Procurement clerks, also known as purchasing assistants or departmental buyers, take purchase requests from various departments within a company and get price quotes from suppliers. Additionally, their responsibilities include contacting suppliers to schedule deliveries or to discuss shortages or missed deliveries.
Procurement clerks prepare purchase orders on behalf of their companies. They also might be asked to review prices and product specifications from various suppliers to determine which would provide the best deal. Other duties might include creating and maintaining purchasing files and price lists, as well as determining if their companies have enough inventory on hand.
Additionally, procurement clerks might track deliveries and make sure their companies receive exactly what was ordered from suppliers. They sometimes physically check shipments to ensure the appropriate items were delivered. Procurement clerks also might answer supplier and customer inquiries about order changes or cancellations and check requisition orders for accuracy.
A high school diploma, coupled with extensive on-the-job training, is the minimum education requirement for prospective procurement clerks. Employers also might seek job candidates who have experience in general clerical work.
Additionally, some employers look for aspiring procurement clerks who have earned a certificate or associate degree in procurement, supply chain management or a related field from a technical school or community college. Courses in these programs typically cover accounting, inventory management, global sourcing, negotiation basics and logistics-related information technology.
Procurement clerks must have strong reading, speaking and writing skills. They also should have good working knowledge of administrative procedures, as well as various computer applications and programs.
