Alex Harper

I am a committed and versatile professional, with a comprehensive and adaptable skill set. My values include, but are not limited to reliability, honesty and attention to detail. I am committed to the delivery of effective & high-quality results. I am a strong team player and excel independently as a confident collaborative leader with strong communication skills. I pride myself on my flexibility & hard-working nature.

Direct Buyer at DENSO Manufacturing Ltd (2025-05 – Present)

• Driving cost reduction strategy while ensuring market competitiveness and maintaining quality assurance.
• Supporting new project launches - Sourcing of parts for new products, ensuring readiness for production cycle.
• Supplier management - Building strong supplier partnerships, conducting annual performance reviews, and fostering innovation.
• Risk mitigation - Applying strategies to minimise risks, ensuring continuity and compliance across procurement operations.
• Implementing procurement strategy by commodity while managing commercial risk, and ensuring compliance.
• Negotiating pricing, contracts, and delivery schedules to secure value and continuity of supply.
• Managing supplier performance, onboarding, supplier visits, and continuous improvement.
• Monitoring procurement KPIs, analysing spend/market data, and identifying risks and opportunities.
• Managing financial challenges within the supply base - transfer of parts and tooling effectively with in short notice period.
• Customer cyber attack - supplier engagement to assess risks and manage order status. Effective communication with suppliers during shut down period.
• Contributing to annual cost saving target achievement.
• Implementation of a supplier performance scorecard to help improve/maintain quality, delivery, competitiveness, sustainability & other metrics.

Materials Scheduler / Supply Chain Analyst at Blue Earth Foods Ltd (2022-06 – 2025-05)

• Daily tasks – ensuring all materials are on site in the correct quantity/areas to ensure the factory operates efficiently. Monitoring daily deliveries and next days plan/delivery schedule.
• Ingredient/packaging ordering – monitoring all daily/long life material orders. This involves raising purchase orders, tracking confirmations, and ensuring timely procurement to support production needs.
• Overseas purchasing – managing the procurement of materials from international suppliers, successfully negotiating contracts to secure favourable terms and ensure timely delivery.
• Supplier engagement/management – maintaining regular contact with suppliers and conducting visits to ensure their performance, reliability and availability of product continuously meets our standards. This ongoing engagement helps build strong relationships and ensures a steady supply chain.
• Managing internal changes to materials - overseeing internal material changes by deciding the appropriate timing for these changes and effectively communicating the plan to all relevant internal stakeholders. This ensures a smooth transition and minimises disruption to production.
• Managing stock rotation - with the aim to mitigate waste of fresh ingredients.
• Stock management - strategically managing stock purchases to minimise on-site inventory while ensuring sufficient stock levels for daily operations. This involves balancing stock availability with cost-effective inventory control.
• New Product Development (NPD) - collaborating with the NPD team after product handovers to introduce new materials on site for trials. I also communicate forecasts to suppliers to prepare for product launches once customer volume agreements are finalised.
• Contract management – Overseeing contract agreements with suppliers, focusing on ensuring coverage, availability, and competitive pricing. This involves negotiating terms, monitoring performance, and maintaining strong supplier relationships.
• Managing the gaps in supply of materials. Finding contingency from current supplier/outsourcing to ensure continuity of supply.
• Overcoming late order increases to mitigate customers shortages and enabling the factory to operate efficiently.
• Achieving cost reduction targets through strategic purchasing/benchmarking supply base.
• Delivering 100% of Christmas CFTO orders both years at Blue Earth.

Commercial & Supply Chain Analyst at Mudwalls Farm Ltd (2021-08 – 2022-06)

• Analysing sales data – creating reports to identify any patterns, pick accuracy / order fulfilment
• Project management – click & collect project.
• Customer Experience analysis – tracking issues and matters of fact. Response to customer complaints.
• Learning a new stock management/sales order processing system that was implemented to improve accuracy and efficiency. Educating out to colleagues while performing day to day tasks.
• Successfully launching click & collect project.

Sales Co-Ordinator at Mudwalls Farm Ltd (2021-01 – 2021-08)

• Co-Ordinating order allocations – communicating with the buyers / logistics & supply chain
• Capturing and processing all retail customer orders – via multiple channels.

Operations and Logistics Co-Ordinator at Mudwalls Farm Ltd (2020-10 – 2021-01)

• Labelling – co-ordinating product information including country of origin and price / BBD etc.
• Stock Management – pushing short shelf-life products / surplus stock to ensure minimal waste.
• Logistics – organising route plans for deliveries. Managing drivers and fleet maintenance.
• Product stability analysis – monitoring products over defined time periods / temperatures.

Commercial Assistant at Mudwalls Farm Ltd (2020-02 – 2020-10)

Similar task to the Sales & Operations Assistant with the addition of creation of NPD forms for new retail periods across the business.

Sales & Operations Assistant at Mudwalls Farm Ltd (2019-08 – 2019-11)

• Telesales: Calling the clients to take orders and upsell.
• Admin: General administration task.
• Sales: Communication with clients, building relationships
• Product knowledge: seasonality knowledge and how that influenced market price & supply

W/House operative – 6 months at Henry Coles & Co (2019-01 – 2019-06)

• Serving customers
• Picking stock for orders
• Using forklift truck for heavy items
• Cleaning and maintaining the W/House
• Self-motivation: Getting to work on time every day without fail in all conditions.
• Team work: working as a team to effectively get the tasks done on time.

Internship for 20 weeks at Countrywide Farmer plc (2017-04 – 2017-09)

This was a placement where I was working across the entire business, including 4 retail stores, the Head Office and with B2B managers visiting customers.

• Communications
• Working with others
• Applying Knowledge
• Applying Initiative

Shop Manager – Holiday and w/e job at Tunnel Barn Farm Fisheries (2012-06 – 2015-09)

• Serving customers
• Shelf stacking
• Weighing in matches
• Shrub and reed management
• Organising competitions
• Teaching fishing to school kids
• Opening/Closing at the end of the day
• Peg management
• Fish healthcare
• Customer engagement: how to communicate with paying customers in order to make their fishing experience enjoyable and get them catching fish. Dealing with awkward situations and calming them to a satisfactory conclusion.
• Self-motivation: Getting to work on time every day without fail in all conditions.
• Knowledge: I learnt about different fish diseases and how to manage them, a huge variety of products in the shop and how to advice clients on purchases.
• Management: How to manage the fishery. Ensuring fishing clients could access all areas of their allotted pegs. Also, guiding them to where the best fish were.

BSc (Hons) in International Business Management (Food Agri-business) – The Royal Agricultural University (2015-09 – 2018-06)

Level 3 Extended Diploma in Countryside Management – Warwickshire College (Moreton Morrel) (2013-08 – 2015-08)