Pulse Merchant

Description

Job Title:                   Pulse Merchant 

Department:              Commercial

Reports To:                Chief Commercial Officer

Location:                     In-Office Full-Time, Portland, OR

Organizational Background:

Columbia Grain International, LLC. is a long time established full-service grain company in the grain and pulses business. We are headquartered in Portland, Oregon and own/operate over 50 elevators, processing plants, and offices throughout WA, ID, MT, ND and NE to support our domestic and export sales programs.

We are a mid-size company with approximately 400 employees overall. The employees at Columbia Grain, at all levels of our organization, represent some of the most experienced and knowledgeable in the industry. We are proud of our ability to attract and maintain talented, efficient, community-minded employees.  Our teams develop lasting relationships with our producers and our customers throughout the world.

Position Description:

The Pulse Merchant is primary responsible for buying and selling pulses utilizing shuttle freight, DETs, COTs, single rail cars, trucks, and export containers. This position will also be responsible for planning pulse procurement, pulse sales, storage and processing programs for the company’s interior handling/processing operations.  The Pulse Merchant will work with the other members of the Processed Commodities team toward operational goals while maintaining quality, efficiencies and

Qualifications

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

• Trades major product line commodities for the company as a profit/loss center.
• Monitors export and domestic markets.  Pursues arbitrage opportunities. 
• Plans processing programs to maximize capacity utilization and profitability.     
• Projects freight needs and corresponding coverage in deferred positions.
• Coordinates pulse shipments with elevator managers, merchants, and customers.
• Works as a team member with Production, Logistics/Freight and Customer Service teams. 
• Communicates frequently with external and internal customers.
• Manages and grows customer accounts both domestically and internationally.
• P&L accountability for one or more related product lines.
• Understand and comply with all government regulations.
• Travels periodically domestically and internationally to support duties listed above.
• Other duties assigned.

Skills, Knowledge, Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Agricultural Economics, Finance, Economics or Business Administration equivalent and 3 years’ experience trading commodities in domestic/and or international markets. 
• Strong conceptual and problem-solving skills to evaluate problems and apply knowledge to identify appropriate solutions; ability to resolve issues effectively and efficiently.
• Strong customer service orientation and ability to establish solid working relationships.
• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, customers and other employees.
• Ability to write reports and effective business correspondence. 
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
• Strong interpersonal skills; ability to interact with all levels of management.
• Ability to be flexible and adaptive to successfully achieve the function of the position.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office, ability to calculate figures and amounts such as discounts, storage, interest, commissions, ratios and conversions quickly and accurately.
• Good work ethic in a team environment.  Willingness to perform all required work with good attendance.
• Some domestic and international travel required.

Benefits Offered:

• Comprehensive Health, Dental, and RX benefits
• Company paid Life Insurance and Disability
• Flexible Spending Plans
• Employee Assistance Program
• 401K Retirement savings plan
• Paid Holidays, Vacation and Sick leave

Successful completion of initial and ongoing employment screens, including but not limited to criminal background and vehicle record as required.

Columbia Grain is an Equal Opportunity Employer