Procurement Coordinator

Special Instructions to Applicants: All interested applicants should attach a cover letter and resume in PDF format, maximum 2 pages, in the Supporting Documents section of the application.

About Rice 

Boasting a 300-acre tree-lined campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has a 6-to-1 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio, and a residential college system, which supports students intellectually, emotionally and culturally through social events, intramural sports, student plays, lectures series, courses and student government. Developing close-knit, diverse college communities is a strong campus tradition, which is why Rice is highly ranked for best quality of life and best value among private universities. 

Rice is also a wonderful place to work. Rice faculty, staff and students share values that are essential to our success as a healthy community. Those values guide our decisions and behaviors and shape Rice’s culture. They come through in the way we treat each other and the welcome we extend to our visitors. These values can be recalled simply by our name — RICE — Responsibility, Integrity, Community and Excellence.

Position Summary:

The Procurement Coordinator supports the acquisition of goods, services, and technologies to meet stakeholder requirements. This is a service-oriented position that requires effective skills in stakeholder facilitation and engagement, problem-solving, buying, negotiation, supplier relationship management, and contract management.

Ideal Candidate Statement:

The ideal candidate is intent on making an impact, providing exceptional customer service, solving problems, and has a passion for delivering results.

Workplace Requirements:

This position is offered as a hybrid role. Per Rice policy 440, work arrangements may be subject to change.

*Exempt (salaried) positions under FLSA are not eligible for overtime. 

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, Accounting, or a related discipline.

  • In lieu of the education requirement, additional related experience, above and beyond what is required, on an equivalent year for year basis may be substituted.

• One or more (1+) years of related procurement experience in a buyer or sourcing role.

Skills:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to effectively communicate with a variety of individuals and personalities at all levels internally and externally.

• Strong interpersonal, negotiation, listening, and presentation skills.

• Exceptional team member. Must be able to work with a team, take direction, adhere to required work schedules, meet commitments, focus on details, and comply with work rules.

• Strong analytical, organizational, reasoning, problem-solving, and conflict resolution skills.

• Strong customer service focus, including a positive attitude and a sense of urgency.

• Ability to work cooperatively and effectively with others and maintain confidentiality when appropriate.

• Ability to resolve conflict in a win-win manner.

• Ability to work independently and within an organization to manage tasks and timeline.

• Ability to maintain a measurable high level of performance.

• Self-motivated with the ability to successfully manage multiple tasks, organize and prioritize work to meet strict deadlines, and work with minimal direct supervision.

• Ability to organize, schedule and prioritize workload to meet key milestones and objectives.

• Intermediate proficiency level in MS Office (Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Word).

• Must be able to perform all essential and marginal functions of the job.

Preferences:

• Two or more (2+) years of related procurement experience in a buyer or sourcing role.

• Familiarity with higher education procurement practices and requirements.

• Intermediate proficiency level with Adobe Acrobat, Oracle Fusion Cloud, eSourcing tools.

Essential Functions:

• Serve as a procurement liaison to build relationships with campus stakeholders and suppliers

• Advises and assists faculty and staff with the acquisition of goods and services, procurement policies, best practices, processes, and sourcing strategies

• Support end users throughout the full purchasing life-cycle, helping translate campus requirements into effective purchasing solutions

• Resolve PO, invoice, delivery, and pricing discrepancies.

• Supports low- to mid-complexity RFXs for goods, services and technologies

• Evaluates commercial proposals

• May assist or lead supplier negotiations

• Conducts market research to identify new potential suppliers and evaluate market trends.

• Maintains punchouts and pricing catalogs for preferred suppliers

• Ensures commitments are met

• Performs all other duties as assigned

Rice University HR | Benefits: https://knowledgecafe.rice.edu/benefits

Rice Mission and Values: Mission and Values | Rice University

Rice University is committed to ensuring Equal Employment Opportunity and welcoming the fullness of diversity into our candidate pools. Rice considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. Rice also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified persons with disabilities. If an applicant requires a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please get in touch with Rice University’s Human Resources Office via email at facstaffada@rice.edu for support.

If you have any additional questions, please email us at jobs@rice.edu. Thank you for your interest in employment with Rice University.