Assistant Buyer

**Posted Date**:10 Jul 2025

**Posting End Date**:18/07/2025

**Location**:Coventry

**Company**:Severn Trent Water Limited

**Department**:Procurement

**Salary (£)**:£25,000 - £30,000

Assistant Buyer

Our people are what makes Severn Trent a truly exciting and inclusive place to work. We’re a team of over 9,000 people with a purpose to deliver one of life’s essentials, and we do it all while thriving in our unique culture.

We’re a growing, Midlands based FTSE100 plc and welcome people from all walks of life, celebrating their individuality, as we know diverse minds, experiences and backgrounds help us to learn and better serve our customers and the communities we represent.

It’s an exciting time to join, as we have a huge ambition to deliver bigger and better than ever before over our next 5-year regulatory period. If you’re seeking an exciting and thoroughly rewarding career in Procurement, then Severn Trent is the place to be.

**EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW**

Due to growth we have **two exciting opportunities** for you to join our award-winning Procurement and Contract Management team as our new **Assistant Buyer,** where you’ll help shape a sustainable, high-performing supply chain.

As our Assistant Buyer, you’ll support Category Managers with low-value, low-risk purchases (£5k-£450k), reduce off-contract spend, and contribute to strategic sourcing initiatives.

You’ll rotate across teams, gain exposure to key categories, and lead supplier research and selection—ensuring best practices and strong stakeholder collaboration

**Further responsibilities include**:

- Communicate confidently with stakeholders and suppliers to support procurement and negotiations.
- Ensure compliance in the requisition-to-order process by:

- Guiding colleagues on correct purchasing procedures.
- Analysing non-contract spend to find opportunities for value, consolidation, and compliance.
- Driving efficiencies across spend areas.
- Deliver savings aligned with individual, team, and departmental targets.
- Identify and implement process improvements to boost procurement effectiveness.
- Support sourcing activities in line with the Procurement Act 2023.
- Identify high-spend, non-contracted suppliers and bring them under contract or through compliant tendering, prioritising by spend and impact

**WHAT YOU’LL BRING TO THE ROLE**

To be successful in this role, it’s expected that you’ll have the following skills and experience:

- The ability to manage stakeholders and build effective relationships
- Experience and knowledge of purchasing processes (e.g., managing tenders and contracts)
- A commercial background with negotiating experience
- Willingness to learn, develop and the confidence to ask questions, and influence people
- Good IT skills, with the ability to develop and maintain spreadsheets and databases, (including SAP, Access, Word, PowerPoint)

The right skills and experience are important. But if you have the right character, positivity and a caring attitude we want to talk to you, too.

We welcome people from all walks of life and celebrate individuality as we know diverse minds, experiences and backgrounds help us to learn and better serve our communities. We want people who show up and get involve. Those who are ready to be part of something bigger and who want to make a difference because they care.

**WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU**

Working here isn’t just a job. You can build a career at Severn Trent, and we’ll reward you for it too. We have a range of benefits that recognise great work, and award-winning training to help you reach your potential. And we’ll also help you play your part in looking after the environment and the communities where we live.

With that in mind, here are just some of our favourite's perks that you’ll get being part of the Severn Trent family:

- Salary of £25,000 - £30,000
- 25 days holiday + bank holidays (and the ability to buy/ sell up to 5 days per year)
- Annual bonus scheme (of up to £1,500 per annum based on company performance)
- Leading pension scheme - we will double your contribution (up to 15% when you contribute 7.5%)
- Sharesave - the chance to buy Severn Trent Plc shares at a discounted rate
- Dedicated training and development with our ‘Academy’
- Electric vehicle scheme and retail offers
- Family friendly policies (including, a year off fully paid maternity and adoption leave)
- Two volunteering days per year

**WHAT’S NEXT**

**We can’t wait to hear from you.**

Before you apply, you’ll need an updated copy of your CV and about five minutes to spare.

If your curiosity has peaked and you're wanting to find out even more, search **#LifeAtSevernTrent** on social media.