Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Budget, Financial Systems, & Procurement, the Director of Procurement is a leadership role responsible for overseeing all aspects of the institution's procurement function. The Director will be a strategic leader, ensuring the institution acquires goods, services, and construction projects in a cost-effective, ethical, and timely manner, while supporting the academic and research missions of the university.
This position assists in enhancing the Finance Division's ability to maximize benefits utilizing the latest technological advancement and procurement application. The incumbent will be the primary contact for functions as it relates to the management of procurement systems in support of enhancing university purchasing processes, facilitate clear procurement objectives, and understand the wide range of decision making with the commitment to community stability to provide better services.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Procurement & Sourcing
• Provide leadership, mentoring and support university personnel to ensure they understand their roles and interdependence in the delivery of sustainable services
• Prepare procurement and requisitioning standard operating procedures to ensure procurement activities comply with best-in-class policies and procedures including legal and regulatory
• Develop, review, negotiate, and administer contracts with vendors, contractors, and service providers
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with suppliers, conduct regular performance evaluations, and foster strategic partnerships
• Ensure contracts align with Seton Hall’s strategic goals and comply with federal, state, and local regulations
• Monitor contract performance, identify potential risks, implement mitigation strategies and take corrective action
• Develop and implement a streamlined vendor onboarding process to ensure compliance with Seton Hall standards and regulatory requirements
• Foster a culture of collaboration to establish and maintain strong relationships with internal stakeholders (faculty, staff, departments) to understand their needs and develop effective sourcing strategies
• Develop and implement a comprehensive procurement strategy aligned with the university's overall goals, this includes implementing and the management of a new procure-to-pay system
• Vendor Policy Strategy Creation to ensure vendor relationships deliver the intended value, with efficient processes. A strategy may include areas such as setting out clear and quantifiable goals, tracking supplier KPIs and building and maintaining effective relationships with vendors
Contracts, Bidding, and Sourcing
• Direct and oversees the writing of Requests for Proposal and contracts, negotiation of terms, conditions and prices, logistics solutions, supplier business reviews and implementation of performance metrics
• Negotiate vendor contracts, and monitor contract compliance to ensure terms and conditions are being met
• Lead the procurement team in sourcing, negotiating, and awarding contracts for a wide range of goods and services
• Research and report on industry trends and initiatives; investigate the targeted industry, its potential suppliers, and critical service factors
• Collaborate university-wide to negotiate pricing, contracts, bundling, and services offered by existing and prospective vendors
• Develop programs to provide clients with options around the entire source to settlement lifecycle and best-practices process
Required Qualifications:
• Bachelor's degree from a four-year college or university, preferably with a business major or supply chain management
• At least five years of experience in a procurement leadership role (management), preferably in higher education
• Advance working knowledge of Excel, Word and PowerPoint
• Experience in working with data management systems and/or demonstrated knowledge of systems
Desired Qualifications:
• Demonstrated experience in maintaining accurate data across several integrated systems (e.g. Unimarket)
• A minimum of 2 years working with Ellucian Banner, Integrated Procurement Systems or other similar financial information systems
• Knowledge in using COGNOS, ODS, and/or another similar applications a plus
• Certificate in Supply Management and/or Procurement a plus.
• Masters or Advance degree is desired.
Salary Grade:
AD190 - Administrative
Exempt/Nonexempt: Exempt
Physical Demands: General Office Environment
Special Instructions to Applicants:
Seton Hall University is committed to programs of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and the principles of affirmative action.