Textbook Buyer

Lewis & Clark College


The textbook buyer for the college bookstore will direct the operations of the Textbook Department, including creating and implementing policies and procedures in consultation with the Bookstore Director. He or she will manage all aspects of textbook adoptions; including: ordering, receiving, pricing, invoicing, and returning textbooks. This positions analyzes sales trends in order to determine best pricing structure by searching on-line competitor’s web sites. Supervises the preparation and return of overstock and defective books and the valuation and repurchase of used books. Responsible for creating and overseeing a Textbook rental program and for purchasing/selling textbooks and trade books on student-to-student marketplaces like Amazon and Half.com in order to maintain a competitive pricing structure. Must maintain full compliance with the federal Higher Education Opportunity Act.

Responsibilities:

  • Solicits, organizes, edits, compiles, and processes textbook requisition forms submitted by faculty.
  • Inputs and maintains text data and related academic materials, including course requests, purchase orders, receiving, invoices, etc.
  • Analyzes faculty recommendations, campus enrollment statistics, and POS system history in order to determine the total number of textbooks to order for classes. Decides how many new, used, e-books, and rental textbooks to purchase without exceeding open-to-buy figures. Determines how many used textbooks to purchase back from students during buyback.
  • Procures the optimum number of used books through student buyback, from used book wholesaler vendors, or student-to-student marketplaces.
  • Processes and distributes purchase orders via mail, fax, telephone, e-mail, or publisher on-line websites.
  • Verifies and monitors the accuracy of receiving, pricing, setting shelves, and displaying of textbooks.
  • Responsible for performing and maintaining an accurate inventory count and the timely return of textbooks to wholesalers and publishers.
  • Prepares buyback setup, analyzes past textbook history and creates a list of textbooks to purchase back from students, maintains buyback inventory record keeping, and reconciles all buyback inventory and reports.

Requirements:

  • Associates degree in business or a related field, or minimum of three years of full time textbook purchasing experience.
  • One year of purchasing experience.
  • Ability to extract, report, and analyze texbook/POS system data (e.g. buyback, receiving, pricing, margins, sales & enrollment data) to monitor key departmental functions and to make projections.
  • Must be able to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.
  • Ability to answer routine questions and explain procedures.
  • Working knowledge of correct English, grammar, spelling and punctuation for use in simple sentence structure.
  • Ability to follow oral and written directions.
  • Must be physically capable of participating in tri-annual physical inventory of textbooks.
  • Ability to resolve problems and diffuse situations.
  • Must be able to operate a cash register and to participate in store opening and closing procedures.
  • Advanced working knowledge of word processing, spreadsheets, and email applications (preferably within the Microsoft Office Suite).
  • Considerable working knowledge of keyboarding, ten-key, data entry and filing skills.

Lewis & Clark College will conduct background checks on the finalist(s).

Lewis & Clark College is an equal opportunity employer.

This position is represented by the Lewis & Clark College Support Staff Association Local 4912 of the American Federation of Teachers. http://www.lclark.edu/dept/hr/lccssa.html.

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