ABOUT POET

At POET, it is our mission to be good stewards of the Earth by converting renewable resources to energy and other valuable goods as effectively as humanly possible. For over thirty-five years, our drive and passion to change the world has enabled us to become the largest producer and marketer of bioethanol and a leader in sustainable products in the world.

CULTURE IS KING AT POET

We’re all on the same team. We always communicate. And we park our egos at the door. These aren’t just slogans on our walls. It’s the way we do things at POET. We provide an environment for team members to maintain a healthy work-life balance. It’s the best way to optimize health, wellness, and productivity in a sustainable way. We work hard. We play hard. We have frequent team events, volunteer efforts, and we know how to celebrate wins!

JOB SUMMARY & RESPONSIBILITIES

As a Senior Buyer you will be responsible for developing and executing the organization’s Capital Project sourcing and procurement strategy with the POET Design & Construction team. This role has direct report(s), which you will be responsible for mentoring and developing. You will maintain vendor relationships, negotiate the best value for POET, perform strategic analysis and decision-making, and ensure appropriate risk management through execution. The Senior Buyer’s role is to provide maximum value to POET through a combination of stakeholder support and strategic direction.

This role is part of a strategic hiring initiative to add over 20 new team members to support our growing organization.

This is an on-site role located in Sioux Falls, SD. Responsibilities include:

• Supporting multiple CapEx projects in tandem, at different points in their lifecycle by conducting RFIs, establishing vendor pool, conducting RFQ or RFP for high-critical projects within the CapEx portfolio.

• Manage workload for your team, based on criticality of business need; Focus on professional development for your team.

• Lead supplier sourcing/selection activities through cross-functional sourcing teams; Research and evaluate suppliers based on price, quality, service, support, reliability, production and distribution capabilities. 

• Manage performance and relationships of key strategic suppliers, vendors, and other representatives to drive best value.

• Define, develop, negotiate and contract solutions that meet business requirements and enhance profitability by controlling/reducing costs, improving payment terms, reducing inventory and optimizing supply chain efficiencies.

• Develops and drives long-term strategies to generate supply chain improvements and efficiencies.

• Supports strategies and processes to ensure project timelines, on-time deliveries, and project execution within expectation of project criteria.

• Leads, negotiates, and administers contracts with suppliers, vendors, and other representatives to drive best value.

• Evaluates and monitors contract performance to ensure compliance with contractual obligations and effectively manages deviations from agreement in a timely manner and professional manner.

• Establish, supports, maintains risk management strategies.

• Researches and evaluates suppliers based on price, quality, selection, service, support, availability, reliability, production and distribution capabilities, and the supplier's reputation and history.

• Fostering relationships with strategic suppliers to create innovative and collaborative partnerships.

• Reviews and analyzes records of items purchased, costs, delivery, product performance, and inventories to drive continuous improvement.

• Resolves vendor or contractor issues and claims against suppliers.

• Monitors and initiates improvement projects to current processes or policies.

• Collaborates with the POET Bioprocessing team members to ensure specifications and quality expectations continue to be met.

• Partners with other procurement staff to ensure accurate and timely delivery with excellent customer service to our biorefineries and construction projects.

• Since we’re all about teamwork and getting the job done, your skill may be put to a lot of other uses!

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS

• Degree in business or technical field and 5 to 8 years of related procurement experience, preferably in a related industry; or equivalent combination of education and experience.

• C.P.M. certification preferred but not required.

• Great interpersonal skills, possessing a high degree of professionalism and customer service.

• Demonstrated leadership, negotiation, and relationship-bu