Purchasing Administrator

Quell; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

Quell in Cambridge is seeking a highly organised Purchasing Administrator to support our procurement and supply chain functions. This role involves processing purchase orders, tracking deliveries, maintaining system data, and managing supplier relationships to ensure materials and services arrive on time for business needs.

You will work closely with procurement and accounts payable, coordinating with suppliers and internal teams to keep data accurate and processes compliant.

Qualifications

• Experience in an administration or data-entry role.
• Proficient in Excel and MS Office.
• Experience with procurement software or ERP systems is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Raise and manage purchase orders from creation to delivery.
• Liaise with vendors to secure acknowledgements and track lead times.
• Update ERP/MRP systems with pricing, ETAs and stock levels.
• Collaborate with Accounts Payable and inventory teams to resolve invoice issues.
• Coordinate with freight forwarders to track inbound shipments.
• Assist data collection and create basic spend and inventory reports in Excel.
• Carry out supplier due diligence and ensure governance and data protection compliance.

Skills

Excel

Attention to detail

Communication

Data entry

Multitasking

Tools

Coupa

Epicor

SAP

Job description

Quell is a high-growth British defence and security AI technology start-up developing solutions to counter drone, vehicle, and human threats across the military, civilian and CNI sectors.

Based in Cambridge, we are seeking a highly organised Purchasing Administrator to support our procurement and supply chain functions.

This is a detail-oriented, hands-on role responsible for processing purchase orders, tracking deliveries, maintaining accurate system data, and managing supplier relationships, ensuring materials and services are delivered seamlessly to meet business needs.

Key Responsibilities

• Raising and managing purchase orders from creation through to delivery, ensuring precise documentation and timely placement with suppliers
• Liaising with vendors to secure order acknowledgements, confirm lead times, and track delivery schedules
• Updating and maintaining ERP/MRP systems or procurement databases in real-time to reflect accurate pricing, ETA updates, and stock levels
• Partnering with Accounts Payable and inventory teams to resolve invoice disputes, pricing differences, or delivery discrepancies
• Coordinating with freight forwarders to track inbound shipments and provide regular status updates to internal departments
• Assisting the Procurement Coordinator in collecting data and creating basic spend, trend, and inventory reports using Microsoft Excel
• Completing supplier due diligence checks and ensuring all administrative activities comply with internal governance and data protection policies

Requirements

• Proven experience in a dedicated administration or data-entry role
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for cross-departmental and supplier outreach
• Exceptional attention to detail and strong multitasking abilities under pressure
• Previous background in a purchasing, logistics, or manufacturing environment is desirable but not essential
• Experience using procurement software or ERP systems (e.g. Coupa, Epicor, SAP) is desirable but not essential
• Basic negotiation skills and confidence dealing with international freight/vendors is desirable but not essential

Details

• Location: Cambridge, on-site
• Five days a week on-site (ie: this is not a hybrid role)
• Applicants must be fully eligible to work in the UK without restriction, time limit, or the need for current or future sponsorship.