International food manufacturer requires a Buyer. While a background in food/ingredients procurement would be useful, the client can also consider applicants with strategic procurement, negotiation skills and the ability to manage stakeholders.

The Buyer will join a high-performing and supportive procurement team, taking responsibility for the ingredients (flavours, colourings, oils, fruit, nuts, seeds, spices, dairy, cocoa) and indirect areas of spend. The Buyer will work with an established supplier base of c50 suppliers, but also have opportunity to introduce more via strategic sourcing and supplier selection activities. The Buyer will also need to be customer-centric in their approach, collaborating closely with stakeholders (R&D, Technical, Sales etc.) to understand their needs and requirements of the supply chain.

Specific duties of the Buyer include:

• Supply market intelligence activities across food ingredients/raw materials vendor landscape
• Stakeholder partnering - R&D, supply chain, technical - understand requirements and advise
• Supplier relationship management - operational (OTD/OTIF) and commercial (savings, SLAs/Contracts)
• Strategic sourcing and supplier selection activities
• Contribute to the achievement of broader procurement department, targets/goals/objectives

Buyer applicants should meet the following criteria:

• Procurement experience in the food industry AND/OR, strategic procurement skills - negotiations, savings etc
• Experience of running tenders, cradle-to-grave
• Customer-centric in approach and able to build strong stakeholder relationships
• Positive, personable, proactive and outgoing
• Comfortable with a hybrid working arrangement - 3 days in Andover and 2 remote.