Vendor Experience Specialist

FirstKey Homes LLC; Phoenix (AZ); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

FirstKey Homes LLC is seeking a Vendor Experience Specialist to manage vendor relationships, performance, and compliance across multiple markets. You will oversee onboarding, training, escalations, and advocacy to optimize cost-effectiveness and service quality.

The role requires analytical problem-solving, strong negotiation skills, and proficiency with vendor management software. You will collaborate with product teams and internal stakeholders to drive continuous improvement in vendor

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in business, supply chain management, or a related field or equivalent work experience.
• Proven vendor management experience and strong negotiation/contract skills.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal abilities; analytical problem-solving capacity.
• Proficiency with vendor management software and tools.

Responsibilities

• Conduct weekly/monthly market reviews with service/construction teams and vendors to optimize performance.
• Support Product and Services team on local level to improve efficiencies and utilization.
• Manage escalations related to vendor performance, pricing, and billing.
• Resolve issues and disputes with vendors promptly.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to improve vendor management processes.
• Oversee multiple markets/regions and ensure compliance with contracts.
• Evaluate vendor performance, capacity, geographic alignment, and fill gaps.
• Source and manage onboarding, training, and offboarding of vendors.
• Assess local market conditions to ensure cost-effectiveness and quality of services.
• Track/vendor performance against utilization targets and report results.
• Improve visibility into service and supplier analytics.

Skills

Critical Thinking

Decision Making

Time Management

Active Learning

Speaking

Writing

Vendor software

Education

Bachelor's degree in business, supply chain management, or related field

Tools

Yardi

Vendor Café

Voyager

Job description

The Vendor Experience Specialist will play a crucial role in managing vendor relationships and performance within the organization. This role encompasses various responsibilities, including sourcing/pricing, onboarding/training/probation, compliance, capacity assessment, coverage analysis, utilization monitoring, scorecard creation, and advocacy. The Vendor Experience Specialist will be accountable for weekly and monthly market reviews, local market compliance with vendor utilization, and managing escalations and advocacy related to vendor performance, pricing, and billing.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

• Conduct weekly and monthly market reviews with Service/Construction teams and vendors to ensure alignment and optimize performance.
• Execute initiatives including supporting the Product and Services team on the local level to ensure optimal efficiencies, utilization, and effectiveness.
• Manage escalations and advocacy relating to vendor performance leveraging scorecard, pricing, and billing.
• Resolve any issues or disputes with vendors in a timely and efficient manner.
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders to drive continuous improvement in vendor management processes.
• Responsible for multiple markets/regions.
• Evaluate vendor performance (KPI’s), capacity alignment, geographic alignment, negotiate contracts, and ensure compliance with agreed-upon terms in their region.
• Source and manage onboarding, training and off boarding of vendor relationships.
• Continuously assess local market conditions to ensure cost-effectiveness and quality in vendor services.
• Analyze local vendor coverage to ensure adequate geographical and service coverage.
• Track and report on vendor performance against utilization targets.
• Improve visibility into service & supplier analytics.
• Audit all vendors for accurate rates, skills, coverage, capacity, etc. & fill gaps based on local needs.
• Act as an advocate for the company, representing its interests with vendors.

This brief summary is not an all-inclusive description of job duties. Other job duties and responsibilities may also be assigned by the incumbent’s manager at any time based upon Company need.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Indoor and outdoor work in all types of weather conditions.
• May sit for several hours at a time.
• Prolonged exposure to computer screens.
• Repetitive use of hands to operate computers, printers, and copiers.

REQUIRED EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's degree in business, supply chain management, or a related field (or equivalent work experience).
• Proven experience in vendor management or a similar role.
• Strong negotiation and contract management skills.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Analytical and problem-solving abilities.
• Proficiency in using vendor management software and tools.

PREFERRED EDUCATION& EXPERIENCE

• Certification in supply chain management or vendor management.
• Previous experience working in the trades for or as a contractor.
• Familiarity with industry-specific regulations and standards.
• Experience with any trades including remodeling, general repair, HVAC or others.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE

• Clerical — Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records,
• Customer Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Ability to lead conflict resolution

REQUIRED SKILLS

• Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
• Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Experience with Yardi, Vendor Café and Voyager

WORK STYLES & BEHAVIORS

• Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
• Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
• Prioritization – Job requires any given tasks to be continually reviewed and executed based on the decided relative importance or urgency for completion.
• Analytical Thinking — Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
• Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.

FirstKey Homes is an equal opportunity employer and will not tolerate discrimination in employment on the basis of race, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, disability, ethnicity, national origin, marital status, veteran status, genetic information or any other legally protected classification or status.

Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.