Lead Maintenance, Repair, and Operations Procurement Specialist II

Oil-Dri Corporation of America•Ripley, MS

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior MRO Buyer is the site-facing procurement leader for maintenance, repair and operations materials and services. The role supports plant uptime by ensuring critical parts, consumables and contracted services are available at the required quality, cost and lead time, while maintaining purchasing controls and disciplined inventory practices. Responsibilities span transactional purchasing, category sourcing, supplier performance management, JDE master-data stewardship, storeroom optimization and partnership with Maintenance, Operations, Engineering, Finance, Accounting, Master Data Governance and Procurement teams. The position is based at an active mine site and requires daily onsite presence, Monday through Friday. The work is office-based with regular plant and storeroom presence and may involve uneven terrain, ladders, steps and changing weather. The role follows PPE and safety rules and may occasionally handle parts weighing up to 25 pounds. Travel may be up to 10%. Over the next three to five years, the role is expected to move from manually processing routine transactions toward exception-based buying, data-driven inventory decisions and AI-assisted sourcing. The Senior MRO Buyer remains accountable for validating system recommendations, managing operational risk, exercising commercial judgment and strengthening supplier relationships. Compensation includes competitive pay and an annual bonus, with benefits and growth opportunities described below.

Requirements

Five or more years of progressive MRO procurement, industrial purchasing, maintenance-materials, storeroom or manufacturing supply experience.
Demonstrated experience with ERP/MRP purchasing and inventory processes.
Working knowledge of industrial MRO categories, including mechanical power transmission, bearings, motors, electrical, controls, hydraulics, pneumatics, mobile equipment, safety supplies, tools, repair services and facility services.
Proven ability to negotiate, resolve supplier issues, analyze spend and inventory data, and document measurable value.
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and business reporting tools.
Ability to learn and responsibly use AI-assisted procurement and analytics tools.
Competency in operational urgency, commercial judgment, data discipline, reliability mindset, cross-functional influence, ethics, continuous improvement and alignment with Oil-Dri WE CARE values and Lessons Learned culture.
Follow PPE and safety rules.
Occasional handling of parts up to 25 pounds.
Travel up to 10%.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in supply chain, business, engineering or a related field; equivalent relevant experience is considered.
CPSM, CPM, CSCP, CPIM or related certification.
JDE experience is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Own end-to-end procurement for assigned MRO stock items, non-stock parts, repair services, facility services, tools, consumables and other indirect requirements.
Coordinate order acknowledgements, expedites, returns, repairs, warranty claims, invoice discrepancies and purchase-order closeout.
Convert properly approved requisitions into accurate JDE purchase orders and verify supplier, item, quantity, unit of measure, price, promised date, freight and payment terms, tax treatment and delivery location before release.
Prioritize critical, emergency and production-impacting requirements, communicating status, alternatives and risks to Maintenance and Operations through resolution.
Partner with Maintenance, Operations and storeroom personnel to determine stocking requirements and establish minimums, maximums, reorder points, safety stock and order quantities.
Maintain JDE item-branch planning data, supplier lead times, pack quantities, costs, stocking locations, equipment references and approved substitutes, using relevant operational and supplier data to balance service levels and working capital.
Lead reviews of slow-moving, obsolete, duplicate and excess inventory; recommend redeployment across Oil-Dri locations, supplier returns, repair, disposition or retention as insurance spares.
Develop sourcing strategies; conduct RFQs; and negotiate total cost, payment and freight terms, lead times, warranties, service levels, consignment and VMI programs.
Consolidate spend where beneficial and qualify alternate sources for single-source, long-lead and critical items.
Manage supplier performance, corrective actions, continuity risk and onboarding requirements using delivery, quality, responsiveness and invoice-accuracy data.
Serve as the site MRO purchasing and JDE subject-matter resource and protect item, supplier and purchasing master-data quality.
Follow Procurement, Accounting, approval, contract, records-retention, ethics and segregation-of-duties requirements and maintain auditable documentation.
Reduce manual touches, emergency buys, invoice exceptions, stockouts and cycle time; coach junior buyers and authorized site users.
As workflows automate routine replenishment and low-risk transactions, lead exception-based buying.
Use AI to identify sources, compare quotations and landed cost, flag price anomalies, summarize terms and support negotiations; independently verify recommendations before commitment.
Apply predictive analytics to critical-spare demand, supplier delays, obsolescence and inventory imbalance.
Partner with IT and operations to integrate systems and establish guardrails for suppliers, thresholds, escalation, approvals, confidentiality and auditability; override automation when risk or poor data warrants.
Act within assigned authority, budgets, contracts and policy, and escalate material legal, commercial, cybersecurity, conflict-of-interest and operating risks.
Validate all information used in purchasing decisions, including automated or AI-generated recommendations.