Indirect Purchasing Buyer

FPS Distribution Ltd; Rotherham; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Alliance Automotive Group is seeking an Indirect Purchasing Buyer to support establishing and delivering an effective indirect procurement function across the group. The role focuses on sourcing, negotiating, purchasing, and managing suppliers for non-resale goods and services that support day-to-day operations.

You will work with internal stakeholders to ensure value, service continuity, compliance, and cost efficiency, while maintaining records and supporting spend analysis and procurement

Qualifications

• Experience in a purchasing, procurement, buying, or supply-chain role.
• Experience managing indirect spend categories, suppliers, quotations, and purchase orders.
• Strong negotiation and commercial awareness skills.
• Ability to analyse pricing, supplier proposals, and total-cost considerations.
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Proficiency with purchasing systems and standard business software, including spreadsheet analysis and MS Office.

Responsibilities

• Support end-to-end purchasing activities for indirect goods and services.
• Source, evaluate, and onboard suppliers in line with business requirements and procurement processes.
• Obtain and assess quotations, conduct supplier negotiations, and recommend best-value purchasing decisions.
• Manage purchase orders, ensuring accuracy, appropriate approvals, and timely delivery.
• Support the development of supplier agreements, including commercial terms, service levels, and pricing arrangements.
• Monitor supplier performance, delivery, quality, cost, and service issues; resolve or escalate concerns as required.
• Build effective working relationships with internal stakeholders across relevant functions.
• Identify opportunities to reduce costs, consolidate spend, improve processes, and standardise purchasing activity.
• Maintain accurate procurement records, contracts, pricing, supplier information, and purchasing documentation.
• Ensure purchasing activities comply with internal policies, delegated authority limits, and applicable governance requirements.
• Support spend analysis, reporting, budgeting, and procurement planning.
• Contribute to the development of indirect procurement processes, systems, controls, and best practices for the new function.

Skills

Purchasing

Procurement

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Analytical thinking

Education

Procurement qualification

Tools

Purchasing systems

MS Office

ERP systems

Job description

Alliance Automotive Group (AAG) is a leading distributor of passenger and commercial vehicle parts to the independent automotive aftermarket in Europe. It operates in France, the U.K., Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Poland, Hungary and Romania. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Genuine Parts Company (GPC), the largest global automotive replacement parts distributor with activities in North America, Europe, and Australasia. AAG’s network serves thousands of customers across Europe supported by a logistics infrastructure of 75 Distribution Centres, approximately 2,550 Stores and thousands of vehicle repairers, body shops and auto‑centres. AAG has a revenue of 3.4 billion euros with over 17,000 employees. Learn more at www.allianceautomotivegroup.eu

Job Title: Indirect Purchasing Buyer

Reporting To: Indirect Purchasing Manager

Department: Procurement

Role Purpose

The Indirect Purchasing Buyer will support the establishment and delivery of an effective indirect procurement function across the group. The role is responsible for sourcing, negotiating, purchasing, and managing suppliers for goods and services that support business operations but are not for resale.

This position will work closely with internal stakeholders to ensure purchasing activity delivers value, quality, service continuity, compliance, and cost efficiency.

Key Responsibilities

• Support end-to-end purchasing activities for indirect goods and services.
• Source, evaluate, and onboard suppliers in line with business requirements and procurement processes.
• Obtain and assess quotations, conduct supplier negotiations, and recommend best-value purchasing decisions.
• Manage purchase orders, ensuring accuracy, appropriate approvals, and timely delivery.
• Support the development of supplier agreements, including commercial terms, service levels, and pricing arrangements.
• Monitor supplier performance, delivery, quality, cost, and service issues; resolve or escalate concerns as required.
• Build effective working relationships with internal stakeholders across relevant functions.
• Identify opportunities to reduce costs, consolidate spend, improve processes, and standardise purchasing activity.
• Maintain accurate procurement records, contracts, pricing, supplier information, and purchasing documentation.
• Ensure purchasing activities comply with internal policies, delegated authority limits, and applicable governance requirements.
• Support spend analysis, reporting, budgeting, and procurement planning.
• Contribute to the development of indirect procurement processes, systems, controls, and best practices for the new function.

Key Stakeholders

• Indirect Purchasing Manager
• Product Operations Director
• Finance
• Operations and Facilities teams
• IT and other business-support functions
• Internal budget holders and department managers
• External suppliers and service providers

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Experience in a purchasing, procurement, buying, or supply-chain role.
• Experience managing indirect spend categories, suppliers, quotations, and purchase orders.
• Strong negotiation and commercial awareness skills.
• Ability to analyse pricing, supplier proposals, and total-cost considerations.
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Effective stakeholder-management and communication skills.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Proficiency with purchasing systems and standard business software, including spreadsheet analysis and MS Office.

Desirable

• Experience helping to establish or improve a procurement function or process.
• Experience with contract management and supplier performance management.
• Relevant procurement qualification or working toward one.
• Experience within a multi-site, distribution, retail, automotive, or operational environment.

Key Competencies

• Commercially minded and value focused
• Proactive and solution oriented
• Strong relationship builder
• Analytical and detail focused
• Able to influence stakeholders constructively
• Comfortable working independently in a developing function
• Committed to process compliance and continuous improvement

Measures of Success

• Cost savings and value delivered through sourcing and negotiation.
• Supplier performance against agreed requirements.
• Timeliness and accuracy of purchasing activity.
• Compliance with purchasing policies and approval processes.
• Improved visibility and control of indirect spend.
• Stakeholder satisfaction with procurement support and service levels.

Alliance Automotive Group is an equal opportunities employer.