Travel & Procurement Specialist III

UCF; Orlando (FL); On-site; USD 49,000 - 60,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, Vision

Paid time off

Retirement savings

Employee discounts

Education assistance

Job summary

The Knights Experience Team (kNEXT) at University of Central Florida (UCF) is seeking a Travel & Procurement Specialist III to lead a team of specialists supporting travel and procurement for one of the nation’s largest universities. As a working lead, you’ll guide and develop your team, serve as a go-to expert for campus partners, and help shape processes that keep the university moving.

Ideal candidates will have supervisory experience, strong communication and interpersonal skills, and

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or equivalent and 4+ years of relevant experience.
• Bachelor’s degree preferred or required for some roles.
• Experience with purchasing, travel, accounts payable/receivable, or related financial operations.
• Knowledge of purchasing/travel rules, regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to coach others.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of Travel & Procurement Specialists, including hiring, training, and performance feedback.
• Support procurement of goods and services, ensuring policy compliance and timely processing.
• Assist with travel requests, spend authorizations, and expense reporting.
• Provide expertise, training, and continuous process improvements for travel and procurement workflows.

Education

High School Diploma or equivalent

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Workday

PeopleSoft

ERP systems

Microsoft Outlook

Excel

Teams

Job description

Knights Experience Team (kNEXT):

The University of Central Florida’s (UCF’s) the Knights Experience Team (kNEXT) primarily provides customer service to the Finance Business Centers (FBCs) and the Human Resources Business Centers (HRBC's) employees, assisting with various tasks as needed. kNEXT also provides administrative support services to staff across all colleges and divisions of the University. kNEXT is designed to reduce the administrative burden on individual colleges, consolidate transaction-based functions, create economies of scale, and improve backroom process efficiency so the colleges can better focus resources on their mission.

The team is made up of HR Specialists and Travel/Procurement Specialists, who will provide information and support across campus, reduce administrative burden, and empower employees to learn and grow. These Specialists will operate as campus experts on processes and procedures, support training and development, provide specialized reporting and analytics, and support central office transactions. All employees within kNEXT will also work to continuously improve processes and workflows.

The purpose of kNEXT is to ensure that the services provided meet or exceed expected performance levels and satisfy the needs of the faculty/staff/students (colleges/divisions).

The Opportunity

The Knights Experience Team (kNEXT) is seeking a Travel & Procurement Specialist III to lead a team of specialists supporting travel and procurement for one of the nation's largest universities. With more than 70,000 students and 13,000 employees, UCF relies on purchasing and travel processes that are accurate, efficient, and built to serve colleges and divisions across campus. As a working lead, you'll guide and develop your team, serve as a go-to expert for campus partners, and help shape the processes that keep the university moving. Bring your leadership to UCF and help build a team that empowers thousands of faculty and staff to focus on what matters most.

Responsibilities

Team Leadership

• Supervisory responsibilities, including hiring and training, monitoring performance and providing feedback, maintaining leave requests and personnel records, setting goals and objectives and monitoring accomplishments, enforcing customer service standards, and resolving complex issues.

Procurement, Contracts, and Payments

• Support requests for the procurement of goods and services ensuring applicable policies and regulations are adhered to and transactions are processed timely and properly reflect the receipt of goods or services.
• Research suppliers and obtain quotes for goods and services, as needed.
• Assist with the development of solicitations for bids and participate in the development of contracts and agreements.
• Identify and review applicable contracts or the need for a Waiver of Competition and Sole Source Certification in accordance with policies and regulations.
• Initiate and review requisitions, manage purchase orders, and initiate change orders, as needed.
• Create receipts and supplier invoices or purchasing card transactions to ensure timely payments.
• Reconcile/verify purchasing card transactions ensuring applicable policies and regulations are adhered to and transactions are allowable, required documentation is provided, and transactions are accurate.

Travel

• Support travel requests creating and reviewing Spend Authorizations and Expense Reports.
• Assist with travel arrangements, receipt/documentation collection, and travel advance and reimbursement requests to ensuring applicable policies and regulations are adhered to.

Expertise, Training, and Process Improvement

• Support Travel/Procurement Coordinators within the Finance Business Centers (FBCs) as experts on procurement-related and travel-related processes and procedures.
• Support travel and procurement training efforts.
• Continuously review and improve processes to increase operational efficiency and effectiveness.
• Other job-related duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

High School Diploma or equivalent and (4+) years of relevant experience or combination of relevant comparable education and experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience pursuant to Fla. Stat. 112.219(6).

Preferred Qualifications

• 2+ years of experience supervising staff in a working lead capacity, including hiring, training, setting expectations, providing performance feedback, and addressing performance concerns.
• 3+ years of experience in purchasing, travel, accounts payable/receivable, or related financial operations.
• Working knowledge of financial, purchasing, and travel rules, regulations, policies, and procedures, including purchasing card, spend authorization, and expense report processes.
• Proven ability to set and uphold customer service standards for a team while delivering high-quality service to internal and campus partners.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to coach others, navigate difficult conversations, and positively influence colleagues and stakeholders.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the sound judgment to resolve complex issues and elevate appropriately.
• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage competing priorities in a high-volume environment.
• Experience with Workday, PeopleSoft, or a similar ERP system, and proficiency in Microsoft Outlook, Excel, and Teams.
• Bachelor’s degree.

Special Instructions to the Applicants

• The anticipated salary for this role is $54,203. The final salary will be determined based on the candidate's qualifications, experience, and internal equity considerations.
• All applicants must be authorized to work for any U.S. employer. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position, and the university cannot accommodate H‑1B transfers or employment-based visa processing for individuals currently sponsored by another employer.
• UCF is seeking to fill multiple roles. Candidates for this job posting will be considered for additional vacancies in this department.

Are you ready to unleash YOUR potential?

As a next-generation public research university and Forbes-ranked top employer in Florida, we are a community of thinkers, doers, creators, innovators, healers, and leaders striving to create broader prosperity and help shape a better future. No matter what your role is, when you join Knight Nation, you’ll play an integral role at one of the most impactful universities in the country. You’ll be met with opportunities to connect and collaborate with talented faculty, staff, and students across 12 colleges and multiple campuses, engaging in impactful work that makes a positive difference. Your time at UCF will provide you with many meaningful opportunities to grow, you’ll work alongside talented colleagues on complex projects that will challenge you and help you gain new skills, and you’ll have countless rewarding experiences that go well beyond a paycheck.

Working at UCF has its perks!UCF offers:

• Benefit packages, including Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, Flexible Spending, and Employee Assistance Program
• Paid time off, including annual and sick time off and paid holidays
• Retirement savings options
• Employee discounts, including tickets to many Orlando attractions
• Education assistance
• And more…For more benefits information, view the UCF Employee Benefits Guide.

Dive into our Total Rewards Calculator to discover the diverse selection available to you, giving you a glimpse into the benefits that together shape your comprehensive rewards package at UCF.

Unless explicitly stated on the job posting, it is UCF’s expectation that an employee of UCF will reside in Florida as of the date the employment begins.

Department

Knights Experience Team-kNEXT

Work Schedule

Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Type of Appointment

Regular

Expected Salary

$48,722.00 to Negotiable

Job Posting End Date

11-20-2026-12-00-AM

The University of Central Florida is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based on any characteristic protected by law. The University maintains programs for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities in accordance with all applicable federal and state laws.

As a Florida public university, the University of Central Florida makes all application materials and selection procedures available to the public upon request.

UCF is proud to be a smoke‑free campus and an