Buyer, Supply Chain, Full Time, First Shift

UC Health; Cincinnati (OH); On-site; USD 52,000 - 68,000; Full time

Job summary

UC Health is seeking a Purchasing Specialist to act as the central contact for assigned departments, processing requisitions and creating purchase orders in the Lawson ERP while ensuring pricing, UOM, and availability align with contracts.

The role emphasizes vendor coordination, incident resolution, and adherence to policies, with opportunities to optimize procurement processes and support patient care through timely, accurate purchasing actions.

Qualifications

• Minimum: High School Diploma or GED.
• Preferred: Bachelor's degree in Business, Purchasing Management, Supply Chain Management, or related field.
• Minimum experience: 1–2 years in purchasing, procurement, materials management, or related experience.
• Preferred experience: 3–5 years of healthcare purchasing, supply chain, or materials management experience.

Responsibilities

• Receive and review purchase requisitions for completeness, contract compliance, and adherence to organizational policies and procedures.
• Enter manual and hardcopy order requests into the Lawson ERP system to generate purchase orders.
• Ensure all purchase orders are confirmed, including pricing, unit of measure (UOM), and product availability. Follow up with suppliers if confirmations are not received by the next business day.
• Review non-file purchase requisition items to determine whether an existing ERP system item should be utilized.
• Process electronic requisitions and inventory control recommended reorder requests to generate purchase orders.
• Redirect orders to contracted suppliers when product conversions are approved to support compliance goals.
• Support the product return process by obtaining and maintaining appropriate vendor documentation.
• Route orders appropriately for medical supplies, expedite open orders, facilitate substitutions for backordered items, and verify pricing against contracts.
• Investigate and resolve pricing discrepancies, backorder issues, and supplier-related concerns with customers and vendors.
• Resolve product quality issues by troubleshooting concerns identified by departments and coordinating corrective actions with suppliers.
• Coordinate acceptance testing with suppliers and hospital departments, report results, and follow up on outstanding issues until equipment functions as specified.
• Review, approve, or route invoice discrepancies when invoices cannot be matched to purchase orders.
• Partner with Finance to ensure accurate pricing, proper system maintenance, and adherence to negotiated contract pricing.
• Communicate with vendors regarding procurement of supplies, equipment, and service contracts to ensure accuracy of products, pricing, and delivery terms.
• Coordinate with suppliers to understand site preparation requirements for equipment installations.
• Schedule equipment deliveries in accordance with facility requirements.
• Facilitate equipment repair requests and coordinate loaner equipment when needed to ensure continuity of operations.
• Collaborate with internal departments to identify opportunities for process improvements, product standardization, and enhanced item cross-referencing.
• Support initiatives that improve purchasing efficiency, contract compliance, and data accuracy.
• Process urgent and overnight purchase requests to support patient care and operational needs.
• Respond promptly to end-user requests and provide confirmation of emergency orders.
• Coordinate same-day pickup or delivery of critical products from local suppliers to ensure uninterrupted operations.

Education

High School Diploma or GED

Bachelor's degree in Business, Purchasing Management, Supply Chain Management, or related field

Tools

Lawson ERP

Job description

Job Description

This position serves as the central point of contact for assigned areas of responsibility and is responsible for processing and validating requests for supplies made by assigned departments or for specific product lines. The Buyer creates purchase orders departments and ensures all purchase orders are confirmed for pricing, UOM, availability, etc.

Responsibilities

Purchasing Materials and Supplies

• Receive and review purchase requisitions for completeness, contract compliance, and adherence to organizational policies and procedures.
• Enter manual and hardcopy order requests into the Lawson ERP system to generate purchase orders.
• Ensure all purchase orders are confirmed, including pricing, unit of measure (UOM), and product availability. Follow up with Transaction Management or suppliers if confirmations are not received by the beginning of the next business day.
• Review non-file purchase requisition items to determine whether an existing ERP system item should be utilized.
• Process electronic requisitions and inventory control recommended reorder requests to generate purchase orders.
• Redirect orders to contracted suppliers when product conversions have been approved by Regional Resource Groups, the local Product Conversion Committee, and department stakeholders to support compliance goals.
• Support the product return process by obtaining and maintaining appropriate vendor documentation.

Issue Resolution

• Route orders appropriately for medical supplies, expedite open orders, facilitate product substitutions for backordered items, and verify pricing against contractual agreements.
• Investigate and resolve pricing discrepancies, backorder issues, and supplier-related concerns in collaboration with customers and vendors.
• Resolve product quality issues by troubleshooting concerns identified by departments and coordinating corrective actions with suppliers.
• Coordinate acceptance testing with suppliers and hospital departments, report results, and follow up on outstanding issues until equipment is functioning according to specifications.
• Review, approve, or route invoice discrepancies when invoices cannot be matched to purchase orders.
• Partner with Finance to ensure accurate pricing, proper system maintenance, and adherence to negotiated contract pricing.

Vendor Relations

• Communicate with vendors regarding the procurement of supplies, equipment, and service contracts to ensure accuracy of products, pricing, and delivery terms.
• Coordinate with suppliers to understand and manage site preparation requirements for equipment installations.
• Schedule equipment deliveries in accordance with electrical, biomedical, and other facility requirements.
• Facilitate equipment repair requests and coordinate loaner equipment when needed to ensure continuity of operations.

Process Improvement

• Collaborate with internal departments to identify opportunities for process improvements, product standardization, and enhanced item cross-referencing.
• Support initiatives that improve purchasing efficiency, contract compliance, and data accuracy.

Emergency Procurement

• Process urgent and overnight purchase requests to support patient care and operational needs.
• Respond promptly to end-user requests and provide confirmation of emergency orders.
• Coordinate same-day pickup or delivery of critical products from local suppliers to ensure uninterrupted operations.

Qualifications

Education

• Minimum Required: High School Diploma or GED.
• Preferred: Bachelor's degree in Business, Purchasing Management, Supply Chain Management, or a related field.

Certification

• No certification required.

Experience

• Minimum Required: 1 to 2 years of relevant purchasing, procurement, materials management, or related experience.
• Preferred: 3 to 5 years of healthcare purchasing, supply chain, or materials management experience.