Purchasing Analyst

Job Responsibilities

• Source suppliers and maintain long-lasting relationships with both new and existing suppliers.
• Lead negotiations on pricing, order quantities, and delivery timelines to optimize value.
• Work with legal counsel to ensure that contracts related to product procurement accurately reflect all negotiated terms.
• Assess quotes and compile detailed cost breakdowns.
• Generate quote comparisons and contribute to internal supplier selection based on pricing, terms, and overall value.
• Manage the end-to-end purchase requisition-to-order process, including price negotiations and documentation.
• Serve as the primary liaison for vendors, tracking order status, resolving delivery discrepancies, and managing returns (RMA).
• Cook with cross-functionally with warehouse operations to ensure procurement plans support current and projected demand requirements.
• Analyze spending patterns to recommend and implement cost-saving opportunities.
• Drive process enhancements through data-driven analysis and best-practice implementation.

Qualifications

• Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States.
• Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.
• Required: Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Finance, or a similar business-related field. Minimum of 3 years of experience as a Purchasing Analyst or in a similar role.
• Proficiency in Excel, including PivotTables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, and Power Query.
• Comprehensive understanding of end-to-end procurement lifecycle management.
• Demonstrated success achieving year-over-year cost savings through vendor negotiations.
• Sound time-management and organizational skills.
• Team player in a global and diverse work environment.
• Ability to proactively anticipate disruptions or challenges and adapt to situations as needed.

PREFERRED

• Master’s degree in Supply Chain or a similar field.
• Proficiency with SAP and SAP S/4HANA.
• Fluency in Mandarin, Spanish, or Vietnamese.
• Six Sigma/Lean Sigma, Certified Purchasing Professional (CPP), Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP), or similar supply chain certification.

Location & Work Environment

This position is full-time onsite and based in Sugar Land, Texas. This location has a combination of office, warehouse, and cleanroom manufacturing work environments. Business Hours for this position are 9am to 6pm CT, Monday through Friday.

About AOI

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (AOI) is a leading developer and manufacturer of advanced optical and HFC networking products — the building blocks that power AI datacenters, CATV broadband, telecom, and fiber access networks around the world. Headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, AOI is a vertically integrated company that designs and manufactures everything from semiconductor laser chips to finished optical transceivers, serving tier-one customers across cloud computing, broadband, and telecom. With R&D operations in Atlanta, GA and global manufacturing presence in Taiwan and China, AOI is publicly traded on the Nasdaq (AAOI) and is actively expanding its U.S.-based manufacturing operations in Sugar Land to meet accelerating demand in the AI datacenter market.