Senior Buyer

Eaton Corporation • Westminster, MD

13d • $86,000 - $126,000

About The Position

The Senior Buyer leads procurement activities for site operations, ensuring material availability, cost control, and alignment with production and business priorities. This role manages sourcing, RFQs, negotiations, purchase orders, supplier performance, and resolution of pricing or invoice issues while maintaining accurate ERP data and audit‑ready documentation, including for DPAS‑rated government orders. The Senior Buyer conducts supplier and material risk assessments, executes sourcing strategies, and proactively mitigates supply disruptions. The position collaborates cross‑functionally with planning, engineering, quality, and production teams to resolve material constraints, support development programs, and drive continuous process improvements.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.
• Minimum of 3 years of purchasing experience within a manufacturing environment.
• All candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without company sponsorship now AND in the future.
• This position requires use of information or access to hardware which is subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). All applicants must be U.S. persons within the meaning of ITAR. ITAR defines a U.S. person as a U.S. Citizen, U.S. Permanent Resident (i.e. “Green Card Holder”), Political Asylee or Refugee.

Nice To Haves

• Ability to read and interpret basic engineering drawings and blueprints to verify material requirements, specifications, and supplier deliverables.
• MS Office
• ERP system experience (SAP, Oracle)
• Skilled Negotiating experience
• Ability to communicate effectively
• Ability to work under pressure with a strong sense of urgency, effectively prioritizing tasks in a fast paced, time sensitive environment.
• High level of accuracy
• CI mindset

Responsibilities

• Serve as the site’s production procurement lead, representing Supply Chain in cross functional discussions and driving alignment with operational and business objectives.
• Provide timely and reliable delivery commitments to internal stakeholders and support master planning with updated procurement lead times.
• Monitor demand daily, issue RFQs promptly, and negotiate pricing to minimize cost increases and support financial performance.
• Place, manage, and expedite purchase orders to ensure material availability; maintain a clear and accurate PO book, addressing overdue, unconfirmed, and exception-driven orders.
• Create and maintain compliance folders for purchase orders tied to U.S. Government contract numbers and DPAS rated orders, ensuring completeness, audit readiness, and alignment with Compliance Manager guidance.
• Ensure all government rated procurement activities comply with ITAR, EAR, FAR, DPAS, and other applicable U.S. Government regulations, maintaining strict control of technical data and supplier documentation.
• Support development program procurement activities, including coordination with engineering and program managers.
• Maintain accurate purchasing data—including supplier information, pricing, lead times, MOQ/min max, and sourcing status—in Oracle and other supply chain systems to ensure data integrity and audit readiness.
• Investigate and resolve invoice holds, price/quantity discrepancies, and supplier credit issues to ensure timely payment and avoid supply interruptions.
• Coordinate with Quality and suppliers on RMA processes, defective material returns, and reverse logistics.
• Create and manage escalations in the GPS system; ensure timely communication of supply risks to leadership.
• Utilize digital supply chain tools and analytics platforms to enhance efficiency, transparency, and data-driven decision-making.
• Develop and execute sourcing strategies for assigned commodities, driving cost savings, risk reduction, and supplier capability alignment.
• Collaborate with the Strategic Procurement team to initiate negotiation of contracts, pricing, and terms and conditions to secure competitive, compliant, and sustainable long-term agreements.
• Conduct supplier and material risk assessments; develop and implement mitigation plans to prevent shortages or operational disruptions.
• Maintain and update the SOTIF database and track key procurement KPIs, driving performance improvements where required.
• Manage supplier performance using on time delivery, quality, and SOTIF metrics.
• Hold regular weekly/monthly calls with top critical suppliers to review performance, risks, and open actions.
• Collaborate with planning, production, engineering, and quality teams to support component gating, engineering changes, and resolution of inbound material issues.
• Support inventory management objectives by aligning procurement actions with inventory analysts and network schedulers.
• Lead or participate in cross-functional problem-solving and supply constraint removal initiatives across operations, quality, and engineering.
• Participate in continuous improvement activities, including reviewing SOPs, performing root cause analysis, and recommending process or system enhancements.
• Support supply chain projects, enterprise initiatives, and commodity improvement efforts as required
• Mentor junior buyers, support training of new employees, and contribute to team capability development.

Benefits

• Eaton provides various Health and Welfare benefits as well as Retirement benefits, and several programs that provide for paid and unpaid time away from work.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees