Purchasing Coordinator
Optimal Inc.Work From Home - Anywhere (supporting EST hours) Position summary The Purchase Order (PO) Coordinator provides end-to-end operational support for Marketing procurement from intake, review of estimates through purchase requisition creation, PO management, invoice resolution, and non-PO payments. Working closely with Marketing stakeholders, Finance, Purchasing, Tax, Procurement, and SAP GBS (Global Business Services), this role helps ensure advertising agency and marketing vendor spend is accurately budgeted, coded, contractually aligned, tax-compliant, and processed through SAP Ariba. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys process-driven work, cross-functional collaboration, continuous improvement, and building financial acumen within a large marketing organization. Key activities Review estimates from advertising agencies and other marketing vendors or partners to determine the appropriate budget, business unit, expense category, and accounting treatment. Partner with Finance analysts and Marketing stakeholders to validate estimates, confirm budget availability, and resolve accounting questions before purchase requisitions are submitted. Prepare and process purchase requisitions through SAP Ariba to initiate PO requests, ensuring submissions are complete, accurate, and aligned with applicable purchasing requirements. Serve as a primary point of contact for Marketing stakeholders regarding PO requests, including status updates, required corrections, approvals, and next steps. Provide guidance and troubleshooting support to Marketing team members who create and manage their own POs and assist stakeholders with questions related to POs generated from requisitions and help resolve issues that may delay purchasing or payment. Review vendor submissions for errors, duplicate requests, missing information, or other exceptions; advise vendors on required corrections and coordinate resubmissions as needed. Research invoice issues and rejections in the applicable systems, coordinating with Purchasing, Procurement, vendors, and internal stakeholders to resolve exceptions and communicate status updates. Issue non-PO vendor payments through the appropriate payment systems, route requests for approval, and assign expenses to the correct budget and accounting categories. Identify opportunities to automate repetitive activities across the requisition, PO, invoice, and payment processes to improve cycle times, accuracy, and visibility. Leverage approved AI tools and workflow technologies to streamline intake, validate submissions, identify duplicate or incomplete requests, summarize status information, and support issue resolution. Develop and maintain user guidance, templates, FAQs, dashboards, and other self-service resources that reduce avoidable inquiries and improve first-time-right submissions. Partner with Finance, Marketing, Purchasing, Procurement, Tax, and technology teams to design and implement process improvements that enable stakeholders and vendors to self-serve whenever appropriate. Build and maintain effective working relationships across OEMs internal teams and with external agencies and vendor partners. Maintain clear documentation and timely communications regarding requisitions, POs, invoices, payment status, and outstanding actions. Qualifications Strong attention to detail and comfort working with budgets, accounting codes, and financial data Proficient in Microsoft Office suite and / or Google Workspace; ability to learn SAP Ariba and related procurement systems Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain PO/invoice status clearly to internal and external stakeholders Strong organizational and time-management skills; able to track and manage multiple open POs and invoices simultaneously Comfortable working independently while collaborating closely with Finance, Purchasing, Tax, and Marketing stakeholders Prior experience with purchase orders, invoicing, accounts payable…