Tactical Buyer

Thales Group; Cheadle; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the defense sector is seeking a Tactical Buyer to support a significant project for the Royal Navy. This role involves managing procurement processes and ensuring compliance with service level agreements. Candidates should possess strong negotiation skills and experience in procurement, with a focus on building supplier relationships. The company offers competitive benefits and supports flexible working arrangements.

Benefits

Pension

Private medical insurance

Life assurance

Income protection

Employee assistance program

27 days annual leave plus holidays

Opportunities for volunteering

Qualifications

• Proven experience in procurement roles.
• Familiarity with MRP/ERP systems like Oracle or SAP.
• Strong negotiation skills and ability to build supplier relationships.

Responsibilities

• Manage the transactional procurement process of PR/PO.
• Transform procurement requests into procurement orders.
• Expedite and follow-up on procurement orders.

Skills

Procurement skills

Negotiation skills

Customer focus

Data analysis

Tools

MRP/ERP systems

MS Office

Job description

Location: Cheadle, United Kingdom

Thales people provide armed forces customers with operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defence mission systems solutions at land, sea, and air. Our platforms extend across the battlespace including Above and Sonar, Electronic Combat, and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance systems.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their careers with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions daily, making life better and keeping us safer. We innovate across Aerospace, Defence, Security, and Space industries.

Your health and well-being matter to us, which is why we offer flexibility such as part-time hours, job sharing, home working, or flexible start and finish times to support your lifestyle and ambitions.

Our Opportunity

The Tactical Buyer MSET UWS will support the Marine Sensor Enhancement Team (MSET) contract, a significant project worth £1.85 billion, aimed at maximizing sea days for the Royal Navy Fleet by ensuring long-term availability and resilience of critical assets, spares, and repairs over 15 years. This project enhances sensor and sonar capabilities, crucial for the Royal Navy's operations worldwide, operating 365 days a year.

Thales UK aims to ensure full equipment availability for the Royal Navy, utilizing data technology including AI and virtual reality for proactive, predictive maintenance, supporting about 450 employees across five UK sites.

Responsibilities

• Manage the transactional procurement process of PR/PO within a regional procurement centre.
• Transform procurement requests into procurement orders, ensuring compliance with SLAs.
• Expedite and follow-up on procurement orders to meet timing and quality requirements.
• Support category team in quote preparation, data analytics, and sourcing tasks.
• Verify procurement requests, manage PO changes, and ensure supplier acknowledgment and delivery commitments.
• Handle disputes, negotiations within DoA thresholds, and prepare procurement reports.

Skills and Experience

• Proven skills and experience in procurement roles, with familiarity in using MRP/ERP systems like Oracle or SAP.
• Proficiency in MS Office and data analysis.
• Strong negotiation skills and ability to build supplier relationships.
• Customer focus, understanding of technical/non-technical requirements, and delivery orientation.

Benefits at Thales

Our benefits include pension, private medical insurance, life assurance, income protection, and an employee assistance program. We offer flexible benefits options, a competitive salary, bonuses, 27 days annual leave plus holidays, and opportunities for volunteering.

Flexibility

We support flexible working arrangements to help you balance work and life. Interested candidates are encouraged to have an informal chat with our Talent Acquisition Partner.

Thales is an equal opportunities employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We support a barrier-free recruitment process and can provide reasonable adjustments for applicants with disabilities or neurodiverse conditions. To request adjustments or for further inquiries, contact our recruitment teams.

Great journeys start here, apply now!