General Information
Job title: Commodity Buyer
Overall job purpose:
- Execute strategic, tactical and operational purchasing activities for direct and indirect material at the Opelika plant.
- Manage supplier scouting, RFQs, bid comparisons, negotiations, price maintenance and contract preparation for assigned scope.
- Drive localization, cost-reduction and supply-stability initiatives in close coordination with cross-functional stakeholders.
- Take ownership of defined sourcing packages and contribute to procurement strategy implementation under the direction of the responsible lead or manager.
Organization: Opelika Plant (Miele Manufacturing Inc.), BU Cooking
Organizational unit: Procurement / Supply Chain Management
Organisational Factors
Reporting to: Director Operations
Direct Reports: none
Organizational relations:
Locally:
- Operations / Production / SCM
- Quality Management, R&D, Maintenance and Logistics
- Finance / Controlling, Human Resources and internal requesters
- Suppliers and external service providers
Internationally:
- BU Cooking procurement functions and commodity/category managers
- Relevant stakeholders from R&D, Quality, Finance and Operations in Germany and other locations
- Other internal interfaces as required
Required Skills (for hiring)
Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree in business administration, Supply Chain, Engineering or a comparable field preferred.
- 3-5 years of experience in procurement, strategic sourcing, supply chain or a manufacturing environment.
- Proven experience in RFQ processes, bid evaluation, supplier negotiations and contract administration.
- Strong analytical and numerical skills with the ability to evaluate cost structures, business cases and savings opportunities.
- Good communication, negotiation and stakeholder-management skills in cross-functional teams.
- Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office, especially Excel; ERP/SAP experience preferred.
- Solid understanding of quotations, contracts, supplier data maintenance and sourcing processes.
- Ability to manage defined sourcing packages independently and prioritize multiple activities.
- Occasional travel as required (approximately 10-20%).
Main Responsibilities
Responsibilities:
- Independently manage sourcing activities and supplier relationships within assigned categories or commodities.
- Lead RFQs / RFPs, supplier requests, bid comparisons and commercial recommendations.
- Maintain price records, supplier master data, contracts and purchasing information in SAP / ERP and related tools.
- Conduct supplier negotiations on pricing, commercial terms, delivery conditions and service levels within delegated authority.
- Drive localization, dual-sourcing, cost-reduction and supply-stability initiatives for Opelika.
- Analyze quotations, spend data, cost breakdowns and market input to identify savings and risk-mitigation opportunities.
- Coordinate with Operations, SCM, Quality, R&D and Finance to align specifications, timelines and commercial requirements.
- Monitor supplier performance indicators and follow up on delivery, capacity, quality, cost or price topics.
- Support supplier scouting, onboarding, evaluations, risk checks, performance reviews and continuous improvement activities.
- Prepare and administer framework agreements and procurement documentation in line with signature regulations.
- Lead supplier meetings, plant visits and cross-functional workshops for assigned topics as required.
- Track project status, savings measures and implementation milestones and report progress transparently.
- Contribute to procurement strategy development for the assigned area and support junior colleagues on procurement topics when required.