Supplier Support Specialist

As a Supplier Support Specialist, you will act as the vital technical and operational bridge between Waitrose & Partners and our external supply base. Sitting within Commercial Optimisation, you will manage the end-to-end supplier data lifecycle including both onboarding and offboarding suppliers, troubleshoot system-wide access issues, and directly support high-stakes commercial and legislative initiatives (such as HFSS, DRS, platform migrations, and system decommissioning). This role is a blend of customer service, data governance, system triage, corporate compliance, and proactive cross-functional collaboration. The team also collaborates with stakeholders to organise supplier events, supplier facing website content, and ensuring the backend processes run smoothly.

In addition to your contractual pay, any time worked between 22:00 - 06:00 will attract Night Premium at a rate of £4.25 per hour. This will also apply to existing Partners who have enrolled onto Enhanced Hours Premium arrangements.

• Expected salary - Salary up to £35,000 depending on experience.

• Contract type - This position is a Permanent contract.

• Working pattern/flexible working - The Partnership has adopted a hybrid working approach, meaning you'll be able to work a mixture between the office and home based upon your personal needs whilst balancing the needs of the business. The team aims for 2-3 days per week in the Bracknell office to stay connected.

• Location - Bracknell Head Office

• Interviews - We are aiming for interviews to take place mid July in person

Key responsibilities

You will triage all queries and requests from our Suppliers, resolving and re-routing as necessary, providing support to both Suppliers and Partners carrying out key commercial activities.

You will provide excellent customer service and first-class support for all end-user incidents and service requests relating to Supplier-related data and Commercial system queries via Salesforce, maintaining high levels of ownership and GSCOP compliance throughout.

You will support a range of administrative tasks associated with Master Data Management (MDM), Engage and other commercial systems, as well as assisting with the management of our varied communication methods to stakeholders and suppliers.

You will understand the Waitrose Supplier experience, acting as the ‘Voice of the Supplier’ in Commercial and Supply Chain, representing their needs as you work with Commercial teams and Project teams to support their delivery of best-in-class services.

Essential skills/experience you’ll need

● Proficient in Excel/ Google Sheets, and similar database and data entry environments

● Customer Service experience (written)

● Stakeholder management experience

● Strong written and verbal communication skills

● Able to work as a part of a team, communicating openly and sharing a variable and intense workload

Desirable skills/experience you may have

● Understand Waitrose, our systems and processes (e.g. MDM, Salesforce, PIC, WPP, Supply Chain, GSCoP)

● Proficient in Salesforce Case Handling

● Web design tools and/or copy editing experience

● Use of Gemini or similar AI Tools in the workplace

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We’re the largest employee owned business in the UK and home of our cherished brands, John Lewis and Waitrose. We’re not just employees, we’re Partners, driven by our purpose to build a happier world. As we look to our future, there’s never been a more exciting time to join us.  

We’re ruthlessly focused on being brilliant at retail. We continue to innovate, adapt and diversify. Never Knowingly Undersold on price, quality and service in John Lewis and passionately serving food-lovers in Waitrose.   

As Partners we all share the responsibility of ownership and in its rewards. We use our voices to contribute to our success, working together through the good and challenging times, holding true to our behaviours and treating everyone with kindness and respect. 

We all own making the Partnership somewhere we belong. Embracing our differences and creating an environment where we’re free to be ourselves and can THRIVE. Growing ourselves individually, and as a collective. 

As Partners, we make all the difference. And, we all own it.  

Important points to note:  

It’s important to note that some of our roles are subject to pre-employment vetting (which may include DBS checks for successful candidates). If required, you’ll be informed and provided with information about vetting during the recruitment process and we encourage you to complete any vetting documents quickly to avoid delays. Any DBS checks required will be carried out by a third-party registered body and financial probity checks may also be required for some of our roles.  

We occasionally close vacancies early in the event we receive a high volume of applications, and therefore, we recommend you apply early. If you require a reasonable adjustment due to a disability which means you may need longer to complete your application please contact us as soon as possible.

We want all of our Partners to have a good work-life balance and we support flexible working. This might mean flexible or compressed hours, job sharing or shorter hour contracts, where possible. Please discuss this further with the hiring manager during your interview. 

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