Tactical Buyer

Your Role

As a Tactical Buyer, you play a pivotal role in delivering a responsive, efficient, and user-focused procurement service across EIT, with an initial and primary focus on supporting the Generative Biology Institute (GBI). Working closely with scientific and operational teams, you manage the full end-to-end procurement process, ensuring purchasing activity is timely, accurate, and well-controlled, while minimising disruption to day‑to‑day work.

The role also provides procurement support across other EIT programmes as required.

• Manage the full procurement lifecycle from requisition through to payment
• Create and validate requisitions and purchase orders (POs), ensuring accuracy and completeness
• Issue POs to suppliers and manage order confirmations
• Coordinate goods receipt and support invoice processing
• Resolve transactional issues to ensure timely order fulfilment and payment

• Act as the primary point of contact for procurement queries, particularly for GBI stakeholders
• Provide clear, practical guidance on procurement processes and requirements
• Ensure requests are complete and aligned to approved suppliers and processes
• Work proactively to minimise delays and support critical scientific timelines

• Place orders and manage supplier communications through to delivery
• Monitor order progress, confirming timelines and addressing delays where needed
• Maintain effective working relationships with suppliers to support reliable delivery
• Ensure alignment between supplier commitments and internal expectations

• Track orders through to completion, maintaining clear visibility of status
• Provide timely updates to stakeholders on progress, risks, or delays
• Escalate issues early and coordinate resolution with relevant parties
• Support the development of improved tracking and reporting mechanisms

• Assist with supplier onboarding activities, including documentation and tracking
• Liaise with suppliers and internal teams to ensure timely completion of onboarding requirements
• Help improve visibility and efficiency of onboarding processes

• Support resolution of invoice and order-related discrepancies (e.g. pricing, missing POs, receipts)
• Work closely with Finance, suppliers, and stakeholders to resolve issues efficiently
• Ensure issues are closed out promptly to avoid disruption to operations

• Identify recurring issues and inefficiencies in procurement processes
• Contribute to process improvements, standardisation, and better ways of working
• Support initiatives that enhance service quality, speed, and transparency

• Experience in procurement, purchasing, or supply chain operations
• Strong attention to detail and ability to manage multiple requests simultaneously
• Experience working with purchase orders, requisitions, and supplier coordination
• Strong communication skills with both internal stakeholders and external suppliers
• Ability to work in a fast‑paced, service‑oriented environment

• Experience in a research, laboratory, or science‑led environment
• Familiarity with Oracle Fusion
• Experience supporting supplier onboarding processes
• Exposure to invoice and Accounts Payable query resolution

• Competitive salary + travel allowance + bonus
• Enhanced holiday pay. Our annual leave allowance is 25 days plus 8 bank holidays and an additional 3 days between Christmas and New Year. You will also have the opportunity to purchase an additional 5 days annual leave in January and July.
• Pension – Employer contribution 7.5%, minimum employee contribution 5%
• Life Assurance
• Income Protection
• Private Medical Insurance as standard for you, your partner and any dependents. Including hospital Cash Plan
• Employee discounts
• Electric car scheme
• Nursery Salary Sacrifice scheme
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Family Planning
• Neurodiversity support including advice and assessments
• Coaching & Therapy services

• You must have the right to work permanently in the UK with a willingness to travel as necessary. In certain cases, we can consider sponsorship, and this will be assessed on a case‑by‑case basis.
• You will live in, or within easy commuting distance of, Oxford (or be willing to relocate).