The role of a procurement specialist is to help a business secure the best possible deal on basic material and service needs to help ensure profitability. This is a role that has a direct impact on how profitable the overall business is and decisions made in this role can have an effect organisation-wide. There are procurement specialist roles at every level and jobs in both the public and private sector. Here’s our guide to becoming a procurement specialist.
Understand the basics of the role
In a procurement specialist role you’ll be responsible for a wide range of activities and tasks, including managing team members and delegation, evaluating products and services to identify those that best meet the business’ needs, creating and maintaining vendor relationships, handling contract negotiations, keeping records, monitoring inventory and placing orders. Plenty of analysis is also involved, whether that relates to invoices and supply requests or researching new vendor partners.
Make sure you have the right CV
There are a number of different elements involved in building the right CV to become a procurement specialist including:
● A bachelor's degree. Most people who enter the procurement specialist field tend to have a bachelor's degree in a subject such as engineering, business administration or supply chain management. Study topics that are likely to be helpful to prepare for a role as a procurement specialist include accounting, financial management and product distribution.
● Relevant work experience. The more work experience you can acquire before you begin the process of becoming a procurement specialist, the better. That might include doing an internship or just spending some time with an employer to get a better feel for what the job involves. The amount of work experience you have is obviously going to depend on how long you’ve been in the industry - and this will often determine the kind of position you can apply for.
● Get the right certifications and become a member. It’s always worth looking into any additional certifications that could help you to advance as a procurement specialist. Plus, there are a range of professional bodies for procurement that allow you to not only demonstrate credibility to a future employer but also to access resources for ongoing improvement.
● Focus on going professional development. There are a range of professional development courses available that can help you to ensure that you continue to grow and build the right CV as a procurement specialist. Courses and ongoing learning can help with everything, from best practices through to understanding the latest industry initiatives.
Get intentional about your progress
Procurement specialists can work in any sector so it’s going to be vital to research the industry that you want to operate in - and the companies in that industry that most appeal to you. Spend some time and effort building the skills that will help you advance, from understanding logistics and the supply chain to customer service and budget planning and forecasting.
From the right CV to essential research, these are just some of the vital steps required to become a procurement specialist. Find out more by booking onto our Introduction to Buying training course...