by interviewing potential suppliers, visiting current vendors to improve relations, assessing supply facilities, and negotiating price.  The Buyer represents purchasing and support project teams for all related purchasing issues.  They implement strategies and solutions to improve cost levels, stabilize sources of supply, high quality of services and other factors related to the Operations Department. 

Measures of success:

• Deliver target cost savings/cost reduction 
• 95% or better on-time delivery of goods purchased 
• Maintain target inventory levels for past due PO lines 

Responsibilities 

Responsibilities include but are not limited to: 

• Drive sourcing activities to procure goods and services to meet demand planning and/or customer requirements 
• Track shipments and expedite deliveries as necessary
• Utilize and maintain the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to drive buying activities 
• Track progress of raw materials to ensure on-time delivery to company 
• Establish and maintain relationships with suppliers and occasionally look for alternative sourcing to ensure competitive pricing and supply continuity 
• Work with suppliers to process exception messages by expediting or deferring purchase orders and obtaining product/service information such as price, availability, and delivery schedule 
• Problem-solve through data analysis of supplier spend, quality and delivery metrics
• Partner with the receiving and accounts payable team to resolve and minimize receipt/invoice issues 
• Identifies issues and develops plans to solve them 
• Utilize the supplier platform on a daily basis to ensure proper communication with suppliers and due dates, ship dates and delivery dates are maintained  
• Provide efficient and consistent communication to stakeholders on the progress of sourcing engagements 
• Represent purchasing on teams and projects such as continuous improvement projects and company initiatives  
• Active in the monthly Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) process 
• Collaborates with finance, operations, and engineering teams for procurement-related activities 
• Ensure procurement practices adhere to company guidelines  
• Communicate effectively with co-workers, customers, and suppliers in a professional manner both written and verbally 
• Perform other duties as requested by supervisor 

Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Business, or Operations; significant applicable experience may be accepted in lieu of a degree 
• 3+ years of experience in procurement and/or supply chain, preferably in a manufacturing environment  
• Proven experience in using ERP systems
• Excellent Microsoft Office Skills  
• Ability to read and interpret documents, such as procedures, datasheets, drawings/prints and Bill of Materials (BOMs) 
• Strong negotiation skills 
• Strong verbal and written communication skills 
• Demonstrated ability to drive performance improvements in Supply Chain 
• Collaborative approach to improving business performance 
• Travel up to 15% of time to client/rep groups, conferences, etc.

Preferred:

• Association for Supply Chain Management (formerly APICS) certification 
• Knowledge of Six Sigma, Lean manufacturing and 5S

Work Environment:

This position works primarily in an office environment using computers and technology.  Verbal and auditory capability are required. Occasional exposure in production plant where large equipment and noise are prevalent.  Safety gear is required in these areas. 

This position may work from home up to 2X/week if performance is in good standing.   

This position has no direct reports.