Assistant Procurement Manager

Salary: starting £29,605 - £30,487 with progression to £32,982

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits . We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 26 February 2024

The Role

Are you interested in working on major Technology (IT) projects? 

Have you worked in a procurement, technology, or project management environment?

Do you want to be part of a team working on upgrading, improving, and maintaining an extensive University campus?

If so, you sound like the person we are looking for! We have an exciting opportunity for an Assistant Procurement Manager – Technology to join our growing Procurement Services team at Newcastle University. 

Under the direction of the Head of Procurement, you will be coached and mentored in a demanding but rewarding role. Working closely with our excellent team of Procurement Managers, we are looking for ambitious individuals who either have experience in procurement or are a graduate in supply chain / technology / engineering looking for your first step into Procurement. 

If you would like to talk to us, please get in touch with Adam Bektic, Head of Procurement via e-mail at [email protected]

Please ensure you upload a covering letter with your CV when applying for this vacancy.
Well-being and happiness at work are important to us and we are committed to building and maintaining a fair and inclusive working environment. We are happy to discuss arrangements for flexible and/or hybrid working.
Key Accountabilities

• Administer the letting and management of framework agreements, research, capital equipment, services contracts and compiling tender documents
• Manage the tender process including issuing tenders, supplier management, tender receipt and opening, tender assessment and evaluation, post tender clarification and negotiations, ongoing contract management
• Administer framework agreements to ensure that they meet the needs of the University and ensure compliance
• Assist and support the creation of detailed specifications for the University’s contract requirements and to compile contract documentation to meet the requirements
• Manage contracts to ensure the supplier conforms to the contract and will carry out audits of the supplier producing audit reports
• Negotiate with suppliers to achieve best value for the University and to resolve conflicts and disagreements. For example, the post holder is expected to carry out negotiations on a range of issues including price reductions to obtain the best possible resolution for the University considering the legal implications and responsibilities of the final agreement
• Aid Procurement Managers on RFQs, ITTs, reporting, existing framework agreements, best purchasing practice, financial directives, purchasing procedures, funding source purchasing rules, Public Contracts Regulations and National Audit Office guidelines to ensure compliance. For example, the post holder is expected to meet University colleagues on a regular basis to determine their requirements and develop a procurement plan and strategies to meet those requirements
• Represent the University at meetings, seminars and exhibitions etc. including Regional Consortium Commodity Group Meetings and National Agreement Groups
• To act as a deputy for Procurement Managers during periods of absence as required to ensure continuity of service
• Act as an advocate for the function

The Person
Knowledge, Skills, and Experience 

• Excellent oral and written communication skills to effectively communicate internally with key users and to express the University’s needs and requirements with external bodies such as Office for Students and with external suppliers on a wide range of issues such as clarifications of requirements, and progress reporting and ongoing contract and supplier management including audit reporting
• Excellent interpersonal and organisational skills in order to advise colleagues of the possible implications of non-compliance with University regulations and procedures
• Ability to compile and analyse statistics on spend and supplier performance and then utilise and present this information to others in a meaningful manner
• High level understanding of IT systems and ability to design and compile report specifications using Microsoft Office and create tendering documentation and schedules including project plans, graphs, spreadsheets, and presentations
• Ability to manage University wide projects including the development of complex project plans
• Ability to work under pressure, prioritising own workload to meet strict deadlines and conflicting priorities
• An understanding of the Public Contract Regulations 2015 and the operation of Dynamic Purchasing Systems (desirable but not essential)
• An understanding of the law of contract to ensure that any contract that the University enters in to does not unduly expose the institution and obtains best value (desirable)

Attributes and Behaviour

• Works in a planned and structured way and uses own and others’ time effectively
• Sets own priorities in conjunction with team and area objectives
• Tailors content of communication to the audience, changing style tone and format appropriately
• Willing to help others and share workloads
• Supportive of team decisions and ask others’ opinion
• Uses initiative to sort things out, is enterprising in effective use of material, financial and human resources
• Looks at ways of overcoming obstacles rather than coming to a standstill

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Qualifications

• A degree in Engineering, Technology or Supply Chain Management and/or demonstrable industry experience in a procurement role.

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are aDisability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 26633

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