Senior Buyer, Purchasing Services, Administration & Finance

Job Overview

The Senior Buyer provides advanced operational purchasing support within the University’s centralized purchasing shared services function. This role independently manages complex, higher-risk, or compliance-sensitive purchasing transactions across a broad range of goods and services, ensuring adherence to University policies, competitive bidding requirements, and applicable federal and state regulations.

Essential Functions

• Independently manage complex operational purchasing transactions, including those involving higher dollar values, non-standard terms, or heightened compliance considerations.
• Support purchasing activities related to research, grants, and sponsored programs by ensuring allowability, documentation, and compliance with University policies and applicable regulations.
• Apply sourcing best practices to operational purchases, including preparation of appropriate basis-of-award documentation and support for competitive purchasing below formal bid thresholds.
• Serve as a senior-level resource to Buyers and Associate Buyers on complex purchasing scenarios, policy interpretation, and documentation standards.
• Partner with Strategic Sourcing to ensure smooth handoffs for purchases that require formal sourcing events, exceptions, or advanced negotiation.
• Provide guidance and informal training to shared services staff on procurement fundamentals, including competitive purchasing requirements, supplier selection rationale, and purchase order creation.
• Review purchasing requests for completeness, compliance, and appropriateness of procurement method prior to execution.
• Support audit readiness by maintaining accurate, well-documented purchasing records and advising on corrective actions when needed.
• Collaborate with Accounts Payable, Contract Compliance, Sponsored Research Services and Treasury to resolve purchasing and payment issues.
• Identify recurring operational purchasing challenges and recommend process improvements to shared services leadership.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with internal customers and external suppliers to support timely issue resolution.
• Perform related duties based on departmental need; this job description may change at any time.

Required Education

• Bachelor’s degree in business, supply chain, finance, or a related field.
• Eleven (11) years of relevant education, experience and/or other specialized training can fulfill minimum education and experience requirements.

Required Experience

• Seven (7) years of experience in purchasing, procurement, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex or higher-risk purchasing transactions requiring judgment and policy interpretation.
• Experience applying competitive procurement principles in an operational purchasing environment.

Additional Qualifications

• Considered Experience in higher education or public sector procurement.
• Experience supporting research, grants, or sponsored programs procurement.
• Experience working within or alongside a strategic sourcing function.
• Familiarity with shared services or centralized procurement models.
• Experience using eProcurement or financial systems.
• Ability to mentor and support less-experienced procurement staff.