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Procurement Agent - Commodities and Services #2309-206000-01

Date Opened
Friday, September 08, 2023 4:30 PM
Close Date
Saturday, September 30, 2023 11:59 PM
Section
Charlotte Water
Salary
  • $58,813.00 - $73,515.00/year - Commensurate with experience
Employment Type
  • Full Time
Go Back View Benefits

Introduction

Charlotte’s local government, with more than 7,000 employees and a $2.39 billion budget, works hard to ensure that the community will be a winning city for everyone – a truly remarkable place to live, work, learn and play.

Charlotte Water is an enterprise department of the City of Charlotte and one of the largest public water and sewer service providers in the southeast with 300,000 customer accounts and over 1000 employees. Our service area includes the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and the towns of Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson, Mint Hill, Matthews and Pineville. Charlotte Water’s FY 23 budget is $535M and a five-year capital program of $2.5 billion.  We enjoy the highest credit ratings from all three major credit rating agencies as a result of sound financial planning and management and strong support from our City Council.  We value competent, skilled candidates with a customer service focus to work in a team environment.

Overview

The City of Charlotte is the largest municipality in North Carolina and the 15th largest city in the United States, with a total population of more than 897,000 citizens. A major commerce center, Charlotte hosts several of the nation’s largest banks and technology companies.

Also known as the Queen City, Charlotte is home to the Carolina Panthers, the Charlotte Hornets and the NASCAR Hall of Fame. We work hard to ensure that the community will be a winning city for everyone – a truly remarkable place to live, work, learn and play. Join us in helping to keep our City thriving, ensuring upward mobility and advancement in the workplace.

Function

Commodities and Services Purchasing Agent

Summary

Charlotte Water (CLTWater) is seeking a Purchasing Agent.  CLTWater is an enterprise department of the City of Charlotte with more than $3 billion in assets. CLTWater is one of the largest public water and sewer service providers in the southeast with more than 260,000 customer accounts and 900 employees. CLTWater’s annual budget is approximately $400M including operating and debt service costs. We enjoy the highest credit ratings from three major credit rating agencies because of sound financial planning and management and strong support from our City Council. We value competent, skilled candidates with a service focus to work in a team environment.

This position will join the Commodities and Services Team in support of the acquisition of commodities, services and technology related needs for Charlotte Water.  This position works closely with and reports to the Commodities and Services Manager and is responsible for performing all aspects of formal and informal procurement and contracting activities while ensuring application and compliance with state and local guidelines, policies, and statutes to ensure the timely completion of assigned procurements. 

Major Duties and Responsibilities

• Facilitates procurement and contracting activities with the highest level of integrity utilizing statutory guidelines, policies, procedures, city policies, and best business practices from intake to execution for commodities, services, and technology, including but not limited to:

o Serves as Subject Matter Expert for competitive sealed and unsealed bids, competitive sealed and unsealed proposals, and requests for quotations
o Prepare contracts from bid awards and performs contract management related to expirations, renewals and change orders 
o Develops solicitations such as ITBs and RFPs and conducts bid phase services such as preparing advertisements, receiving bids/proposals, conducting pre-bid/proposal meetings and bid openings/selection meetings, issuing addenda, developing bid tabulations, corresponding with vendors, performing bid evaluations, updating the city’s procurement-related sites
o Provides daily and strategic consultation to facilitate procurement and contracting decisions, as well as project planning services, development of requirements, technical specifications, identification and notification of potential sources, and scopes of service for all related projects
o Collaborates with the City’s Charlotte Business INClusion Program to ensure participation and inclusion of MWBEs in contracting opportunities. Responsible for reporting assistance and data analysis including, but not limited to, procurement needs projections, and transaction reviews.
o Identifies potential risk areas and devises solutions for risk mitigation by developing a collaborative relationship with City Legal, Risk Management, divisions and major stakeholders.
o Coordinates all post-solicitation activities to include vendor notification and debriefing, post-award conferences as well as managing dispute resolution and protest issues.
o Prepares all necessary documents for requesting City Council approval for contract award, attends department meetings for or with requesting divisions as official Subject Matter Expert for Commodities and Services procurements conducted
o Performs contract administration, monitoring and reporting including being a liaison between suppliers and divisions, ensuring compliance with contract terms and conditions, negotiation of contract amendments, extensions and change orders. Analyze cost and price data from vendors. Perform contract audits when required which may include analyzing purchasing history.
o Establishes and maintains positive, professional and effective working relationships with staff, vendors, other city department and state purchasing personnel and professional organizations.
o Negotiate with companies and suppliers which may include specifications, scope of work, prices, terms and conditions
o Research market sources and suppliers to locate and ensure most cost effective and competitive pricing for the purchase of commodities and services
o Confer with companies and suppliers in order to acquaint them with state law, and city procurement policies and procedures and to obtain information on required commodities and services.
o Assist with construction and design services solicitations as needed.
o Performs special projects and other related duties as assigned

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Effective oral and written communication skills, be detail-oriented, and possess the ability to multi-task in a diverse environment.
• Knowledge and hands-on experience with the solicitation and procurement of commodities and services, including public procurement contract drafting, negotiation, execution, and management
• Considerable knowledge of contract documents, solicitation methods and contract administration related to procurement
• Good knowledge of laws, policies and procedures governing public procurement
• Excellent analytical skills with ability to problem solve
• Considerable skill in researching and preparing highly complex specifications, solicitations and contract documents.
• Considerable skill in negotiating contracts.
• Working skill in project management.
• Working skill with computers, including automated purchasing systems and common office software and productivity tools.
• Ability to read, interpret, explain and properly apply rules, regulations, laws, policies and procedures.
• Ability to develop effective and cooperative working relationships with other departments, employees, suppliers and other public agencies.
• Ability to use judgment and initiative in making recommendations and resolving problems that are highly complex and sensitive in nature.
• Ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing, including the ability to convey complex and technical subjects in a clear, concise and positive manner.
• Ability to establish schedules and to complete projects on a timely basis.
• Ability to successfully deal with all persons in a fair and equitable manner.
• Ability to manage numerous projects simultaneously
• Ability to function with minimal supervision & across multiple procurement disciplines 
• Strong customer service and interpersonal skills with ability to collaborate, establish, and maintain effective working relationships
• Attention to detail and accuracy of work
• Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite and other related software

Preferred Qualification

• Previous experience with a governmental entity, preferably within the state of North Carolina is highly desired, a highly motivated, seasoned professional able to function with little to no supervision and across multiple procurement disciplines. 
• Professional certification, i.e. CLGPO, C.P.M., CPPO, CPPB is preferred.

Minimum Qualifications

• High School Graduate or Equivalent and five (5) years related work experience.
OR

• Associate degree and three (3) years related work experience.
OR

• Bachelor's Degree and one (1) year related work experience
OR 

• an equivalent combination of education and relevant work/industry/military/job specific experience that provides the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the essential job duties. 

Conditions of Employment

The City’s Background Check Policy requires background checks to be conducted on final internal or external candidate(s) applying for any position with the City of Charlotte. The type of information that will be collected as part of a background check includes, but is not limited to: reference checks, social security verification, education verification, criminal conviction record check, and, if applicable, a credit history check, sex offender registry and motor vehicle records check.

Background checks must be in compliance with all federal and state statutes, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The checks must be consistent with the guidelines set forth by these laws requiring organizations to obtain a candidate’s written authorization before obtaining a criminal background report, motor vehicle records check or credit report; and to properly store and dispose of information derived from such reports.

Final candidates must pass a pre-employment drug-screening test and physical examination. During the selection process, candidates may be asked to take a skills test, and/or participate in other assessments.

The City of Charlotte is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

How To Apply

Apply online.

Federal law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. Please tell us if you require a reasonable accommodation to apply for a job.

You are welcome to visit the City of Charlotte Human Resources Department lobby where we have workstations available. Our office is located at 700 East 4th Street, Suite 200, Charlotte, NC 28202. Our hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (EST), excluding official City holidays.

Anyone seeking an accommodation to apply for a job may call (704) 336-2285 for assistance or you may email questions to CityHrJobPostingsNotify@ci.charlotte.nc.us.

Benefits

The City of Charlotte provides a comprehensive benefits package to all employees.

Click here to learn more about the City of Charlotte’s benefits.

The City of Charlotte is a drug and alcohol-free workplace.

In Conclusion

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