Lead Procurement Officer

About the role

Ausenco is recruiting a Lead Procurement Officer for its growing Newcastle office, which has more than 50 employees. The role is to establish and lead a new procurement function, bringing procurement leadership closer to local engineering and project teams. It is supported by the APAC/Africa Regional Procurement team in Brisbane and Perth, and involves leading, developing and growing a procurement team while supporting high-profile clients and projects in the mining, minerals and industrial sectors.

Key responsibilities

• Lead and develop Newcastle's procurement function, supporting engineering and project delivery teams and driving procurement excellence across the region.
• Lead a team responsible for negotiating best value outcomes, performing strategic analysis and supporting project execution plans.
• Manage procurement of machinery and equipment for EPCM projects, ensuring compliance with procurement schedules, bidders lists, package lists and live project data.
• Partner with Engineering, Construction and Cost Control teams on supplier evaluation, selection, purchasing, subcontract agreement negotiations, analytics and pricing reviews.
• Build relationships with internal and external stakeholders and delegate responsibilities while fostering team member growth.
• Contribute to systems development and continuous improvement of procurement tools and processes.

Required profile

• Extensive experience managing procurement and contracting in EPC and EPCM environments.
• Demonstrated experience leading teams and building procurement capabilities.
• Exceptional stakeholder management, negotiation and relationship-building skills.
• Strong verbal and written communication, attention to detail, decision-making and problem-solving.
• Experience in the mining and minerals sector highly regarded; tertiary qualification in a related field desirable.

Required skills

• High proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• Proven experience with Hexagon ERP systems; SmartPlant Materials experience highly regarded.
• Ability to negotiate commercial terms with suppliers and contractors in coordination with Finance, Legal and Tax teams.

What we offer

• Career advancement through technical training, mentoring and networking opportunities.
• Flexible working hours, work from home arrangements and modern leave policies including paid parental leave and floating public holidays.
• Wellness support including online health and fitness programs, financial coaching and confidential counselling.
• The chance to build a new local procurement function with support from experienced regional leaders.