Procurement Specialist

Talascend is currently seeking a Procurement Specialist for a contract opportunity with our client in Findlay Township, Pennsylvania.

Overview

The procurement specialist will work with US government military programs to buy material for military applications, requiring confidentiality and eligibility as a US citizen or permanent resident. The role involves sourcing, procurement, supplier management, and ensuring compliance with all regulations, with a hybrid work arrangement of three days on-site per week.

Responsibilities

• Drive procurement activities on assigned projects to deliver a competitive advantage within the North American market and apply advanced sourcing and procurement best practices towards operational excellence.
• Conduct RFQ’s, negotiate pricing and contractual terms.
• Issue purchase orders and actively support the full procure to-pay cycle.
• Maintain full compliance with all applicable regulations when purchasing for U.S. government and defense-related programs.
• Follow-up PO acknowledgment, delivery status, and solve delivery problems and schedule changes; keep ERP system updated to reflect any change.
• Ensure all invoices are received promptly to support accurate processing and cash-flow management.
• Facilitate the resolution of accounts payable, logistics, and customs issues related to purchase orders.
• Improve key performance metrics for the North American region, such as on-time delivery, savings against budget, and others.
• Develop reports, analyze spend, and identify opportunities for cost reduction and cash flow improvements.
• Resolve contractual and supplier disputes, engaging legal business partners when required.
• Develop strong relationships with engineering, operations, finance, project management, quality, and other stakeholders.
• Lead and maintain meetings, reviews, and communicate project status effectively.
• Collaborate with regional stakeholders and global sourcing teams to develop and implement sourcing strategies.

Qualifications

• Flexibility to travel up to 10%, supporting domestic and international needs.
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college in business-related areas.
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience in commercial sourcing, procurement, supplier management, and contract negotiation or 1 year experience plus MBA/master’s degree.
• Experience in purchase order execution.
• Ability to be proactive and negotiate with vendors/supplies when needed.
• Fundamental knowledge of sourcing and procurement processes.

Preferred Qualifications

• Following up and expediting procurement process from purchase to delivery.
• Solid MS Office skills including Excel formulas, VLOOKUP, and pivot tables.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, along with presentation and report preparation skills.
• Excellent negotiation and analytical skills with the ability to build strong relationships with suppliers and stakeholders.
• Ability to execute sourcing and procurement tasks across multiple projects simultaneously.
• Ability to assess supplier technical capability, capacity, and develop new suppliers.
• Data analysis skills.
• Knowledge of SAP.