IKEA Purchasing Services (Czech Republic) spol. s r. o. is a purchasing organization which cooperates with furniture and home furnishing manufacturers located in Europe on producing furniture with perfect design and quality for many people, and which ensures distribution into retail stores IKEA worldwide. We are a team of about 150 co-workers of over 20 nationalities.

People within IKEA value a culture of humbleness and open-mindedness. We don't have a rigid hierarchy system and encourage everyone to talk to anyone, and we don't have a dress code. We are characterized by enjoying long discussions and a relaxed, natural order with a great deal of personal responsibility. We want people to proactive, engaged, internally motivated for results and eager to learn.

At IKEA, we see things a little differently. We onboard our suppliers as partners with whom we create long-term relationships. We want them to grow with us, become more efficient, and achieve lower prices.

• You can have the confidence and freedom to do things your way, including organizing your time. Your well-being is our priority.  A variety of rewarding work awaits you, which you will be able to combine alongside your hobbies or family.
• Use opportunities for learning and growth working with suppliers! You will be able to travel to look at various manufacturing companies, understand new and different technologies, people, and cultures.
• Everybody is seen as a talent. In regular informal talks with your manager, you can explore your development and carrier opportunities. We will support you on the way through internal and external training. We embrace making mistakes and learning from them.

You will be an informal leader directing the steps and activities of a 3-member micro-team in the Glass team consisting of a Production Engineer, who takes care of the production process and quality, and a Supply Planner, who handles logistics. Based on the analysis, you will draw up an action plan once a year to reduce production costs or develop a better design for customers, all within the framework of sustainability and ethical business practices. You also can expect to:

• Develop partnerships with suppliers – the micro-team regularly travels to the field to solve issues first-hand production from the ground up, and provide suppliers with feedback and help with the implementation of action plans.
• Create cost break down analyses – you will look for price saving opportunities for existing products and demand the production of new ones, especially from existing suppliers.
• Operation – regular communications with suppliers (emails, calls), management and team meetings, project implementation, and data entry.

Mirka has been working at IKEA for 3 years as a Business Developer and says about her work:

“My assignment in IKEA is to maintain and improve business relationship with suppliers who are manufacturing the products IKEA sells in stores. In my daily job I am in close contact with supplier and together we are working on many areas - from new products start up, to pricing or sustainability. This brings a lot of responsibility but also amazing opportunity to learn something new every day, travel and see things from the inside. What I appreciate the most is my team - we really are one IKEA, everyone is available to help and the atmosphere is great. We have a lot of trust for each other, which allows us to work flexibly (home office, flexible hours when needed) and still deliver best results”.

Please read what you need for the role:

• You are aware of economics and finance – understanding of a company financials like cash-flow, P&L, income statement etc., able to work with cost breakdown, the price is alpha and omega for us.

• Passion for business and the end-goal, both will come in handy when negotiating with suppliers, you must be strict but fair, solution-oriented person, concentrating energy on fixing all the normal business issues.
• You will use the art of dealing with people, empathy, and good communication skills, in coordinating your small micro-team and in dealing with suppliers and many other stakeholders in the IKEA supply chain.
• Analytical skills that are necessary for working with numbers, when negotiating prices, or when setting priorities for your work, which is usually high paced and demanding.
• An interest in production and discovering the latest technologies in home furnishing.

Thanks for reading this far. Submit your application as soon as possible however not later than September 6, 2022.  Please note that we will be interviewing continuously, which means that we may close the application process earlier than stated if we find the right candidate.  We are looking forward to receiving your applications!