Invoice Specialist

TX-HHSC-DSHS-DFPS • Austin, TX

3d • $4,300 - $4,800 • Hybrid

About The Position

This position provides administrative and technical assistance to staff and leadership within the Public Health Laboratory Division and serves as a liaison for invoice inquiries to ensure prompt payment of valid expenses. It liaises with Accounts Payable staff to avoid late payments or account delinquency. The role maintains a high-volume shared email inbox and responds to customer & vendor inquiries. It reconciles invoices submitted for items received by Lab Supply staff and disputes discrepancies in invoices as appropriate. The position also provides administrative and technical assistance through the collection and data entry of contract and non-contract requisitions into the agency purchasing system to obligate Public Health Laboratory Division funding. It creates, reviews, proofs, and edits procurement documentation for adherence to laboratory, agency, and enterprise policies and procedures. The role tracks purchase order and invoice amounts for funding, communicating with lab staff to consider requesting additional requisitions when amounts are low.

Requirements

• At least 2 years of experience in customer service.
• Experience in Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, Excel, and Outlook.
• Experience in performing data entry.
• Experience in supporting or performing purchasing, accounting, or contracts.
• Must work in-office/on-site when requested.
• Knowledge of agency accounting processes and systems used with experience specific to accounts payable and related invoice activity.
• Knowledge of purchasing statutes, rules, regulations, and HHSC and DSHS policies.
• Knowledge of laboratory organizations.
• Ability to anticipate, analyze and solve problems.
• Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.
• Ability to be an effective team member and foster cooperation across program and agency areas.
• Ability to make accurate arithmetical computations and detect discrepancies.
• Ability to provide training and technical assistance on purchasing procedures to others.
• Skill in prioritizing workflow, handling multiple tasks, and meeting deadlines.
• Skill in effective decision-making and negotiation.
• Skill in the use of standard office equipment and software applications (Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, etc.).
• Skill in filing and accurate record keeping.
• Skill in information retrieval and research.
• Skill in organization and time-management.
• Skill in maintaining complex records and preparing accurate reports.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in serving as a liaison in the HHS Enterprise between program areas, customers, and external parties.
• Experience in utilizing purchasing systems (e.g., CAPPS Financials).
• Experience in processing invoices.
• Experience or education in using or transcribing medical and chemical terms.

Responsibilities

• Serves as a liaison for COVID-19 and other invoice inquiries to ensure prompt payment of valid expenses.
• Liaises with Accounts Payable (AP) staff to avoid late payments or account delinquency.
• Provides consultative assistance and highly technical accounting expertise to customers.
• Reconciles invoices submitted to items received by Lab Supply staff.
• Disputes discrepancies in invoices as appropriate.
• Maintains Laboratory Accounting inbox and responds to COVID-19 and other customer inquiries.
• Serves as a back-up liaison between laboratory staff, DSHS/HHSC purchasers, vendors, and DSHS budget to ensure the availability of laboratory supplies that are critical for daily operations, COVID-19 response, and the continuity of services.
• Researches supply and equipment purchase order information related to vendors, supply and service prices and budget coding for requisitions, as needed.
• Verifies purchase orders, contracts, and requests are accurate, appropriate, and correct, upon request by Lab staff, as needed.
• Performs special assignments and projects as given by manager.
• Coordinate the use of ProCard for appropriate funding level and urgent purchases, as needed.
• Coordinates and communicates with HHSC purchasers and external vendors, as needed.
• Assist in the development of procedures related to the standardization of accounting and procurement processes.
• Assist in the development and implementation of materials and training to lab staff for accounting and procurement activities.
• Provides administrative and technical procurement assistance to staff and leadership within the section by the daily collection and data entry of COVID-19, contract, and non-contract requisitions into CAPPS Financials to obligate Laboratory Services Section (funding).
• Creates, reviews, proofs, and edits procurement documentation for adherence to laboratory, agency and enterprise policies and procedures.
• Functions as a liaison between the DSHS Laboratory Services Section (Austin and South Texas locations) and other entities including (but not limited to) vendors, HHSC Procurement and Contracting Services (PCS), DSHS Budget Office, DSHS Accounts Payable, DSHS Contract Management Section (CMS) and HHSC Asset Management.
• Performs reporting duties related to purchasing and procurement, including purchase order adjustment.
• Consolidates and finalizes monthly requisition reports to management and coordinates special reports.
• Maintains and consolidates any related purchasing and procurement correspondence and retains on file.
• Regularly utilizes online queries available from existing agency systems (CAPPS 9.2 Financials, etc.); uses results to answer expenditure requests from customers.
• Tracks purchase order and invoice amounts for COVID-19 and other funding; communicates with lab staff to enter additional requisitions with amounts are low.
• Runs reports based on request parameters from lab staff.
• Maintains and updates expenditures on a weekly and monthly basis.
• Includes but is not limited to encumbrance reports.
• Analyzes operational usage of expenses and trends related to laboratory purchasing and procurement activities to ensure compliance with all applicable rules, regulations, and policies.
• Recommends improvements as needed.
• Reports for interest (justification) and unencumbered payments (justification).
• Attends work on a regular and predictable schedule in accordance with agency leave policy.
• As per DSHS Policy, other duties as assigned include but are not limited to actively participating and/or serving in a supporting role to meet the agency’s obligations for disaster response and/or recovery or continuity of operations (COOP) activation.
• Such participation may require a shift pattern assignment and/or location.

Benefits

• insurance coverage and other benefits available through the State of Texas Group Benefits Plan administered by the Employee Retirement System of Texas (ERS).

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed