Procurement Operations Specialist

About the Opportunity

Summary

In collaboration with the Finance Division, the Northeastern University Procure-to-Pay Team is undergoing an exciting transformation. Now, in the second year of a multi-year initiative, we are redefining roles, policies, and technology to establish ourselves as an industry-leading organization. As a procurement specialist, you will be at the forefront of this transformation and pivotal in driving change and innovation.

We seek individuals who possess an innate intellectual curiosity, excel at building strong partnerships, and have a solid grasp of financial principles and contracts. You take pride in your high level of ownership, integrity, and meticulous attention to detail. In this role, you will manage the day-to-day procurement and supplier management activities and take the lead on key deliverables that are crucial to our transformation efforts. Your desire to take on complex, impactful tasks will be critical in shaping the future of our operations.

You bring expertise in procurement strategy and contract review, a passion for continuous improvement, and a focus on operational efficiency. You thrive on delivering exceptional customer service and data-driven outcomes through key performance indicators (KPIs) and service level agreements (SLAs). Your ability to manage enterprise-level procurement operations, ensure timely service delivery, and maximize value in Procure-to-Invoice and Vendor/Supplier Management processes will set you up for success.

If you're ready to lead the transformation of procurement practices and drive lasting operational improvements, we invite you to join this dynamic team.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree and a minimum of five (5) years relevant experience or MBA / MS with at least three (3) years relevant experience
• You have demonstrated expertise and day-to-day activity management within the Procure-to-Invoice and Supplier Management/Vendor Management workflows, e.g., requisition to purchase order, requirements definition, solicitation and bids, negotiation, source selection, legal review, contract award, vendor onboarding, performance management approach, and business reviews, etc.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively utilize data to identify opportunities, continuously improve performance, and successfully operate within a data-driven performance management framework (e.g., meet cost savings goals, efficiency measures, procurement administrative lead time/throughput service level agreements, and misc. procurement operations key performance indicators)
• Familiarity with government and state / local procurement regulations, commercial procurement best practices, and procure-to-pay savings levers and techniques
• Experience with contract review, including negotiation, maintenance, and terms and conditions review in accordance with the organizational contract policies
• Demonstrated ability to own functional initiatives/projects, including getting cross-functional buy-in and adoption
• Experience leading quick quotes (“three bid and a buy”) and complex RFx events (e.g. requirements development, evaluation management, negotiation, etc)
• Demonstrated ability to lead without authority and build "trusted advisor" relationships by delivering sound technical analysis, customer empathy, and data-driven decision-making
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills with the ability to lead customer engagements, interact with, influence, resolve conflict, and drive decisions/accountability among individuals from a variety of cultures and disciplines
• Demonstrated flexibility and willingness to respond to changes in the external environment while ensuring the organization can effectively and efficiently navigate transitions 
• National Contract Management Agency (NCMA) Certified Professional Contract Manager (CPCM) certification OR relevant industry certification preferred – individual CPCM certification required no later than 12 months after start date
• Knowledge of leading procure-to-pay (P2P), procurement operations, spend diagnostic, and B2B marketplace technologies, a benefit
• Efficient use of Microsoft business programs (e.g., Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint) and familiarity and experience utilizing data warehouse, data analytics, Smartsheet, K2, and reporting tools a plus (e.g., Cognos, SQL, R, Python, Tableau, Power BI)

Key Responsibilities

• Responsible for day-to-day procurement activities within assigned commodities/thresholds, including, but not limited to:
  • Reviewing and approving purchase orders
  • New vendor onboarding and preferred supplier business reviews, to include performance management and compliance to terms across both parties
  • Collaboration with Legal/Office of General Counsel on contract renewals and events of non-conformance (e.g., consideration planning) and supplier/vendor performance reviews
  • Establishing and delivering, in collaboration with the broader P2P team, customer service standards, associated SLAs and reporting mechanisms
  • Communicating P2P policies and procedures to the university community
  • Oversee the supplier management activities of procurement analysts and propose opportunities to improve supplier onboarding, communication, and performance management
  • Own all procurement-related reporting

• Serve as the University's procurement operations spokesperson, commodity/workflow leader, and critical interface for the P2P team. To include:
  • Participate in industry outreach and communities of practice
  • Leading business reviews and problem-solving/risk management events
  • Supporting P2P technology adoption and business process re-engineering in planning development and testing
  • Providing internal controls and governance for all procure to invoice workflows, related concepts and procedures, and adherence to policy

• Proactively engage customers (end-users and suppliers) to deliver great outcomes and value:
  • Act as tier 2 customer support for the Procurement tools, processes, policies
  • apply your expertise to contract management by reviewing contract language and shepherding high priority contracts through the contract management workflow
  • Reviewing issues and providing the necessary data and analysis for department, cross-functional, and executive reviews supporting customers, program sustainability, and continuous improvement.
  • Act as subject matter expert and project coordinator for high-value sourcing events                                                     

Position Type

Finance

Additional Information

Northeastern University considers factors such as candidate work experience, education and skills when extending an offer.  

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.