Planning Procurement Specialist

Description The End-to-End (E2E) Planning Procurement Specialist will execute the decisions made by the E2E Planning team related to manufacturing, procuring, and trading paper across Liberty Diversified International (LDI) and its family of businesses, which has multiple manufacturing sites in the United States and Mexico. This role is responsible for cultivating and managing productive business relationships across LDI's network of paper partners. Through constant interaction with the E2E Planning team, Liberty Paper, Liberty Packaging personnel, and their contacts at LDI’s paper partners, the End-to-End (E2E) Planning Procurement Specialist will ensure that all decisions related to buying and trading paper are executed with the best interests of the total enterprise in mind. To succeed in this role, individuals must possess a high degree of financial acumen and the interpersonal skills necessary to cultivate trusting relationships within LDI and with its external partners. This full-time position will report to the Manager End-to-End Operations at our Liberty Paper location in Becker, Minnesota. DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Responsible for paper procurement (buy/sell/trade) to make daily, weekly, and monthly purchases and trades, as well as optimizing long-term agreements with LDI’s paper partners to achieve cost and service levels. Responsible for ensuring all decisions related to making, buying, or trading paper are executed to optimize the organization's cost and service levels and manage the tradeoffs inherent in this work. Continuously strive to optimize both cost and service levels while ensuring on-time delivery across the network. Work closely with the extended LDI team to forecast supply and demand, enter into mutually beneficial long-term agreements with LDI’s paper partners, as appropriate, and maintain close visibility into cost and available capacity across the network. Initiate purchase orders, communicate delivery schedules/needs with paper partners, and ensure on-time delivery of externally sourced paper across the network. Create and maintain accurate customer accounts and pricing in the system. Create and maintain item numbers in the system. Enter customer orders accurately, communicate order acceptance, and maintain and communicate customer order status reports. Create and manage reports for the End-to-End Team, including bookings, backlog, on-time delivery, and other sales, inventory, and order-related metrics as needed. Assist with managing inventory levels across the organization, adjusting order quantities and delivery dates as appropriate. Assist in company-wide efforts to develop and revise long-term strategic planning for paper, both with the mill and LDI’s external partners. Work directly with the extended E2E team, the mill, the box plants, and LDI’s paper partners to ensure a seamless transition between demand planning and supply planning. Work directly with the team responsible for the transportation and logistics of paper and old corrugated cardboard (OCC) to devise cost-effective solutions for transporting paper across the organization. Partner across the enterprise to lead, optimize, and cultivate continuous improvement activities. Maintain a dotted-line reporting relationship with Corporate Procurement. Other duties, as assigned. REQUIRED EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS Bachelor’s degree in Business, Procurement, Finance, or another relevant area, or equivalent experience. 4+ years’ related experience in a planning/manufacturing/production environment, with demonstrated success in purchasing responsibilities. Demonstrated success with supplier management and the cultivation of healthy, long-term supplier relationships. Expertise with procurement processes. Familiarity with transportation/delivery operations, methods, and procedures. Effective interpersonal, verbal, and written communication and presentation skills. Strong analytical abilities. Stron…

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