Senior Purchasing Agent

Job Description

Job Description

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Brimar Industries is seeking an experienced and highly organized Senior Purchasing Agent to join our procurement team. Reporting to and working closely with the Director of Strategic Sourcing, this position plays a key role in the day-to-day execution of our purchasing and global sourcing activities.

As the senior member of the purchasing team, the Senior Purchasing Agent will be responsible for overseeing purchase order activity, coordinating international inbound shipments, working closely with overseas suppliers, calculating landed costs, and supporting the Director of Strategic Sourcing in the execution of broader sourcing initiatives.

This role also serves as an important link between Purchasing, Finance, Operations, and our vendor partners. The Senior Purchasing Agent is responsible for key inventory and financial reporting activities, including monthly inventory in-transit reporting and the review of overseas and customs invoices.

The ideal candidate is a highly organized and analytical purchasing professional who is comfortable managing multiple priorities, solving problems, negotiating with suppliers, and serving as a resource to other members of the purchasing team. Experience with international purchasing and global suppliers is strongly preferred but not required.

Key Responsibilities  

Purchasing & Purchase Order Management

• Manage day-to-day purchasing activities for assigned products, materials, supplies, and vendors.
• Review purchasing requirements and place orders based on inventory levels, forecasts, lead times, and business needs.
• Oversee purchase orders placed by other members of the procurement team to help ensure accuracy, appropriate quantities, pricing, terms, and timely execution.
• Monitor open purchase orders and proactively address delays, shortages, backorders, discrepancies, and other supply issues.
• Expedite critical orders when necessary to support inventory requirements and business needs.
• Maintain accurate purchasing records, supplier information, pricing, lead times, and purchase order data within company systems.
• Coordinate with internal departments to address purchasing priorities, inventory needs, and supplier-related issues.

International Purchasing & Inbound Logistics

• Manage international inbound shipments from overseas suppliers, coordinating shipments from origin through delivery.
• Coordinate customs-related activities and work with freight forwarders, customs brokers, suppliers, and other external partners to facilitate the timely movement of international shipments.
• Monitor international shipment schedules and proactively address delays, documentation issues, customs concerns, and other potential disruptions.
• Calculate and maintain the full landed cost for overseas shipments, including applicable product, freight, duty, customs, and other associated costs.
• Provide landed-cost information to Finance and other appropriate internal teams to support accurate costing and business decisions.
• Review overseas supplier, freight, customs, and related invoices for accuracy before they are submitted to Accounting for payment.
• Maintain accurate records and documentation associated with international purchases and inbound shipments.
• Communicate international shipment status, delays, and potential risks to appropriate internal stakeholders.

Supplier Management & Negotiations

• Develop and maintain strong, productive relationships with domestic and international suppliers to support reliability, responsiveness, and long-term partnership value.
• Negotiate pricing and other purchasing terms with overseas and domestic suppliers within established sourcing strategies and business objectives.
• Work directly with suppliers to resolve pricing discrepancies, quality concerns, shortages, delivery issues, and other day-to-day challenges.
• Monitor supplier performance and escalate significant concerns or recurring issues to the Director of Strategic Sourcing.
• Support the Director of Strategic Sourcing with supplier evaluations, negotiations, sourcing initiatives, and other strategic procurement activities as needed.
• Assist with gathering supplier pricing, capabilities, lead times, minimum order quantities, and other information needed to evaluate sourcing options.

Inventory Reporting & Financial Support

• Prepare the monthly inventory in-transit report and provide accurate and timely information to Finance in support of the monthly financial close.
• Partner closely with Finance to provide purchasing and inventory information required for month-end, year-end, and other financial reporting activities.
• Monitor and analyze inventory levels, purchasing activity, open purchase orders, and goods in transit.
• Assist with inventory reconciliation and investigate discrepancies in partnership with Finance, Warehouse, Operations, and other departments.
• Support reporting related to excess, obsolete, and slow-moving inventory as needed.
• Assist with physical inventory counts, cycle counts, and related reconciliation activities.
• Provide ad hoc purchasing, inventory, landed-cost, and supplier analysis to Finance and management as requested.
• Help ensure purchasing and inventory information within company systems is complete and accurate.

Purchasing Team Support & Process Improvement

• Serve as a senior resource for other members of the purchasing team, providing day-to-day guidance and support when questions or issues arise.
• Support teammates in resolving issues involving vendors and other internal departments, serving as a point of coordination and escalation when appropriate.
• Create, document, and maintain standard operating procedures (SOPs), purchasing guidelines, and other reference materials to promote consistency and best practices across the department.
• Help ensure purchasing processes and procedures are consistently followed across the team.
• Identify opportunities to improve purchasing processes, documentation, communication, and overall departmental efficiency.
• Share purchasing knowledge and best practices with other members of the team.
• Partner with the Director of Strategic Sourcing on departmental initiatives and assist with the implementation of new sourcing and procurement processes.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of progressive experience in purchasing, procurement, buying, supply chain, or a related function, preferably within a manufacturing and/or distribution environment.
• Strong understanding of purchasing principles, purchase order management, inventory, supplier relationships, and supply chain fundamentals.
• Demonstrated experience negotiating pricing and terms with suppliers.
• Experience managing supplier relationships and resolving vendor-related issues.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to work with purchasing, inventory, costing, and financial data.
• Experience preparing inventory, purchasing, or other operational reports.
• Strong attention to detail and a high degree of accuracy, particularly when working with costs, invoices, inventory, and information used for financial reporting.
• Strong organizational and time-management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to work effectively across departments and with external suppliers.
• Strong Excel skills and proficiency with Microsoft Office applications.
• Experience working with ERP, MRP, purchasing, and/or inventory management systems.
• Ability to take ownership of issues and coordinate with the appropriate parties through resolution.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience within a manufacturing and/or distribution organization.
• Experience working with international suppliers and global purchasing or sourcing is strongly preferred, but not required.
• Experience coordinating international inbound shipments, freight forwarders, customs brokers, and customs-related activities.
• Knowledge of landed-cost calculations, international freight, duties, customs, and other costs associated with overseas purchasing.
• Experience reviewing international shipping and customs documentation.
• Experience working cross-functionally with Finance on inventory reporting and month-end close activities.
• Experience creating SOPs, process documentation, and purchasing guidelines.
• Previous experience serving as a senior resource, lead, or mentor to other purchasing professionals is a plus.

We are looking for someone who understands that successful purchasing requires much more than placing purchase orders. The right candidate will be proactive, analytical, detail-oriented, and comfortable taking ownership of issues from beginning to end. This individual should be equally comfortable negotiating with an overseas supplier, coordinating an international shipment, reviewing landed costs, preparing inventory information for Finance, and helping a teammate work through a purchasing or vendor issue. As the senior member of the purchasing team, this person will be an important resource for the department while working closely with the Director of Strategic Sourcing to support the execution of the company's broader procurement and global sourcing objectives.