What does a Procurement Agent do?
Procurement agents make purchases for businesses and ensure that business benefits from the products and services needed to efficiently carry out their tasks. They stay up-to-date with the latest market trends and collaborate with suppliers to negotiate prices and contracts. Procurement agents make profitable strategies for companies and are effective negotiators with an analytical approach.
Procurement agents look to save a client money while ensuring quality goods are supplied that meet the client's needs. They oversee supplier-related activities, paying attention to their performance and ensuring they meet compliance. If issues arise, they coordinate with companies to resolve them, negotiate with suppliers to determine preferable contract terms, or secure a better price. They implement negotiation techniques to efficiently and professionally communicate with outside companies and prepare and submit detailed reports highlighting revenue or expenditures from records maintained and updated regularly throughout the process. Procurement agents manage and develop relationships with suppliers and clients and ensure the quality of the goods and delivery, and the terms of contracts are met and need a minimum bachelor's degree in business administration or related fields.
- Prepare records of materials shipped, including bills of lading.
- Provide global expertise and support with data mining, analysis, and reportings.
- Develop and implement cost savings projects and financial forecasting.
- Lead cyclical sourcing events, as well as mid-contract negotiations, as needed.
- Provide vendor and Subcontract sourcing and pricing for Requests for Quotes (RFQ's), as requested.
- Functional oversight of utility bill processing, reconciliation, and payment.
- Maintain positive customer and vendor relationships.
- Support in developing and delivering against the long term procurement strategy.
- Communicate with suppliers to address and improve performance concerns.
- Analyze information to assess root cause, improvement opportunities, and associated risk.
- Ensure timely and effective completion of projects and initiatives of the supply chain department.
- Prepare or review bid forms and prepare bid deposits.
- Initiate and lead continuous improvement efforts to improve cost of goods.
- Contact vendors to solicit bids for purchases of supplies and equipment.
- Consult with internal customers to resolve supplier performance issues.
- Compare suppliers' bills with bids and purchase orders to verify accuracy.
- Manage relationships with key large suppliers for multiple programs.
- Process PO change orders or updates for shipping/fees as needed.
- Develop policies and procedures for the operation of procurement activities.
- Bachelor's Degree in business or computer science.
- Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel and Outlook.
- Experienced with enterprise resource planning programs and tools.
- Comfortable with manage RFI/RFP processes.
- Budget planning experience.
- Familiarity with common procurement systems.
- Able to oversee negotiations.
Procurement Agent Salaries near United Kingdom
Average Base Pay
Procurement Agent Insights
“Every thing is good in this company besides its far away my residence and main reason is to give late salary”
Ferrara Candy Company“It felt very disjointed and I didn't see a clear strategy or objective the entire org was working towards.”
BJF Group“So many opportunities and career paths to take here and cant wait for my future at BJF.”
Maryland Department of Health“It is a good place to start your career and learn a lot about procurement.”
Wells Fargo“It's really a good place as well as the right place to work with.”
Mah Sing Group“No way to climb up the career leader unless your reporting manager quit their job.”
Sinclair Broadcast Group“It's less money than I was making at my last job but work life balance is much better.”
BioProcure“This is a great opportunity for someone just getting out of school or undergoing a career change.”
Frequently asked questions about the role and responsibilities of procurement managers
Procurement managers are in charge of requisitioning a company's materials. A typical day often involves carefully picking the sources and negotiating with suppliers to get competitive wholesale prices. Procurement agents ensure that suppliers comply with their employers' quality standards. They solve shipment issues and pay the suppliers.
A procurement manager usually holds an administrative role that doesn't require physical labour. Occasionally you might go on business trips to meet with suppliers and check up on quality control. It's a good career for people interested in knowing where the merchandise comes from and who have the patience to follow up on every step of the procurement process.
Prospective candidates can look forward to an average salary for procurement agents of £41,936 per year. As you develop your presentation skills and risk analysis capabilities, your base salary will go up. Employers expect procurement managers to be convincing negotiators. Experience is the key to improving your financial prospects.
Working as a procurement manager gets difficult when you have to track multiple supply chains at once. It can be hard to find alternatives to rare products and meet tight deadlines when suppliers encounter circumstances beyond their control. Procurement managers have to continuously study market conditions to coordinate global supply chains.
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