Planner / Buyer

Position Summary 

The Planner / Buyer will provide maximum value to the Corporation through the coordinated purchasing of third party manufactured finished goods in accordance with corporate policies and objectives.  The Planner / Buyer will work to ensure timely and accurate delivery of products to satisfy customer forecast, achieve target customer service, and optimal inventory levels of third party manufactured finished goods. The Planner / Buyer will be the primary interface for supply planning of third party manufactured finished goods in the monthly S&OP process and will work closely with demand planning and forecasting, customer service, new product development, and other departments in order to provide input into the monthly S&OP process. 

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Procure third party manufactured finished goods in a timely and economic manner.
• Maintain and provide an 18-month forecast for all third-party manufacturers
• Manage constraints, conflicts and tradeoffs that may occur between configuration, global logistics, commodity management, sales, customer service, demand planning, marketing, and the third-party manufacturer. 
• Communicate all supply concerns in a timely manner to appropriate parties.
• Maintain planning parameters and availability dates in the system
• Maximize availability of products to meet customer promise dates whilst remaining below inventory goals.
• Lead S&OP Supply discussions with key stakeholders to align capacity / purchasing needs with demand plan
• Develop close relationship with Inventory Control, Research and Development, Quality Assurance, Engineering, Sales, Demand Planning and Deployment planning as required to insure uninterrupted flow of material.
• Maintain a comprehensive knowledge of supplier companies and remain current on overall market conditions.
• Maintain close vendor representative contact to monitor supplier performance, changes in quality and capacity, and compliance with delivery schedules.
• Project a professional image in all dealings representing the Corporation.
• Work on special assignments as they arise

Knowledge & Skills

• Requires technical and business experience in the area of procurement of materials that directly relate to the procurement needs
• Excellent written and verbal communication with both internal and external customers
• Strong understanding of overall supply chain flow, process and metrics
• Medical manufacturing experience, preferable with Medical Device or Solutions manufacturer 
• General knowledge of procurement, technical and business experience
• High level of experience working in MS Excel and PowerPoint
• Working knowledge of MRP / MPS systems and concepts related to purchasing of material. ORACLE experience highly desirable.
• Self-motivated & Proactive

Minimum Qualifications, Education & Experience 

• Must be at least 18 years of age
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university is required
• Previous experience with buying is preferred
• 3- 5 years of experience in similar roles
• Proficient in Microsoft Office including Word, Excel, and Outlook

Work Environment

• This is largely a sedentary role. 
• This job operates in a professional office environment and routinely uses standard office equipment.
• Typically requires travel less than 5% of the time