Procurement Agent I

The Broad Institute•Cambridge, MA

1d•$58,000 - $76,667•Hybrid

About The Position

The Broad Institute is a remarkable institution - we apply our deep knowledge of human genetics to empower a revolution in biomedicine and accelerate the pace at which the world conquers disease. Through our partnerships with MIT, Harvard, and the Harvard teaching hospitals, we've become a worldwide hub of cutting-edge biomedical science. We are committed to building and sustaining a culture that pursues and rewards intellectual curiosity and innovative thinking. OVERALL RESPONSIBILITY Reporting to the Associate Director, Direct Procurement (AD), this position is responsible for providing technical procurement services, related to life sciences product categories. This includes utilizing technical understanding to maintain knowledge of current and evolving technologies, related supply chain needs, to facilitate scale-up requirements, and delivery of scientific consumables, services and equipment as needed.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree with B.S. in biology, chemistry or related field or Bachelor’s degree with lab related experience required.
Strong familiarity with research product marketplace
Proficient in all Windows-based (MS Office), Mac OS and Google Workspace applications
Excellent organizational and interpersonal skills, ability to manage deadlines
Ability to work well in a fast-paced environment and with all levels of Institute staff

Nice To Haves

Experience in a professional procurement operations position
Lab operations, research lab or other life sciences operational experience
Knowledge of research administration and OMB Uniform Guidance
Familiarity with SAP, Jaggaer and other ERP procurement and supply chain systems

Responsibilities

Work within a team of scientifically inclined Procurement Agents, and based on Broad organization unit portfolio assignments, to perform duties in order to carry out the execution of Broad’s Direct Procurement strategy, including sourcing, negotiation and purchase order issuance based on requirements identified by research teams
Strategically partner with relevant (portfolio assignments) research and laboratory operations staff to assess requirements, necessary timing and other dependencies, in order to make informed recommendations on suitable and cost-effective vendor solutions
Operate as an extension of pertinent (portfolio assignments) research teams to sharpen technical understanding of applications and knowledge of relevant technologies, to add value and support efficient operations for various specialized service facilities (SSF), traditional research teams, core facilities (Comparative Medicine Facility, Broad Technology Services (BTS), Flow Cytometry Facility (etc.)), and other research areas and scientific procurement needs as assigned
Flexibly assists the AD with the Institute’s overall Direct Procurement planning, in order to shift workloads/assignments, as Broad’s scientific programming evolves
Collaborate with the Supply Chain Planning & Operations team (incl. SQM) to support internal sourcing where appropriate, and the related forecasting of purchased materials, and related maintenance of inventories of items managed and/or produced by SQM
Create purchase orders and route requirements for inventory reservations, for externally and internally sourced consumables, respectively, and provide necessary follow up/trouble-shooting to ensure fulfillment to the satisfaction of the subject research area(s)
Ensure adherence to Broad’s Source-to-Pay (S2P) risk management protocols, including transactional 3-way and 2-way match level controls, contractual risk mitigation (working closely with the Manager, Contracts) and appropriate prior approvals, including compliance with applicable sponsored research (Office of Management & Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidance), other pertinent regulations and Institute policies
Conduct product sourcing research for comparison of price and terms and to support multi-bid policy requirements
Establish quotes and assists with price negotiations when necessary
Signing authority to approve vendor financial obligations (contracts/purchase orders) up to $10k
Responsible for sourcing and supplying materials and services, as well as coordinating global procurement thereof
Ensures the availability of materials in the supply chain, as scheduled and as unforeseen needs arise, and the maintenance of inventory at minimum acceptable levels
Plans and implements activities related to the timely, cost-effective procurement, inventory control, planning and quality control of direct research-related inputs
Coordinates with SCM Leadership, Finance/Controller's Office and the Office of Sponsored Research (OSR) on pertinent matters involving accounting treatment, deployment of working capital for inventory/Capx, applicable sponsored research compliance requirements, and general measures of controls related to financial obligations
Serve as an operator, functional tester and first line user support resource for the Institute’s relevant enterprise resource planning systems (ERP), including the front-end Business-to-Business (B2B) e-commerce system (Jaggaer) and interfacing modules of Broad’s primary Supply Chain Management (SCM) ERP (SAP) in order to support automated and self-service end user requisitioning that leverages Broad’s vendor contracted pricing and terms
Observe rules, and perform self-auditing, related to appropriate accounting treatment and compliance for Uniform Guidance and Financial Statement audits as applicable
Escalate and resolves purchase order/invoice exceptions to facilitate timely processing for the full S2P cycle
Develop a deep understanding of research product categories, as assigned, and manages all aspects of business pertaining to those products, including periodic internal reporting, vendor reviews and negotiation
Maintain pricing agreements to ensure uninterrupted and cost-effective supply chains
Maintain vendor records in pertinent ERP systems, including agreements and Federal debarment/suspension and excluded parties screening process