SENIOR BUYER

County of Santa Cruz; Santa Cruz (CA); Presencial; USD 75 000 - 110 000; Tempo integral

Resumo da oferta

County of Santa Cruz is seeking an experienced procurement professional to support the Central Purchasing Team within the General Services Department. The role focuses on facilitating solicitations for capital projects and construction, including informal quotes, RFPs, IFBs, RFQs, and related services.

The ideal candidate harmonizes procurement policy with practical needs of engineers and designers, ensuring ethical, transparent processes.

Qualificações

• Two years of experience performing duties comparable to a Buyer at Santa Cruz County.
• Knowledge of centralized purchasing principles and public bidding procedures.
• Ability to coordinate complex solicitations for construction, architectural/engineering services, and related projects.

Responsabilidades

• Develop scopes and conduct walkthroughs for capital projects.
• Facilitate equitable, compliant procurement processes for large-scale solicitations.
• Support competitive bidding activities and contract award processes.
• Bridge needs between subject matter experts and procurement requirements.

Conhecimentos

Public-sector procurement

Capital projects

Vendor outreach

Bid evaluation

Descrição da oferta de emprego

Human Resources Department, 701 Ocean Street, Suite 510, Santa Cruz, CA 95060

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

INVITES YOU TO APPLY FOR:

THE JOB:

The County of Santa Cruz is seeking an experienced procurement professional to join the General Services Department (GSD) and provide dedicated procurement support to the County's Central Purchasing Team, with a focus on facilitating solicitations for Capital Projects and construction. This position will serve as a key procurement resource for developing scopes, running walkthroughs, and facilitating an equitable public procurement process for large-scale solicitations (Informal Quotes, RFP, IFB, RFQ, Construction Solicitations). A successful candidate will have public-sector procurement experience and expertise in coordinating and supporting competitive solicitations for construction projects, architectural and engineering services, design professionals or consultants, and other procurement-focused project-related services. The ideal candidate will be an experienced, ethical procurement professional who is a team player and focused on excellent customer service, who can bridge the gap between procurement requirements and the practical needs of subject matter experts for large scale procurements with a focus on construction procurement, and who enjoys working closely with a wide variety of subject matter experts, both internal and external, as well as County leadership to move complex procurement of projects from scoping through contract award, all while providing vendor outreach and support, and excellent customer service.

THE REQUIREMENTS:

Any combination of training and experience that would provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain these knowledge and abilities would be:

Two years of experience performing duties comparable to a Buyer at Santa Cruz County.

Special Requirements: Possession of a valid California Class C Driver's License. Knowledge: Working knowledge of the principles and practices of centralized purchasing including purchasing ethics and standards, contract development and negotiations and competitive bidding; the laws, regulations and procedures applicable to public agency purchasing; office operations and accounting and budgetary controls; and current market conditions, pricing and sources of supply and senders.

Ability to: Analyze requisitions and prepare product specifications, bids and agreements; evaluate bids and make awards; establish and maintain effective working relationships with others; maintain accurate records and prepare reports; communicate effectively orally and in writing; and read and interpret technical specifications and drawings.

THE EXAMINATION:

Your application and supplemental questionnaire will be reviewed to determine if you have met the education, experience, training and/or licensing requirements as stated on the job announcement. If you meet these criteria and are one of the best qualified, you may be required to compete in any combination of written, oral and/or performance examinations or a competitive evaluation of training and experience as described on your application and supplemental questionnaire. You must pass all components of the examination to be placed on the eligible list. The examination may be eliminated if there are ten or fewer qualified applicants. If the eligible list is established without the administration of the announced examination, the life of the eligible list will be six months and your overall score will be based upon an evaluation of your application and supplemental questionnaire. If during those six months it is necessary to administer another examination for this job class, you will be invited to take the examination to remain on the eligible list.

County Equity Statement

Equity in action in Santa Cruz County is a transformative process that embraces individuals of every status, providing unwavering support, dignity, and compassion.

Through this commitment, the County ensures intentional opportunities and access, fostering an environment where everyone can thrive and belong.

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS:

• ANNUAL LEAVE - 22 days first year, increasing to 37 days after 15 years of service. Available for vacation and/or sick leave.
• HOLIDAYS - 14 paid holidays per year.
• BEREAVEMENT LEAVE - 3 days paid in California, 5 days paid out-of-state.
• MEDICAL PLAN - The County contracts with CalPERS for a variety of medical plans. For most plans, County contributions pay a majority of the premiums for employees and eligible dependents.
• DENTAL PLAN - County pays for employee and eligible dependent coverage.
• VISION PLAN - County pays for employee coverage. Employee may purchase eligible dependent coverage.
• RETIREMENT - Pension formula 2% at age 60 or 2% at age 62 as determined based on provisions of the CA Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013(PEPRA). Pension benefit determined by final average compensation of three years. County participates in Social Security.
• LIFE INSURANCE - County paid $20,000 term policy. Employee may purchase additional life insurance.
• DISABILITY INSURANCE - Employees in the General Representation Unit participate in the State Disability Insurance (SDI) program. This program is funded 100% by employee payroll deductions.
• DEPENDENT-CARE PLAN - Employees who make contributions for child or dependent care may elect to have their contributions made utilizing "pre-tax dollars".
• H-CARE PLAN - Employees who pay a County medical premium may elect this pre-tax program.
• HEALTH CARE FLEXIBLE SPENDING ALLOWANCE (HCFSA) - Employees may elect this pre-tax program to cover qualifying health care expenses.
• DEFERRED COMPENSATION - A deferred compensation plan is available to employees.

Note: Provisions of this bulletin do not constitute an expressed or implied contract.

County of Santa Cruz

SS/kl 9/26 LIVE Here WORK Here PLAY Here

Closing Date

Friday, October 30, 2026

The supplemental questions are designed specifically for this recruitment. Applications received without the required supplemental information will be screened out of the selection process. Employment experiences referred to in your response must also be included in the Employment History section of the application.

NOTE: Please answer the question(s) below as completely and thoroughly as possible, as your answer(s) may be used to assess your qualifications for movement to the next step in the recruitment process.

1. Describe your experience analyzing requisitions and preparing product specifications, bids and agreements.

2. Describe your experience with facilitating accurate use of public procurement policy, multiple concurrent projects, and your approach to problem solving under pressure.

3. Please provide a copy of a RFP or detailed solicitation that you have completed within the past three years. You may attach it to your application or send it as an email attachment to [e-mail].

• SENIOR BUYER
• Open and Promotional Job # 26-VC5-01