Category Buyer

at Caterpillar, Inc. in Mossville, Illinois, United States

Job Description

Career Area:

Procurement

Job Description:

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you’re joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don’t just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Your Work Shapes the World

Whether it be groundbreaking products, best in class solutions or creating a lifelong career, you can do the work that matters at Caterpillar. With a 95-year legacy of quality and innovation and 150 locations in countries around the world, your impact spans the globe.

When you join Caterpillar, you are joining a team of makers, innovators, and doers. We are the people who roll up our sleeves and do the work to build a better world. We don’t just talk about progress and innovation. We make it happen. And we are proud of that, because it helps our customers build and power the world we live in – the roads, hospitals, homes, and infrastructure. Without a dedicated workforce Caterpillar could not effectively meet our customer’s needs. Join us.

Job Summary:

RI Fabrication “Tail Spend” Buyer supporting Resource Industries Supply Management.

What You Will Do:

+ Analyze 250+ tail spend suppliers for RI NA fabs using QCLDM (Quality, Cost, Logistics, Development, Management) framework.

+ Develop and implement strategy to grow or exit suppliers based on analysis.

+ Serve as the primary contact between Caterpillar and the supply base for global initiatives providing support to various RI business units (including collaborating across other BU verticals such as Energy & Transportation, Construction Industries, and our Service Parts Organization).

+ Provide leadership for strategic sourcing -qualified supply network, business continuity, supplier risk management – capacity & financial, logistics, contract management, supplier commercial negotiations, cost/spend management – TCO assurance, supplier on boarding/off boarding, lead/response time optimization and resource management decisions.

+ Accountable for the complete commercial relationship with the supplier including but not limited to Supplier Relationship Mgmt., Supplier Performance Mgmt., Cost Mgmt., Risk Mgmt., and Category Network Mgmt.

+ Responsible for all commercial discussions/negotiations with the supply base.

+ Responsible for development, management and execution of the global category strategy managing policies, agreements, source catalogs, and special procurement programs.

+ Demonstrate leadership in recognizing the potential for cost and inventory reductions, and quality improvement; as well as responsibility for soundness of business proposals and risk assessment.

+ Lead continuous improvement initiatives and purchasing new product introduction activities.

+ Promote the highest level of professionalism and business ethics.

Education Requirement:

Bachelor’s degree (4 years)

What Skills You Will Have:

Data Analytics:

- Advises stakeholders on the relationship between financial, performance, and operational data used in business data analytics.

- Anticipates operational challenges of data collection and its integration with decision-making.

- Identifies correlations that reveal trends and determine conditions.

- Evaluates the quality of data collected and the effectiveness of data analysis methods for evaluating business performance.

- Interprets potential risks, threats, and opportunities involved with predictive modeling.

- Directs the implementation of business data collection processes and educates junior employees on new data sources.

Effective Communications:

- Reviews others’ writing or presentations and provides feedback and coaching.

- Adapts documents and presentations for the intended audience.

- Demonstrates both empathy and assertiveness when communicating a need or defending a position.

- Communicates well downward, upward, and outward.

- Employs appropriate methods of persuasion when soliciting agreement.

- Maintains focus on the topic at hand.

Negotiating:

- Ensures negotiators have awareness of complementary yet diverse interests.

- Successfully completes significant negotiations, both internal and external.

- Details the risks of negotiation breakdown from each party’s perspective.

- Protects own position, while demonstrating willingness to achieve win-win.

- Identifies similarities and differences in position and assesses impact on discussions.

- Detects and addresses lack of progress or a stalemate.

Contracts Management and Administration:

- Administers locally relevant contracts for the department.

- Implements organizational protocols and procedures for contracts management.

- Explains the types of information required before a contract is signed.

- Reviews contracts to ensure compliance with contract specifications and regulations.

- Assists in creating files of relevant information for specific vendors, customers, or contracts.

Purchasing Tasks and Activities:

- Records documents of purchasing tasks and activities, such as orders, bidding.

- Uses available procurement systems and tools.

- Ensures compliance with procurement regulations and contract specifications.

- Works with basic purchasing related tasks and activities.

- Adheres to various requirements and steps of the procurement process.

Strategic Sourcing:

- Works with various basic components of strategic sourcing, such as data analysis, market research and purchasing budgets examination.

- Participates in enhancing institutional sourcing process continuously including identifying improvement opportunities.

- Conducts strategic sourcing activities in a limited environment.

- Follows relevant standards, policies and practices regarding strategic sourcing.

- Assists senior sourcing professionals with strategic sourcing in multiple environments.

Additional Information

The locations for this position are Mossville, IL and Decatur, IL.

Domestic relocation assistance is available for this position.

This position will require up to 20% travel.

What You Will Get:

Our goal at Caterpillar is for you to have a rewarding career. Our teams are critical to the success of our customers who build a better world. Here you earn more than just wage, because we value your performance, we offer a total rewards package that provides:

+ Competitive Base Salary

+ Annual incentive bonus plan*

+ Medical, dental, and vision coverage

+ Paid time off plan (Vacation, Holiday, Volunteer, Etc.)

+ 401k savings plan

+ Health savings account (HSA)

+ Flexible spending accounts (FSAs)

+ Short and long-term disability coverage

+ Life Insurance

+ Paid parental leave

+ Healthy Lifestyle Programs

+ Employee Assistance Programs

+ Voluntary Benefits (Ex. Accident, Identity Theft Protection)

*Subject to annual eligibility and incentive plan guidelines.

Final details

Please frequently check the email associated with your application, including the junk/spam folder, as this is the primary correspondence method. If you wish to know the status of your application – please use the candidate log-in on our career website as it will reflect any updates to your status.

This employer is not currently hiring foreign national applicants that require or will require sponsorship tied to a specific employer, such as H, L, TN, F, J, E, O. As a global company, Caterpillar offers many job opportunities outside of the U.S. which can be found through our employment website at www.Caterpillar.com/Careers .