Buyer / Planner

Company Overview:

Field is a family-owned global supplier of fasteners, "C" commodities, inventory management services, and technical support. We currently have locations in Rockford, IL (headquarters), Texas, South Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Mexico, and Taiwan. For over 30 years, Field has grown an average of 19% annually because of its dedication to lowering our customers overall cost and improving quality through a technical approach to fasteners. By joining Field, you will experience an exceptional culture built on Integrity, Commitment, Teamwork, Innovation, Flexibility, and Fun!


Field was recognized by INC. magazine as one of the fastest growing privately owned companies in the USA. Field has been recognized nationally by Great Places to Work as one of the Best Small Companies in America, ranking #8 nationally among small companies and #5 nationally among manufacturing/production companies. For several years, Field has been recognized locally by the Rockford Register Star as one of the top Employers in the area.

At Field, having a great culture is more than a priority - it's everything.


For more information about our culture and company, please watch this Culture Video.


All full-time positions at Field are eligible for benefits including Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, 401(k), Life Coaching, paid Vacation, paid Holidays, paid Volunteer Time, quarterly Bonuses, and more!


Visit our Careers page for a complete list of benefit offerings.

Position Summary:

This position is responsible for planning and procuring materials for the company while meeting established quality, cost, and delivery requirements. The buyer/planner position manages the operational flow of items including new product setup, material acquisition, inventory reconciliation. This position works closely with the commodity management, inventory analysts, business analysts, material planning and quality teams. Focus on margin management, cost reduction, supplier relationship/performance. This position also works closely with Account Management in managing the fulfilment of customer requirements and towards meeting service degree goals.

This position reports to: Buyer/Planner Team Leader

This position has direct reports: None

Location: Machesney Park, IL

FLSA Hourly/Salary: Starting Salary $50,000-$65,000

Essential Functions:

• Commit to FIELD's Mission Statement, Core Values, and Fieldamentals.
• Accountable to review Purchasing Reports and execute purchase orders.
• Purchase sample orders or discreet needs based on customer demands, engineering projects and/or cost savings projects.
• Help analyze replenishment levels and safety stock of items managed.
• Understand quality and packaging requirements based on customers responsible to procure for.
• Understand and adhere to customer contracts regarding inventory protection agreements, seasonality, forecasting and stocking agreements.
• Resolve shipping or billing issues. Work with accounts payable to investigate and resolve vendor billing discrepancies.
• Proactively identify product availability issues and ensure communication on tracking and status.
• Run, evaluate, and execute required actions from GAP and Forecast analysis this may include expediting product, canceling, and moving product out as needed to support customers demand and identify solutions where appropriate when primary supplier cannot meet needs.
• Evaluate forecast accuracy and provide insights to Account management, Inventory Leader, and Sales.
• Coordinate with Account Management on Low/No Stock evaluation.
• Meet and present results weekly to Account Management and Inventory Leader on progress and where there are concerns that need to be escalated.
• Negotiate lower costs based on procurement quantities.
• Maintain supplier MOQs and Lead times within P21.
• Coordinate with Account Management when the supply chain is exceeding customer contract and actions Account Manager needs to obtain from customer.

Education, Skills and Experience Required:

• Bachelor's Degree in supply chain, operations, logistics, materials management, or related field, or significant work experience in mentioned areas.
• Polite and professional manner.
• Minimum of 3 years directly related experience in purchasing, production planning/scheduling, or inventory management.
• Must possess the ability to organize and prioritize tasks, work collaboratively in a cross-functional environment, and ensure timely completion of responsibilities.
• Demonstrated proficiency in written and verbal communication and strong interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated attention to detail.
• Excellent communication skills and able to build strong relationships with internal and external customers.
• Ability to work in a strong team-based environment.
• Ability to read and interpret blueprints.

Additional Skills Preferred:

• Prior or current experience in the fastener industry.
• APICS certification (CSCP or CPIM), CPP or CPM certification.
• Proficiency in MRP/ERP systems and MS-Office applications, including Excel. Epicor Prophet 21 experience.
• Experience with Microsoft Power Bi.

$50,000 - $65,000 a year

Field provides equal employment opportunities to all team members and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

Please view our Texting privacy policy here :

and our Terms of Service agreement here.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.