She oversees purchasing of food & beverage on a company-wide scale. She also provides support to retail. On the retail side, product selection is done laterally, with the director of retail providing support. “I love having the ability to have visibility across the organization. The services our department provides can positively impact every department.” Not only are site operations positively impacted, but the effort her team puts into their jobs is also reflected on the P&L.
This individual is no stranger to negotiations. Part of her job responsibilities includes making sure costs are under control by negotiating with distributors and manufacturers. In fact, she negotiates with vendors and manufacturers for sites on a companywide level to ensure extra revenues are captured by rebates, allowances, marketing, funds, etc. Maintaining relationships with external vendors is very important, but so is providing support to operations on day-to-day issues. This can range from logistics to problems with products that have not arrived because the vendor may be facing with shipping hitches. This could also include challenges with crucial items being out of stock due to the supply chain or shipping problems caused by a lack of drivers.
What she likes best about working for Areas is, “The opportunities provided to people to learn a little bit of everything. We can bring people to different positions, and they end up learning different things within their roles and have the ability to cross-train within various departments.”
This employee has grown both in her personal and professional life since her earlier days at Areas. She started out in data entry in purchasing while still in college and has since been promoted twice before assuming her current position. Areas is honored to have been a part of this person’s professional journey for over 13 years!