Job Description

Overview
Reporting to the Supervisor, Procurement & Strategic Sourcing, the Buyer acts as an agent of the corporation for the procurement of goods and services and is responsible for purchasing commodities and/or services. The Buyer is responsible for planning, requisition review, supplier selection, order placement, expediting, follow-up, and payment of purchases.
Responsibilities

• Purchase goods and services by utilizing formal purchasing processes and gathers information regarding availability and pricing for all orders.
• Process requests for the Employee Purchase Plan (EPP) and In-Home Fitness Equipment (IHFE) Plan, for submission to Payroll.
• Purchase furniture and/or capital equipment requests, once approved by Supervisor, Purchasing within Directive.
• Process requests for furniture and/or equipment repair that fall within the level of Buyer authority within Directive.
• Process requests for ergonomic equipment and/or installation once approved by the Workplace Safety Coordinator.
• Process requests to replenish MPI warehouse stock, once reorder levels are reached.
• Assist Purchasing Agents with purchasing IT hardware and software licensing requests.
• Negotiate costs with suppliers to obtain the most economical purchase agreements consistent with quality, quantity, and delivery requirements.
• Implement and maintain specifications and standards for goods and services.
• Expedite orders to ensure timely delivery of goods and services, advises users of delivery delays, and refers repetitive problems to the Supervisor, Procurement & Strategic Sourcing
• Interview manufacturers and selling agents regarding new products and services, sources of supply allocation of business, market stability, and other areas pertinent to the procurement function.
• Maintain courteous, ethical, impartial, and objective relations with suppliers.
• Identify and maintain competent responsive sources of supply in the event the contracted vendors cannot supply or for single source suppliers.
• Resolve post contractual problems such as delinquent deliveries and defaults.
• Ensure that the terms and conditions are adequate and that the goods and services procured fully satisfy the needs of the user departments.

Qualifications
Education and Experience:

• High school diploma or equivalent and three years of direct purchasing experience.

OR

• Diploma in Business or related discipline and two years of direct purchasing experience.

OR

• Degree in Business or related discipline and one year of direct purchasing experience.

• Actively enrolled in the Supply Chain Management Professional Designation Program (SCMP) (previous equivalent PMAC) is an asset.

Technical Knowledge and Skills:

• Intermediate organizational, time management, and negotiation skills.
• Intermediate communications skills with the ability to present information effectively, both verbally and written to various audience.
• Experience in Lawson Purchasing System an asset.

Employee Benefits
Health benefits
We offer a comprehensive health benefits program that includes:

• flexible health, dental and vision plans
• health spending account
• travel health coverage
• other extended health benefits such as ambulance, massage and physiotherapy

Financial security
In an effort to support financial security, we offer:

• registered pension plan
• group, dependent, and optional life insurance coverage
• critical illness insurance
• sick leave to cover short-term disability
• long-term disability

Wellness
We offer programs that focus on how to better achieve a balance between work and personal commitments, as well as maintain a healthy workplace culture. This includes:

• vacation entitlement
• flexible work arrangement for eligible positions
• maternity, parental and adoptive leaves
• bereavement and family responsibility leaves
• employee and family assistance program
• mental-health programming
• lunch-and-learn offerings
• discounted gym memberships and wellness account

Diversity and inclusion
Manitoba Public Insurance believes that diversity and inclusion strengthens us. We consider ourselves to be a barrier-free organization where individual values, beliefs and practices are respected and appreciated for the diversity they bring to our work life.
Employee recognition
It's important to recognize our employees for their contributions. Not only do we recognize employees as they achieve milestone years in their careers, we also have several outlets for leaders and peers to reward each other for work well done.
Professional development
We want our employees to grow, which is why we offer support in keeping their skills up-to-date. We offer in-house training, professional development and an educational assistance program.
Safety and health
In an effort to encourage a safe and healthy work environment, we offer various safety, health and workplace policies and programs along with technical expertise and assistance to support employee activities in safety and health.

Skills Required