Apprenticeship training course

Procurement and supply assistant (level 3)

The process of procurement or buying low value goods and services.

• Qualification level: 3 ; Equivalent to A level.
• Typical duration: 18 months
• Apprenticeship category: Sales, marketing and procurement
• Maximum funding: £6,000 ; Maximum amount government will fund ; for apprenticeship training.
• Also known as:
  • Procurement contracts officer
  • Procurement coordinator
  • Purchasing assistant
• Skills:
  Skills an apprentice will learn

  • Monitor and order products, stock, equipment and services at appropriate times using the appropriate procurement method.
  • Communicate to procurement's internal stakeholders, suppliers and other stakeholders in order to develop effective relationships and networks
  • Create, maintain and amend purchase order and contract records.
  • Interpret, evaluate and compare procurement information such as historical spend and usage using databases and spreadsheets.
  • Present findings and data in all formats e.g. mathematically, written and oral.
  • Determine value for money (VFM) and added value through the use of Total Cost of Ownership during the evaluation process, and apply the most economically advantageous tender (MEAT) criteria to the evaluation of quotes and tenders to support the recommendation at award. This may include the inclusion of green, low carbon, sustainability, and ethical criteria.
  • Utilise relevant Procurement computer systems or internal databases.
  • Select the supplier of the most appropriate products and services for purchases within their remit and place purchase order.
  • Undertake appraisal of adhoc and low spend suppliers including setting them up on the purchasing system.
  • Effectively research and analyse demand, spend, trends, potential suppliers and industries utilising qualitative and quantitative methods.
  • Develop specifications of requirements and requests for quotes/tenders in line with organisational requirements.
  • Apply considerations of responsible procurement in evaluating potential suppliers, quotes and tenders.
  • Investigate and resolve purchase order, delivery and invoice queries.
  • Own low risk value projects such as supply contracts for stationery, personal protective equipment (PPE) or other consumables, and contribute to higher risk activities such as contracts for building services or machinery, and track, log, expedite and review outstanding orders and stock availability where applicable.
  • Maintain knowledge on all open orders and their status' and provide assistance to all purchasing staff e.g. expediting and feeding information back to the relevant stakeholders.
  • Able to consider the impact of the decision making process when interacting with the supply chain.
  • Able to support the contract negotiations and mini competitions with suppliers.

Full information on Procurement and supply assistant (level 3) is available from the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

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