Senior Buyer

Where you will work

Augusta houses Clearwater Paper's largest paperboard facility and is home to more than 600 team members. Together, our team makes paperboard used in products across the United States, including food packaging, plates, cups and more. With nearly 65 years of operation, the mill spans 3,000 acres and runs two paper machines that collectively produce up to 1,940 tons per day.

Augusta is known worldwide for hosting The Masters golf tournament, but the city offers so much more. Located on the Savannah River on Georgia's eastern border, Augusta blends outdoor recreation with a vibrant arts and cultural scene. Explore the river walk, hike at the nearby wetlands, or the numerous downtown museums and restaurants.

Families benefit from strong public schools and nearby universities, including Augusta University-home to Georgia's only dental school and a nationally recognized medical college-plus technical colleges offering career-focused programs.

What you will do

The Senior Buyer will integrate with the Augusta mill team learning the procurement structure across the mill to include the buying of chemicals, raw materials, services, and MRO materials. This role will support the mill's daily needs as required and will be centrally responsible for managing the purchasing activities of critical bulk chemicals and raw materials across the three integrated paper mills within the company. Additionally, this position may support the sourcing of certain direct spend categories which are intermediate-to-high in complexity. The Senior Buyer will combine category management expertise with strong analytical skills to enhance data visibility, introduce automation enhancements, develop dashboards, and drive cost optimization initiatives.

Procurement

• Primarily manage end-to-end purchasing of raw materials and bulk chemicals through requisitions and purchase orders to ensure accuracy and timely delivery across sites
• Secondarily support department specific functional needs for services and MRO requests at the Augusta mill
• Oversee inventory pipeline of materials in transit; adapting supply as needed
• Responsible for optimizing safety stock for critical materials, avoiding excess demurrage and improving working capital
• Foster strong supplier relationships to optimize cost, quality, service, and reliability
• Leverage market trends to identify opportunities for cost savings and risk mitigation
• Responsible for price analysis, vendor selection, and recommendations for spend categories as assigned
• Participate in weekend duty rotation
• Special Projects as assigned

Data & Process Optimization

• Implement dashboards for procurement visibility and performance tracking
• Drive continuous improvement in data accuracy, reporting, and analytics
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to enhance procurement processes and systems

Process Administration

• Manages PO/invoice exception process: Ensures invoicing is correct, resolves issues and vendor concerns
• Utilize Master Data Management System to create new vendor & new item requests
• Manages Receipts Not Vouchered (RNV) process to ensure timely receipt of vendor invoices
• Comply with freight routing guidelines
• Comply with all relevant Policies & Procedures

Success Measurements

• Accountable for safety performance and related improvements consistent with a culture of EH&S excellence
• Annually, the Sr. Buyer will work with the leadership team to deliver relevant productivity values across categories including P&L savings, cost avoidance, negotiated savings, working capital, and additional levers
• Continuously build skills for future responsibilities and provide occasional backfill coverage as needed

Key Competencies & Attributes

• High degree of business curiosity; adaptive learner with an initiative-taking and agile mindset
• Drives execution and leads by example, engaging directly at both the strategic and operational levels
• Exceptional opportunity identification and resolution mindset
• Optimistically looks toward future for opportunities to innovate and improve
• Exceptional communication skills (written and verbal); leading and presenting complex materials for various audiences
• Confidence in dealing with ambiguity; bringing different perspectives to light
• Ability to gather data, analyze and interpret data, and set action plans based on the analysis

What you will need

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Logistics or related field or the equivalent combination of training and experience
• 5+ years of experience under general supervision in purchasing, inventory control, raw material planning and maintaining on-going vendor relations required (chemicals or manufacturing industry preferred)
• Strong negotiation, analytical, and project management skills
• Proficiency in ERP systems and data visualization tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau)
• Demonstrated improvements of raw material and bulk chemical order process management
• Strong computer skills required including experience using Excel spreadsheets. Experience using JD Edwards software strongly preferred
• Ability to work on non-routine purchases that require analysis to arrive at best decision
• Must have strong professional communication, planning and organizational skills
• General knowledge of plant operations is required
• Occasional exposure to manufacturing machines and areas, shipping, and warehousing areas
• Must wear required Personal Protective Equipment when in the manufacturing environment
• Some mental, visual, and physical fatigue from computer terminal use
• Extended periods of sitting
• Occasional travel is required

Total Rewards Details

We prioritize an exceptional workplace experience, offering a comprehensive total reward package. This position is eligible for our Incentive Plan. Compensation ranges are estimates based on market data. Actual offers account for internal equity and candidate's job-related knowledge, skills, education, experience, and geographic location. Benefits, including medical, dental, vision, and more, generally begin after 30 days. Our paid time off will include vacation days, personal days, and company holidays. For more on our compensation philosophy, please reach out to our Talent Acquisition Team at Talent.Acquisition@clearwaterpaper.com.

Clearwater Paper will not offer sponsorship for employment-based visa status (including, but not limited to, H-1B visa status and other employment-based nonimmigrant visas) for this position. Accordingly, all applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis and must not require Clearwater Paper's sponsorship to continue to work legally in the United States.

#ClearwaterPaper #Augusta

This role will be open for a minimum of 2 weeks or at the point a successful candidate is selected.