KEERTHI BALLA

BE, CPSM®, Dip. SCM® (ITC), Lean Six Sigma Green Belt

**** ******* ** *** * Aberdeen MD 21001

Email id: ac5o7u@r.postjobfree.com Mobile: +1-302-***-****

CAREER OBJECTIVE:

To work in a highly competitive and motivated environment where I can utilize my full potential and deliver my best.

PROFILE SUMMARY:

8 years experienced procurement professional responsible for managing the execution of the strategic sourcing and contract management activities required to effectively execute the Sourcing Plan at the global, regional, or country level. This includes establishing and managing relationships with senior institution and functional area management to develop and execute appropriate strategies to meet their business needs.

Proven ability to manage staff and communicate with other departments, vendors and senior management (internal and external stakeholders) to ensure that procurement goals are met.

Experienced in sourcing suppliers for purchasing goods/services, negotiating contracts and standing order pricing agreements.

Proficient in using Scout RFP, Purchase menu in ERP (JD Edwards) Package, Reporting tools in PeopleSoft, OnBase, eProcurement package, Internet based programs, Microsoft Power BI, Project, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Word and other Microsoft Office computer software.

CORE COMPETENCIES:

Teamwork

Oral & Written Communication

Issue Resolution and Problem Solving

Project Management

Business Judgment

Customer Relationship Management

Risk Analysis

Procurement Process Knowledge

Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

Market Analysis

Sourcing Strategy Formulation

Supplier Evaluation Criteria Development

RFx Development

Sourcing Strategy Execution

Supplier Negotiations

Benefits Measurement

Continuous Improvement

Supplier Relationship Management

KEY SKILLS:

Ability to manage multiple procurement activities simultaneously in support of various time sensitive and schedule driven projects.

Excellent oral, written, listening and presentation skills.

Proficient in using Scout RFP, Purchase menu in ERP (JD Edwards) Package, Reporting tools in PeopleSoft, OnBase, eProcurement package, Internet based programs, Microsoft Power BI, Project, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Word and other Microsoft Office computer software.

Ability to work independently as well as in teams.

Ability to critically think and develop creative solutions to business issues, evaluate solutions and recommend preferred alternatives.

Interacting with local as well as international community and with all levels of management.

Working knowledge of project management.

Demonstrable experience in supporting the identification, prioritization, and delivery of cost reductions through strategic sourcing.

Demonstrable experience in interacting with multiple customers (e.g., business units) to successfully deliver procurement services to meet their business needs.

Demonstrable experience in developing, executing, and managing contracts with suppliers.

Demonstrable experience in managing supplier relationships and their performance.

Experience in supporting the planning and execution of negotiations with suppliers to deliver cost reductions, process improvements, and innovative solutions to meet business needs.

Deep understanding of and ability to leverage data to support analysis of trends and identification of opportunities for cost reductions / process improvements.

Demonstrable experience of identifying, prioritizing, and resolving issues.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Senior Procurement Specialist Oct 2017 till date

Laureate Education, Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Responsible for managing the execution of the strategic sourcing and contract management activities required to effectively execute the Sourcing Plan at the global, regional, or country level. This includes establishing and managing relationships with senior institution and functional area management to develop and execute appropriate strategies to meet their business needs.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

Support the development and maintenance of relationships with institutions, functional business areas to gather, analyze, and convey information to support category management and sourcing efforts.

Support the review of spend to identify and implement improvements and demand management opportunities.

Direct analytical needs during the strategic sourcing, supplier relationship management, compliance management, and demand management processes.

Lead analysis of historical and ongoing procurement data based on category specific activities to identify data-driven insights.

Conduct marketplace and supplier analyses, including researching industry trends and cost drivers as needed.

Use compliance to preferred suppliers, preferred contracts, and/or buying channels analyses to collaborate with institutions and functional areas to increase compliance.

Lead conversations with suppliers to manage their performance.

Lead development of detailed category baselines and delivered savings.

Lead development and maintenance of category cards on the Buyer Portal to help users identify and effectively use available contracts or preferred buying channels.

Address escalated issues / questions from Contact Center within agreed upon timeframes, documenting resolutions within Ticket Management system.

Recommend and support implementation of continuous improvement opportunities.

Supports Shared Services Organization in identifying suppliers as needed to support Spot Buy activities.

Sr. Purchase Officer – Materials (Projects) Apr 2014 to Oct 2015

Purchase Officer – Materials (Projects) Jun 2008 to Mar 2014

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), Visakh Refinery, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

Handled material and service needs for the Refinery’s ongoing & future Mega and non-Mega projects (largest mega project of value equivalent to USD 422.7 million) including purchase of materials/services from overseas & domestic suppliers, tendering & Purchase Order (PO) generation in JDE & sending to vendors etc. Placed 735 orders of value Rs.289.35 Crore (equivalent to USD 44.8 million) as on 30th Oct, 2015. Job responsibilities and achievements are as follows:

Receiving purchase requisitions, analyzing for specification, quantity and delivery requirements; participating in meeting with users for proper specifications, terms and conditions and documentation preparation.

Monitoring project surplus material levels to avoid unused excessive capital work-in-progress. Identifying cost saving opportunities by utilizing excess material/substitutes to requisitioned materials. Utilized project surplus material of book value Rs.34.95 lakhs (equivalent to USD 54,115) as on 30th Oct, 2015.

Formulating purchase strategy consistent with statutory stipulations and guidelines & policies of the company; for eg., signing of the Integrity Pact as per CVC guidelines & company policies etc.

Preparing tender/RFQ documents (for proprietary or limited or global tendering) & including appropriate clauses (mandatory statutory clauses and company clauses such as force majeure clause, cancellation/risk purchase clause, arbitration clause, foreign exchange clause, price variation clause, work permit system etc.), selecting vendors as per company policies, inviting quotations, carrying out bid evaluations by analyzing factors such as delivery criteria, landed cost etc., comparing bid cost with estimate & reconciling variance with Project Managers.

Analyzing bids & proposals, corresponding with users, legal, finance, vendors, other Strategic Business Units (SBUs) etc. (on case-to-case basis) before negotiating commercial & legal terms with vendor(s) and obtaining the required approvals from senior management or committees as stipulated in the Limits of Authority Manual (LAM).

Analyzing award recommendations of PMC floated enquiries and obtaining the required approvals from senior management or committees as stipulated in the Limits of Authority Manual (LAM), if found right. If not, correspond with PMC for sourcing strategy/alternative plan for obtaining the materials/services.

Ensuring that all the agreed upon terms and conditions are included in the purchase orders before sending them to the vendors.

Placing POs for the approved proposals and addressing any post order correspondences (if any, on case-to-case basis).

Where changes are warranted, processing the approvals for change requests with the appropriate justifiable reasons for change and after analyzing the effect of change on any other parameters like scope, time, cost etc. Placing change orders for the approved change requests (approved by authorities as per Limits of Authority Manual (LAM)). This involved meetings with various departments such as finance, users, legal etc.) to get clarifications in special unusual cases.

Understanding supplier’s component cost drivers, performing in depth trend analysis and market intelligence for key materials/services while negotiating with vendors to deliver lowest possible cost. Achieved a total savings of Rs.30.07 crores (equivalent to USD 4.66 million) by way of negotiations and reverse auctions as on 30th Oct, 2015.

Maintaining awareness of vendor issues/delays and proactively work with Planners to identify and understand potential delays/impacts to project milestones; for e.g. coordinating with finance dept. about delay in releasing payments to vendors etc.

Ensuring purchasing data accuracy in ERP (JDE) database; for e.g. pricing, supplier code, item code in POs etc.

Delivering agreed upon KPIs and best results to both internal & external clientele by proper planning & coordination.

Issuing way bills to vendors for sensitive goods as per Govt. notifications (AP Commercial Taxes department).

Participating in company networks and sharing of information, best practices & lessons learnt with regard to contracts, supplier management and day-to-day procurement activities.

Extending excellent staff management with extensive coordination & liaison with PMC/EPCC/EPCM and external agencies in smooth running/management of department and projects.

SOME SIGNIFICANT PROCUREMENTS HANDLED UNDER VARIOUS PROJECTS:

Materials & Work Contracts (including Supply, Erection, Testing & Commissioning): Chemicals/Catalysts (DMDS, Ferric Alum, Urea, Liquid Nitrogen etc.), IT/office equipment (sometimes against buy-back) such as Desktops, Printers, Scanners, UPS, Refrigerators, ACs, Revamp of LAN, OFC Cables, LIMS Webtop licenses for viewing lab results on intranet, Servers for PIN (Process Information Network), Liquid Ring Compressor, Control Valves, Instrumentation Analyzers, Electrical Transformers, HT/LT Switchgear, various mechanical bulk items such as Valves, Pipes, Flanges, Stud Bolts etc., Refractory, Rim Seal Fire Protection System for various Tanks, Programmable Logic Controller (PLC)/ Distributed Control System (DCS) software & licenses for Instrumentation, Analyzers for Lab, PA Call Stations, Radar Tank Gauges (RTGs), HVLR Monitors for various tanks, Operator Training Simulator (OTS) for training purposes of Process Units, DCS Cards etc.

Services: Mechanical, Civil, Electrical, Instrumentation Contracts for Erection, Testing, Pre-Commissioning, Commissioning & Supervision of various units, Proprietary Services from OEMs required for certain services in projects, Painting for various Tanks, Fire Proofing, Freight Consolidation, Freight Forwarding, Custom Clearance & Transportation, Housekeeping contracts, hiring of equipment such as cranes etc., Feasibility Study contracts, Chemical Cleaning etc.

EDUCATIONAL/ PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS:

PMI – PMP (Project Management Professional) training Apr 2017

Star PMO

Successful Negotiation: Essential Strategies and Skills Jul 2016

University of Michigan (Coursera.org)

Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM) Aug 2015

Institute for Supply Management, Inc (ISM), USA

Green Belt in Lean Six Sigma Aug 2015

KPMG

International Diploma in Supply Chain Management (SCM) [77% (Distinction)] Sep 2013

International Trade Centre (ITC-UNCTAD/WTO)/Indian Institute of Materials Management (IIMM)

Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Mechanical Engineering [81.54% (Distinction)] May 2008

Andhra University College of Engineering (AUCE)

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