Senior Buyer

Company:

Job Description:

Job Purpose
You will own the end-to-end availability of direct raw materials and utilities, partnering closely with Production Planning and Sales to align supply with demand. The role balances strategic cost management and supply risk mitigation with operational excellence in inventory optimization and commercial control.

Key Accountabilities
1. Strategic Sourcing & Procurement

• Oversee the purchasing of raw materials, chemicals and related services to ensure uninterrupted plant operations.

• Source, evaluate and negotiate with suppliers to secure optimal value across the "Total Cost of Ownership," focusing on cost, quality, delivery reliability and HSSE performance.

• Manage the full PR/PO lifecycle within ERP systems (SAP B1 / S/4HANA), ensuring data integrity and process efficiency.

2. Production Planning & Inventory Optimization

• Partner with Production Planning and Sales to align raw material availabilities with agreed production volumes and demand plans.

• Strategically manage raw material procurement using inventory optimization tools (e.g. safety stock modelling, reorder points, JIT) to balance service reliability, working capital, and cash flow.

• Monitor inventory positions and proactively mitigate risks of shortages, excess or obsolescence.

3. Invoice Verification & Commercial Control

• Ensure compliance with agreed commercial terms, pricing structures and payment conditions.

• Ensure strong commercial governance from contract to payment, including invoice verification against contractual terms, delivery documentation and goods receipt records.

• Act as the primary escalation point for pricing, quantity or tax discrepancies between Suppliers and Finance.

• Support procurement cost and productivity tracking, manage accruals and assist with month-end closing activities.

• Prepare materials holding and price forecast for budgeting and rolling forecasts purposes.

• Perform stock audits at 3rd party premises.

4. Contract, Compliance & Governance

• Support contract administration, pricing updates, renewals and commercial reviews.

• Ensure procurement activities comply with internal policies, regulatory requirements and HSSE standards.

• Subject to periodic audits by internal and external stakeholders and responsible for supporting and conducting audits of suppliers and relevant internal stakeholders to ensure compliance and governance standards.

• Maintain accurate and auditable procurement documentation and records.

5. Stakeholder & Supplier Relationship Management (SRM)

• Partner with Supply Chain, Production, Engineering and Finance teams to deliver impactful business outcomes.

• Conduct supplier performance reviews covering delivery, quality, cost, service, and safety.

• Manage supplier issues, claims, escalations to resolution and driving corrective actions where necessary.

Requirements
Qualifications & Experience

• Diploma or Degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, Chemistry or a related discipline.

• Minimum 7–10 years of procurement and planning experience in chemical or petrochemical environments.

• Proven exposure to S&OP and production planning interfaces.

• Hands-on experience in direct materials procurement and invoice verification.

• Strong ERP proficiency (SAP / S4HANA preferred).

Technical & Commercial Capability

• Strong commercial negotiation and contract management skills.

• Deep understanding of Incoterms, international trade and the logistics of hazardous/bulk materials.

• Solid understanding of:

- Production planning and inventory optimization

- Supply risk identification and mitigation

- Hazardous materials and bulk chemical logistics

- Incoterms and international trade regulations

• Strong analytical capability with confidence in Excel, reporting and data-driven decision making.