James Ingold
Roanoke
Summary
Dynamic, results-driven professional with a proven track record in leadership, management, and fostering a collaborative team environment. Recognized for exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, dedicated to advancing organizational missions through strategic development and support. Expertise in purchasing, complemented by strong program management and planning capabilities, ensures alignment with business objectives. Committed to enhancing policies, minimizing waste, and delivering high-quality materials that drive operational efficiency.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Purchasing Supervisor
Virginia’s Community College System
02.2022 - Current
- Purchasing Supervisor managing a team of 9 buyer specialists and 2 lead buyers.
- Responsible for processing between 45,000 and 60,000 purchase requisitions for 23 community colleges, Systems office, and the Shared Services Center.
- Reviewing all solicitations between $10k and $100k.
- Effectively manage a team of approximately 11 members.
- Assist the Purchasing & Contracts Manager in providing leadership, mentorship, organization, and prioritization of teamwork, and performs other oversight roles as needed by the POM.
- Assist the POM in ensuring effective and efficient delivery of services to the VCCS colleges.
- Ensures training, including all regulations and continuous improvements, for purchasing team.
- Manages team Telework Agreements and ensures adherence to all Telework Policies and individual active Agreements.
- Executes requisitions for a wide variety and high volume of goods and services on behalf of the 23 colleges, shared services center, and system office.
- Achieve goals and standards established in customer Service Level Agreements.
- Utilize appropriate procurement methods.
- Communicate effectively with internal and external customers to meet the business objectives of the Colleges’ end-users, protect the interests of the VCCS, and provide the framework for a successful business relationship with the vendor.
- Ensure compliance with Commonwealth of Virginia law, VCCS policies and procedures, and any other applicable Federal and State laws and regulations associated with the contracting process.
- Ensure VCCS purchases made through VCCS contracts or other state cooperative contracts are only for goods and services within the scope of the contract at the prices indicated in the contract.
- Supports the POM with the development and maintenance of SSC procurement policies, procedures, and work instructions.
- Ensures training, including all regulations and continuous improvements, for all positions.
- Executes outstanding customer service to internal and external customers.
- Provide effective customer service on assigned requisitions.
- Ensures college needs are met in a timely and efficient manner.
- Apply state policies on small, woman-owned, and minority-owned (SWaM) business participation in the procurement process.
- Assist POM in developing VCCS strategies to improve supplier diversity.
- Perform vendor outreach functions.
- Adjusted procedures to maximize department effectiveness.
- Wrote standard operating procedures for department.
- Sourced vendors, built relationships, and negotiated prices.
- Communicated regularly with suppliers to uphold accountability for quality standards and timely delivery of goods.
- Generated reports on purchasing activities to support management decisions.
- Identified opportunities to reduce lead times and improve inventory management.
- Collaborated with internal stakeholders to create timely and accurate purchase orders.
- Cultivated strong relationships with vendors to maintain and improve levels of customer service.
- Facilitated resolution of vendor disputes and discrepancies.
- Created purchasing policies and procedures that complied with company standards and regulatory requirements.
- Hired and trained purchasing staff to improve effectiveness of purchasing operations.
- Assessed areas of service concern and developed improvement plans.
- Scrutinized purchasing data to identify areas for improvement and cost savings.
Lead Buyer Specialist
Virginia’s Community College System
03.2021 - 02.2022
- Lead Buyer Specialists researching and initiating solicitations for 23 colleges, Systems Office, and the Shared Services Center.
- Responsible for all solicitations between $10K and $100K.
- Reviewing contracts, negotiating with vendors, and providing guidance through mentoring the Buyer Specialists.
- Handle all Quick Quote purchases between $10k and $100k.
- Training of all new Buyer Specialists.
- Serve as an elevation point for Buyer Specialists and colleges.
- Lead and mentor Buyer Specialists through coaching and performance management.
- Ensure that issues are resolved quickly and effectively by coordinating with leadership and colleges.
- Ensure that the Buyer Specialists receive needed training, needed, stay current with all changes, and are provided with the tools they need to succeed.
- Develop internal team metrics to help improve the overall process and ensure that on-going training is complete.
- Execute small to large purchases through eVA eMall, and other tools.
- Achieve goals and standards established in customer Service Level Agreements.
- Ensure compliance with state procurement policy and VCCS Purchasing Policies and Procedures.
- Ensure vendor set-up activities for new vendors are executed appropriately.
- Monitor, follow through, and ensure resolution of vendor issues.
- Apply state policies on small, woman-owned, and minority-owned (SWaM) business participation in the procurement process.
- Apply VCCS strategies to improve supplier diversity.
- Perform vendor outreach functions.
- Maintained complete documentation and records of all purchasing activities.
- Built long-term supplier relationships with vendors to establish quality and competitive pricing.
Buyer Specialist
Virginia’s Community College System
02.2020 - 02.2021
- Buyer Specialist reviewing and approving requisitions and other demand signals then executing purchase orders for a wide variety and high volume of goods and services on behalf of 23 colleges, shared services center, and system office.
- Execute small to large purchases through eVA eMall, and other tools.
- Achieve goals and standards established in customer Service Level Agreements.
- Ensure compliance with state procurement policy and VCCS Purchasing Policies and Procedures.
- Ensure vendor set-up activities for new vendors are executed appropriately.
- Monitor, follow through, and ensure resolution of vendor issues.
- Apply state policies on small, woman-owned, and minority-owned (SWaM) business participation in the procurement process.
- Apply VCCS strategies to improve supplier diversity.
- Perform vendor outreach functions.
Help Center Agent
Virginia’s Community College System
02.2019 - 02.2020
- Help Desk phone agent acting as a first line of defense for problem-solving assistance to 23 community colleges and vendors with services related to administrative functions handled by shared services.
- Answer and process inbound calls from college end-users and vendors related to services being performed by the Shared Services Center.
- Assist in general problem resolution and document solutions in Salesforce CRM tool.
- Act as a Procurement liaison for the Help Center to answer tier 2 questions, as possible, to avoid escalation to the Procurement Team.
- Coordinates expedite order requests with Purchasing Manager or designee.
- Attend Procurement Operations meeting daily to discuss current service concerns.
- Make outbound calls to colleges and vendors, where necessary, to resolve problems.
- Assist with training of new employees while providing on-going training of existing employees.
- Safety Committee
- Committee Participation
- De-escalated and resolved customer complaints with punctual, polite and professional service.
- Informed clients of policies and procedures.
- Collected, arranged, and input information into database system.
- Optimized customer experience by delivering superior services and effectively troubleshooting issues.
Regional Executive Assistant
Commonwealth of VA Dept. of Social Services
05.2015 - 02.2019
- Executive assistant and office coordinator responsible for the administrative support and coordination for 30 regional staff and the facility.
- Ensured policies and procedures were in accordance with federal, state, and agency rules.
- Developed and implemented employee training to include random moment sampling (RMS) training.
- Performed all administrative duties for the regional office, including budget planning, meeting planning and coordination, scheduling, and on-boarding of new employees.
- Collected and analyzed data to develop recommendations and highlight areas of risk to governmental officials and to develop programs to inform and educate the public on personal risks and what they can do to prevent child fatalities.
- Assisted and informed individuals on Social Service programs and directed them to the appropriate resources and agencies to get them enrolled.
- Participated in meetings with government officials across multiple agencies, individuals in the private sector, and people from the community, to include the Piedmont Regional Child Fatality Review Team (CFRT) meetings.
- Routed constituent communications, including phone, electronic, and post to the correct representative or program to ensure timely responses to constituent’s inquiry or complaint.
- Was a key team member in the planning and preparation of continuity of operations and emergency incident response/recovery teams for the regional office.
- Coordinated supply purchases through eVA for three divisions and reconciled purchases for payment through FAAS (Financial Accounting Advisory System)
- Processed payments for all travel voucher reimbursement, employee parking, and postage machine.
- Processed all incoming and outgoing cases for the Quality Control unit and maintained records on all cases.
- Assigned and maintained all state vehicles and requested building and equipment repair.
- Served as the regional office security officer; reset passwords and entered new employee information into the system.
- Committee Participation
- Safety Committee
Regional Manager
Eagle United Truck Wash
10.2005 - 05.2015
- Regional manager responsible for the daily operations of four facilities, a staff of three site managers, twenty associates, and a $1.5M annual operating budget.
- Managed four high-performing facilities acquiring $2.3M average annual revenue for all facilities.
- Provided company-wide training as a role-model manager/facility to other national locations to increase sales and reduce overhead operating expenses in low-performing national locations.
- Led recruitment, hiring, training, performance monitoring and appraisals and scheduling of staff for facilities.
- Ensured environmental and employment compliance to all federal, state, and local laws and guidelines including EPA, OSHA, EEOC, hazardous chemicals, and other safety standards.
- Maintained Just-In-Time materials and supply planning for all facilities to provide for continuous operations in a variable environment.
- Provided customer relations training at the associate level and facilitated the resolution of escalated consumer concerns or complaints.
- Negotiated new and renewed enterprise-level annual sales contracts.
- Supervised various locations, enforcing high-quality standards of operation.
- Maintained professional demeanor by staying calm when addressing unhappy or angry customers.
- Successfully managed budgets and allocated resources to maximize productivity and profitability.
- Trained personnel in equipment maintenance and enforced participation in exercises focused on developing key skills.
Education
No Degree - Communications
Youngstown State University
Youngstown, OH01.1999
High School Diploma -
Poland Seminary High School
Poland, OH01.1997
Skills
- Operations management
- Training and development
- Conflict resolution
- Effective negotiation techniques
- Supplier relationship management
- Customer engagement
- Budget Planning & Implementation
- Risk assessment strategies
- Vendor relationship management
- Strategic sourcing
- Order management
- Procurement expertise
- Compliance management
- Process development
- Project management
- Data analysis
- Bidding processes
- Professional communication skills
- Policy improvements
- Contract negotiation
- Operations management
Certification
VCA, Virginia Contracting Association
Awards & Recognition
Pacesetter Award – 2016, Teamwork Award – 2015
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Volunteer - Angels of Assisi, Roanoke, VA - 2019, Volunteer - Feeding America, Roanoke, VA - 2016-2019, Donation Drive Organizer - Ronald McDonald House, Roanoke, VA – 2016-2019, Volunteer – Regional Center for Animal Care and Protection (RCACP), Roanoke, VA – 2014-2016, Donation Drive Organizer – Roanoke Valley Rescue Mission, Roanoke, VA – 2010-2015
Timeline
Purchasing Supervisor
Virginia’s Community College System
02.2022 - Current
Lead Buyer Specialist
Virginia’s Community College System
03.2021 - 02.2022
Buyer Specialist
Virginia’s Community College System
02.2020 - 02.2021
Help Center Agent
Virginia’s Community College System
02.2019 - 02.2020
Regional Executive Assistant
Commonwealth of VA Dept. of Social Services
05.2015 - 02.2019
Regional Manager
Eagle United Truck Wash
10.2005 - 05.2015
No Degree - Communications
Youngstown State University
High School Diploma -
Poland Seminary High School