Lead Buyer, Professional Services & IT/Software at Astemo Ltd. in Farmington Hills, Michigan, United States

Job description

• The Lead Buyer, Professional Services, Software & IT is responsible for leading strategic sourcing, supplier management, contract negotiations, and procurement activities across professional services, software, SaaS, IT hardware, telecommunications, and technology-related services. This role partners closely with business stakeholders, IT, Finance, Legal, and suppliers to deliver cost savings, mitigate risk, optimize supplier performance, and ensure alignment with organizational objectives. The Lead Buyer serves as a category expert and procurement advisor, driving sourcing strategies and continuous improvement initiatives. Responsible for managing all purchasing activities related to their assigned category that are in line with the respective purchasing strategies in their region.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for all aspects of the Supplier relationship with Astemo including:
• Supporting Regional activities and projects
• Working with Manager to develop regional commodity strategies and Regional (Mexico / Brazil) Cost Reduction projects
• Managing the supplier selection process for key PSI categories and subcategories.
• Supporting Regional contract negotiations agreements
• Supporting new program launches
• Analyze market trends for categories. For example: Rate Cards
• Cost analysis, cost reduction strategies, market analysis, quoting activities
• Long –term planning and development of suppliers and commodity base

Requirements

• Ability to analyze/interpret large amounts of data (costs/supplier proposals)
• Demonstrated strong/effective negotiation & decision-making skills
• Ability to seek on-going cost reduction activities to establish, meet and exceed goals
• Ability to lead groups and designate responsibilities as needed
• Excellent communication skills and ability to communicate effectively with various levels of management within the organization
• Ability to handle multiple projects independently to satisfactorily achieve dept./co. objectives
• Strong Excel / PowerPoint skills
• Possess high ethical standards of professional conduct and a basic understanding of contract law
• Strategic Sourcing & Category Management
• Contract Negotiation
• Supplier Relationship Management
• Financial & Spend Analysis
• Stakeholder Management
• Risk Assessment & Mitigation
• Business Acumen
• Project Management
• Communication & Influence
• Problem Solving & Decision Making
• Knowledge of cloud service providers, cybersecurity requirements and technology procurement practices.
• Education: Bachelor of Business Administration or related field preferred or in Business or Finance fields.
• Experience: Minimum of 5 years’ experience in purchasing or related field.

Skills

Required

• Strong Excel / PowerPoint skills