Agent, Purchasing

Position Summary

The Purchasing Agent I is responsible for executing all aspects of purchasing to efficiently and cost-effectively support organizational operations. The ideal candidate will have prior experience generating all purchase orders for raw materials, equipment, tools, parts and supplies. This individual will also be required to plan and schedule deliveries to optimize inventories in support of production schedules and business demands.

• Sources equipment, goods, fabrication and services along with vendor identification and management
• Reviews purchase requisitions and confers with suppliers to obtain product information such as price, availability and delivery schedule.
• Receives price quotes from vendors, compares quotes against requirements and the budget, and purchase orders.
• Negotiates purchase orders and closes deals with optimal terms.
• Verifies receipt of items by comparing items received to items ordered. Resolves any shipment errors with suppliers.
• Supports the development and implementation of new purchasing strategies to deliver ongoing cost reductions and process simplification.
• Enters purchase orders for OE, AM, and stock for multiple brands. Includes fabrication PO’s along with buyout items.
• Assists in input and updating min/max data on stock/raw material.
• Maintains positive and cooperative communications with all stakeholders.
• Updates pricing in database on commodities (under the direction of management).
• Monitors vendor schedules to maximize on-time deliveries to ensure that required schedules are being met.
• Ensures all procured items are delivered as per Purchase Order due dates, proactively follows up.
• Other job duties as required.

• 7+ years’ experience purchasing in a sub-contract, manufacturing, or project environment for Industrial Manufacturing or custom engineered products
• Associate’s degree in supply chain management or business administration preferred
• Strong knowledge of supply chain management required
• Familiarity with sourcing and vendor management
• Ability to gather and analyze data
• Microsoft Office proficiency with an emphasis on Excel
• Solid judgement, decision making skills and leadership capabilities
• Highly motivated, self-directed and customer service oriented
• Excellent analytical skills with the ability to manage multiple projects
• Exceptional negotiation skills

The ability to travel when necessary.

• Customer and Personal Service – knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluating customer satisfaction.
• English Language – knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including meaning, spelling, rules of composition, and grammar.

• Negotiation – bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
• Active Listening – giving full attention to what other people are saying, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Critical Thinking – using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Persuasion – persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
• Speaking – talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Technical – ability to read P&’s, General Assembly Blueprints, Component specification.

• Oral Comprehension – ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression – ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Speech Clarity – ability to speak clearly so others can understand.
• Written Expression – ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension – ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in written form.
• Deductive Reasoning – ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Fluency of Ideas – ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness,…