Purchasing & Procurement
Both purchasing and procurement play a big part in a lot of what we do at Marches Business Group. As a group with such diversity in our work and across our workforce, we have lots of team members who share responsibilities in the procurement process depending on individual team or department requirements, as well as overall business goals.
As the responsibilities internally are shared, there are multiple roles that may be involved with some or all of the purchasing and procurement process for a department or product range. Any of these roles may start at assistant level earning £16,000 per annum, with opportunities then to progress into leadership and management roles earning up to £100,000.
Relevant industry understanding and experience, all round business knowledge, and a number of key skills and attributes can provide excellent grounding for becoming a Shareholder / Business Owner / Director.
Purchasing & Procurement In More Detail
The procurement process can include anything from sourcing raw materials for manufacturing, IT software or equipment to improve business efficiency, or simply keeping the consumables stocked in the office. To procure any sort of product or service for a business there is a process which may include market research and analysis, sourcing, liaising with suppliers and stockists, tendering, bidding, and negotiation before agreeing contractual terms.
Beyond the procurement and purchasing process, once goods or services are received there is then ongoing management of client and supplier relationships ensuring any agreements remain beneficial to all parties involved for the duration of any contract.
Across our group, anyone involved in any part of the process are required to keep up with the business’s operational needs, always working to achieve results in line with the relevant companies goals. To be successful, the following skills and attributes are key:
Relevant industry knowledge and commercial awareness.
Organised with good written and verbal communication.
Persuasive with good negotiation skills.
Analytical and proficient in Microsoft Excel or equivalent.
What Our Team Say
“My main responsibilities as Projects & Purchasing Coordinator include:
Placing purchase orders with suppliers, and ensuring our warehouse is sufficiently stocked.
Liaising with the sales and bespoke teams during the process of ordering bespoke cylinders and locks, so that customers can have confidence that they will receive exactly what they need.
Chasing outstanding orders and alerting the sales team to any back orders or discrepancies, enabling them to contact customers as soon as possible to provide clarity.
Adding new products, and maintaining existing products on our website and other ecommerce platforms.
I have strong maths skills which enable me to quickly identify minimum order values, and therefore which suppliers we can place orders with immediately, and which suppliers we may need to delay ordering from. I also have strong communication skills and high attention to detail, which assists in emphasising any special requirements with suppliers.
My job is always enjoyable as I’m part of a close-knit team and have a great variety of tasks and responsibilities, and I find it rewarding maintaining healthy relationships with our suppliers.
— Dan P. Marches Ironmongery Project & Purchasing Coordinator.
“My role is mainly concentrated around procurement and supply chain management which involves:
Sourcing suppliers and setting up supply chain agreements.
Estimating the demand for products and purchasing stock which fits the business model.
Setting quality standards with our suppliers for the products we source.
Negotiating product cost prices with our suppliers.
I naturally have an analytically mindset which allows me to analyse information and spot trends or issues to produce solutions to these problems. I enjoy the variation of my job and establishing close relationships with our suppliers, this is particularly important when trying to develop a supply chain of a company to enable future growth and align with the strategic plans of a business.”
— Rob. Supply Chain Director.