UK

United Kingdom · Sustainability Corporate Social · Entry Level (0-2 years)

Sustainable Procurement Coordinator

Here is the whole job, in plain words. What it is, a real day, what you decide, how you're judged, how people get here and where they go next. Then the part no course gives you: twelve AI tutors who learn your work.

  • Experience bandEntry Level (0-2 years)
  • Direct reportsNo direct reports
  • Reports toSustainable Procurement Analyst
  • UK framework levelUsually someone starting out, or keeping a process running

Also advertised as Junior Sustainable Sourcing Assistant · ESG Procurement Administrator · Supply Chain Sustainability Support · Responsible Sourcing Assistant

Built on an analysis of 43,079 real UK job descriptions · grounded in qualifications employers recognise

Start with a free Future Fluency check, tuned to Sustainable Procurement Coordinator

Ten quick questions, one per Future Fluency, asked against this role rather than a generic one. About five minutes, and no card.

Start the check, free

1What this role really is

This role is all about getting the foundational work done for our sustainable procurement efforts. You'll be the person collecting the crucial data, making sure it's clean and accurate, and generally keeping the wheels turning. Think of it as the engine room for our responsible sourcing goals – not always glamorous, but absolutely essential. You'll spend your days supporting the team, learning the ropes, and making sure we've got the right information to make good decisions about our suppliers.

2What you'd actually use

The tools this job runs on, and how well you'd need to know each one.

Microsoft ExcelIntermediate

Cleaning and merging supplier data, using VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, PivotTables, and basic formulas to prepare data for analysis. Creating simple trackers.

ESG Rating Platforms (e.g., EcoVadis, Sedex)Intermediate

Sending assessment invitations, tracking supplier completion status, pulling basic supplier scorecards, and navigating the platform to find specific documents.

ERP/P2P Systems (e.g., SAP S/4HANA, Oracle Fusion)Basic

Looking up supplier master data, finding purchase orders, and extracting basic spend data for specific categories under guidance.

Collaboration & Project Management (e.g., MS Teams, Asana)Intermediate

Managing your personal tasks, updating project boards with supplier statuses, and communicating effectively within team channels.

3What you get to decide, and how that grows

Power in a job isn't your title. It's what you're allowed to decide. Here's how it grows as you move up.

The choiceComing inWhere you are nowThe step above
Supplier Data Entry & ValidationExecute data entry according to guidelines. Escalate any data inconsistencies or missing information to your manager.Independently validate and correct routine data inconsistencies. Propose solutions for recurring data quality issues.Define data validation rules and processes. Make technical decisions on data harmonisation strategies.
Supplier Communication (Routine)Draft and send templated emails for assessment requests and follow-ups, with manager review.Independently manage routine supplier communications and queries within established guidelines.Develop communication strategies for complex supplier engagement campaigns. Mentor others on best practices.
Process Improvement SuggestionsIdentify potential inefficiencies and suggest them to your manager during check-ins.Propose and document minor process improvements for approval. Lead implementation of approved changes.Design and implement significant process overhauls. Champion adoption of new tools and methodologies.
Risk Identification & EscalationFlag any potential supplier risks (e.g., low assessment scores, red flags in documents) to your manager immediately.Independently identify and categorise routine supplier risks. Propose initial mitigation steps for manager review.Lead risk assessments for specific categories. Develop and implement risk mitigation strategies.

4How you'll be judged

The scoreboard, honestly: the hard targets, how often each one is actually looked at, and the quiet human signals that never make it onto a dashboard.

Supplier Assessment Completion Rate
The percentage of assigned Tier 1 suppliers who complete their annual ESG assessment.
Target · ≥85% completion rate for assigned suppliers

If you're assigned 20 suppliers this month, we'd expect at least 17 of them to have completed their EcoVadis assessment by the deadline.

Data Entry Accuracy
The error rate in manually entered supplier data into our systems (e.g., contact details, assessment scores, key dates).
Target · <3% error rate

Out of 100 data points reviewed in your entries, we'd expect no more than 3 to have typos or incorrect values. Catching that a supplier's emissions were entered in kg instead of tonnes counts here.

Timeliness of Support Requests
How quickly you respond to and action requests from the Sustainable Procurement Analyst or other team members.
Target · 90% of requests actioned within 24 hours

If an analyst asks you to pull a list of suppliers by 10 am tomorrow, it's done. If a supplier sends an urgent query, you've acknowledged it and started looking into it within the day.

Documentation Upkeep
Maintaining and updating internal process documents, supplier contact lists, and assessment trackers.
Target · All assigned documentation is current and accurate (zero overdue updates)

When a supplier's main contact changes, you update our internal records within a day. If a new process for logging SCARs is introduced, you make sure your own notes reflect it.

Proactive Problem Spotting
Identifying and flagging potential issues with supplier data or assessment processes before they become bigger problems.
  • You bring up inconsistencies in supplier responses during daily stand-ups. You notice a pattern of suppliers struggling with a specific question and suggest a clearer explanation for future communications. You don't just process data
  • you look at it and ask 'does this make sense?'
Learning and Application
Actively seeking to understand sustainable procurement concepts and applying that knowledge to your daily tasks.
  • You ask thoughtful questions about 'Scope 3, Category 1' emissions during team meetings. You can explain why we ask for certain certifications. You take the initiative to read up on a new regulation after hearing about it, rather than waiting to be told.
Team Collaboration
Working effectively with your immediate team, offering help when needed and asking for it when stuck.
  • You offer to help a colleague with a data entry task if you finish your own work early. You clearly communicate when you're struggling with a supplier response and need guidance. You're a reliable pair of hands when the team is under pressure.

5Would you like it

The honest version. What people enjoy, and what grinds them down.

What people enjoy
Making a Real-World Impact (even small ones)

You'll feel good knowing that every piece of accurate data you collect contributes to our company making more responsible purchasing decisions. When a supplier improves their EcoVadis score because of your follow-up, you'll see the direct result.

Seeing a supplier move from a 'red' risk rating to 'amber' after you've helped them understand what data they needed to provide, feels like a small win for the planet.

Learning and Growth

You'll be constantly exposed to new sustainability concepts, regulations, and industry best practices. Your manager will expect you to ask questions and learn, and you'll get a real kick out of understanding how it all fits together.

Finally understanding the difference between 'Scope 3, Category 1' and other categories, and being able to explain it to someone else, is a genuine motivator.

Structured Work & Organisation

If you enjoy ticking off tasks, organising information, and seeing a clear process through to completion, you'll find satisfaction here. There's a lot of administrative work that requires a methodical approach.

Successfully getting all 50 assigned supplier assessments completed and neatly filed by the deadline, with no outstanding queries, will feel like a job well done.

What frustrates people
  • Supplier apathy: Chasing suppliers for weeks to fill out an ESG questionnaire, only to get a half-hearted, incomplete submission.
  • Data cleaning: Spending hours manually cleaning and mapping supplier data between different systems and spreadsheets.
  • The 'cost' argument: Hearing that a fantastic, sustainable supplier was overlooked because a less sustainable option was marginally cheaper.
  • Greenwashing fatigue: Sifting through glossy supplier reports full of buzzwords, trying to find actual verifiable data.
  • Internal disconnect: Being asked to enforce strict sustainability rules while other teams push for speed and cost above all else.
What this role does not give you
  • High-level strategic decision-making in your first year – that comes later.
  • A quiet, predictable 9-to-5 where nothing ever changes – there will be urgent requests and shifting priorities.
  • A role where you're constantly travelling to audit suppliers – this is mostly desk-based support.
  • Being the 'face' of our sustainability efforts externally – you'll be behind the scenes making it happen.

6Who you work with

Your work directly feeds into our annual sustainability reports and helps us identify potential risks in our supply chain. Get it right, and we have a clear picture of who we're working with and where we need to improve. Get it wrong, and our public statements could be challenged, or we might miss a serious issue with a supplier.

Inside the business
  • Sustainable Procurement Analyst (your direct manager)
  • Senior Sustainable Procurement Analyst
  • Category Buyers (for specific supplier data needs)
  • Sustainability Reporting Team
Outside the business
  • Tier 1 Suppliers (for data collection and follow-up)
  • ESG Rating Platform Support Teams (e.g., EcoVadis helpdesk)

7What you need before you start

Not a wish list. The things you would be expected to already have.

  • A genuine interest in sustainability and how businesses can make a positive impact.
  • Solid organisational skills – you're good at keeping track of tasks and information.
  • Excellent written communication, especially for clear and polite emails.
  • Intermediate proficiency in Microsoft Excel (VLOOKUPs, PivotTables, basic formulas).
  • Comfort with learning new software and online platforms quickly.
  • A 'can-do' attitude and a willingness to ask questions and learn from mistakes.

8What to practise next

Where the job is going, and what to do about it starting this week.

Advanced Excel for Data Manipulation

As datasets grow and become more complex, you'll need to move beyond basic formulas. Mastering Power Query will let you automate much of the data cleaning and transformation that currently takes hours.

Power Query · Advanced Array Formulas · Data Modelling Basics

  • This week: Look for online tutorials on Power Query for Excel.
  • This month: Try to use Power Query to clean one of your regular supplier data imports.
  • Month 2: Experiment with creating a small data model in Excel using Power Pivot.
  • Month 3: Automate one of your weekly data cleaning tasks using Power Query and document the time saved.

Quick win: Next time you get a messy spreadsheet, try to use 'Text to Columns' and 'Remove Duplicates' functions in Excel before doing it manually.

ERP/P2P System Proficiency

You'll move from just looking up basic supplier details to being able to extract more complex spend data and understand how our procurement processes are configured within the system. This is crucial for linking financial data to sustainability.

Spend Analysis Reports · Supplier Onboarding Workflows · Data Reconciliation

  • This week: Ask your manager for a demo of how to run a basic spend report in our ERP system.
  • This month: Practise extracting spend data for a specific category and cross-reference it with supplier lists.
  • Month 2: Shadow a buyer or an analyst who regularly uses the ERP for more complex tasks.
  • Month 3: Take on a small project to reconcile supplier details between the ERP and an ESG platform.

Quick win: Familiarise yourself with the main supplier master data screens in our ERP system and understand what each field means.

9Staying current once you are in

What people here do to keep up
  • Attending internal training sessions on our ESG platforms and ERP systems.
  • Reading industry newsletters and articles on sustainable procurement to stay informed about trends and regulations.
  • Participating in webinars or online courses on specific sustainability topics (e.g., Scope 3 emissions, circular economy).
  • Seeking mentorship from more senior team members to understand career paths and best practices.

10How the AI economy is changing work like this

Before we ask anything of you, here's what we can already say about AI and work of this kind:

The new skill this role is being asked for: Basic AI Prompt Engineering for Data & Comms

AI tools are becoming standard for automating routine tasks. Being able to 'talk' to AI effectively will make you incredibly efficient at data cleaning, summarising documents, and drafting communications.

We'll only ever tell you what we can actually back up. No hype, no scare tactics.

Your PlanIllustration

Built for Sustainable Procurement Coordinator

2 units that map to this job, from the qualifications that cover it.

  1. Analyse Information about Procurement and SupplySkills and Education Group Awards · covers 3 of 10 standardsLevel 3
  2. Procure suppliesFDQ Limited · covers 2 of 10 standardsLevel 3
These are the real units behind this job, in the order they rank for it. Nothing here is marked done, because this plan has not been started by anyone yet. Yours would fill in as you go.

The rising capability

Zavmo analysis

What's rising in its place

This is where the work is heading, and the higher pay with it. Get fluent here and the shift stops being a threat and starts being your edge.

Basic AI Prompt Engineering for Data & Comms

AI tools are becoming standard for automating routine tasks. Being able to 'talk' to AI effectively will make you incredibly efficient at data cleaning, summarising documents, and drafting communications.

  • Clear Prompt Construction
  • Context & Constraints
  • Output Validation

Basic Data Visualisation & Storytelling

As you collect more data, simply presenting raw numbers won't be enough. You'll need to turn that data into clear, understandable visuals that tell a story, even if it's just for an internal update.

  • Chart Selection
  • Dashboard Interpretation
  • Key Message Identification

What you’ll use

Skills this role draws on

Technical

  • Supplier Due Diligence Basics
  • Scope 3 Emissions Awareness
  • Circular Economy Principles (Foundational)
  • Human Rights & Modern Slavery Risk Spotting

The pathway

How you actually get there, here

How you become one varies far more by country than what one does. This is the UK route. Most people take one of these ways in; the right one depends on where you're starting from.

  1. 1

    Recent Graduate (Sustainability/Business)

    0-1 year

    Skills to master

    • Data entry accuracy, supplier communication protocols, basic Excel functions, understanding internal systems.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Successfully managing a small portfolio of supplier assessments.
    • Consistently accurate data input with minimal errors.
    • Proactively identifying and escalating issues.
  2. 2

    Administrative Assistant / Data Entry Clerk

    1-2 years

    Skills to master

    • Adapting existing organisational and data management skills to sustainable procurement context, learning industry-specific terminology.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Demonstrated ability to learn new software quickly.
    • Strong track record of meeting deadlines and managing multiple tasks.
    • Showing initiative in improving administrative processes.
  3. 3

    Logistics/Supply Chain Coordinator (non-sustainability focused)

    1-2 years

    Skills to master

    • Translating supply chain operational knowledge into sustainability data needs, understanding ESG frameworks.

    You're ready to move on when

    • Good grasp of supplier relationships and communication.
    • Ability to handle operational data and identify patterns.
    • Expressed keen interest in transitioning to sustainability.

11Where this role leads

The long view:This role is a fantastic launchpad for a career in sustainability. We're investing in you, and we expect you to invest in yourself. Show us your dedication, your curiosity, and your drive, and the opportunities here are genuinely limitless.

Pay & demand

Pay and demand for this role will appear here, each figure traced to a named authoritative source (e.g. the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, under the Open Government Licence). We don’t show numbers we can’t attribute.

The ten Future Fluencies

Zavmo analysis

The credential is what you can do today. These are what keep you valuable.

A qualification proves you can do the job as it's defined today. These ten are what decide whether you're still the obvious person for it in five years. They're the capabilities employers are now writing into senior roles faster than people are learning them. Zavmo weaves them through whatever you study, so you come out with both: the credential and the fluency.

The highlighted ones are the Fluencies your role leans on hardest, from how Sustainable Procurement Coordinator is actually changing. In about two minutes, the free confidence check asks where you stand on each of the ten. That's the whole check, and it's what makes the plan yours rather than generic.

Where it leads

Roles this leads to

12The team that's yours

No two people are taught the same way. This is one-to-one, not one-to-many.

Zavmo is a hyper-personalised AI learning platform. Twelve virtual tutors, each with a different way of teaching, and one orchestration agent that picks the right one for the moment. So every single lesson is shaped around you, your role, and the way you learn. Not a course everyone sits through. A conversation built for you, and no one else.

…and nine more, matched to you after your first chat. Meet all twelve

Start free and meet yours

13What it feels like

A conversation, not a course

Because your tutor knows your role, your projects and your last session, learning sounds like this. And it's different for every single person:

Analyse Information about Procurement and SupplyLevel 3

Applied to your work in Sustainable Procurement Coordinator

By completing this unit, learners will understand how to access information about procurement and supply, and develop the ability to gather, analyse, and present this information to stakeholders.

How the thinking builds
  1. Remember
  2. Understand
  3. Apply
  4. Analyse
  5. Evaluate
  6. Create
An illustration of a Zavmo lesson, built from this role’s own route. The unit, its objective and every criterion above are the awarding body’s own words, not an example.

One to one, not one to many

No two people run this the same way

A course is written once and handed to everyone. This is assembled around you, and keeps changing as it learns you. Five things it reads, and what each one changes.

  1. Your actual work Every lesson is taught against a live piece of your own work, not a worked example from a textbook.
  2. What you already know The first conversation finds your starting point, so you skip what you can already do and spend the time on what you cannot.
  3. The conditions you learn under Not a learning-styles quiz. The evidence does not support those. The dimensions the research does back, read once and used to shape the plan.
  4. How far you got last time It picks up mid-thought. The tutor knows what you said, what you struggled with, and what it asked you to try.
  5. Which tutor suits the moment Twelve of them, each for a different kind of thinking. The one who walks you through a first idea is not the one who stress-tests it.

See how you learn, free. Eight questions, no sign-up. A directional taster; the diagnostic inside Zavmo goes deeper and keeps adapting.

DemonstrateIllustration

Evidenced on your work in Sustainable Procurement Coordinator

You do not finish by watching something. You finish by showing it on the work you already do, against the measures this job is judged on.

  • Supplier Assessment Completion RateThe percentage of assigned Tier 1 suppliers who complete their annual ESG assessment.If you're assigned 20 suppliers this month, we'd expect at least 17 of them to have completed their EcoVadis assessment by the deadline.≥85% completion rate for assigned suppliers
  • Data Entry AccuracyThe error rate in manually entered supplier data into our systems (e.g., contact details, assessment scores, key dates).Out of 100 data points reviewed in your entries, we'd expect no more than 3 to have typos or incorrect values. Catching that a supplier's emissions were entered in kg instead of tonnes counts here.<3% error rate
  • Timeliness of Support RequestsHow quickly you respond to and action requests from the Sustainable Procurement Analyst or other team members.If an analyst asks you to pull a list of suppliers by 10 am tomorrow, it's done. If a supplier sends an urgent query, you've acknowledged it and started looking into it within the day.90% of requests actioned within 24 hours
  • Documentation UpkeepMaintaining and updating internal process documents, supplier contact lists, and assessment trackers.When a supplier's main contact changes, you update our internal records within a day. If a new process for logging SCARs is introduced, you make sure your own notes reflect it.All assigned documentation is current and accurate (zero overdue updates)
These are this job's own measures, with its own targets. Nothing is marked evidenced, because nobody has started this yet. Yours would fill in from the work you bring.

Your passport

This isn't a certificate you file away. It's a passport to the life you're designing.

Every credit you earn and every fluency you build adds up: evidence where it counts, carried with you. Zavmo keeps the map: where you are, where you're heading, and the next step, at your pace, around your life. From Sustainable Procurement Coordinator to Sustainable Procurement Analyst (Level 002), and whatever you decide comes after.

Level 2 · in progressAI Fluency→ Sustainable Procurement Analyst (Level 002)→ your design
Where this takes you

This role is a fantastic launchpad for a career in sustainability. We're investing in you, and we expect you to invest in yourself. Show us your dedication, your curiosity, and your drive, and the opportunities here are genuinely limitless.

See Your Progress GrowIllustration
Sustainable Procurement Coordinator
  • Supplier Due Diligence Basics
  • Scope 3 Emissions Awareness
  • Circular Economy Principles (Foundational)
  • Human Rights & Modern Slavery Risk Spotting
This is your Mind Palace on learn.zavmo.ai. Every skill above comes from this role's own record, not an example borrowed from another job. A node lights up when you evidence it, and what you build stays yours between jobs. That is the part a course cannot do.

14The detail, folded away

Everything else the record holds

The career branches in full, how AI is already showing up in the day-to-day, and the questions people ask about this job. Here when you want them, out of the way while you decide.

Where it leads next, rung by rung

Where it leads

The career path, and where it branches

Sustainable Procurement Coordinator is a start, not a ceiling. Each step below asks for new skills and hands back more autonomy.

  1. Sustainable Procurement Analyst (Level 002)

    2-3 years in current role

    From executing tasks to owning routine processes and making independent decisions within guidelines.

    • Building and maintaining simple dashboards in Power BI/Tableau
    • Conducting basic spend analysis reports independently
    • Managing corrective action plans (SCARs) with suppliers
Working with AI on the job

Working with AI

Where AI is starting to help

Let's be honest, a lot of what you'll do involves sifting through documents, drafting emails, and trying to make sense of data. That's where AI comes in. We're not talking about robots taking over your job; we're talking about smart tools that take the grunt work off your plate, freeing you up for the more interesting stuff.

Our team uses AI to cut down on the repetitive, time-consuming parts of sustainable procurement. You'll be encouraged to experiment with these tools to make your daily tasks quicker and more accurate, helping you focus on the 'why' behind the data, rather than just the 'what'.

Document Verification Assistant

Imagine uploading a stack of supplier certificates (like ISO 14001 or Fairtrade) and having AI automatically scan them. It'll verify authenticity, check expiration dates, and pull out key compliance data, flagging anything suspicious or expired. No more manual cross-referencing for hours.

Smart Supplier Comms Drafts

Struggling to phrase that polite-but-firm follow-up email to a supplier who's ignoring you? AI can draft clear, context-aware messages in their native language, referencing the specific information they still need. This dramatically improves response rates and saves you loads of time on writing.

Regulatory Summariser

New regulations pop up all the time (like the EU's CSDDD). Instead of slogging through dense legal text, you can feed it into an AI assistant. It'll give you a concise summary of the key implications specifically for procurement and what it means for supplier requirements. A huge time-saver for learning.

Data Cleaning & Formatting

Got a messy Excel sheet from a supplier with inconsistent formats? AI tools can help you clean, standardise, and structure that data much faster than manual VLOOKUPs and filters. It's like having a super-fast data assistant for all your 'data janitor' tasks.

Common questions

Common questions

How do you become a Sustainable Procurement Coordinator?

Common routes in include Recent Graduate (Sustainability/Business) (0-1 year), Administrative Assistant / Data Entry Clerk (1-2 years) and Logistics/Supply Chain Coordinator (non-sustainability focused) (1-2 years). Times vary with prior experience.

Where can a Sustainable Procurement Coordinator progress to?

This role can lead on to Sustainable Procurement Analyst (Level 002) (2-3 years in current role), depending on the skills you build.

What level is a Sustainable Procurement Coordinator in the UK?

This role aligns to RQF Level 2 on the UK framework, a guide to the depth of qualification it maps to, not a hard entry bar.

What new skills matter most for a Sustainable Procurement Coordinator?

Increasingly, Basic AI Prompt Engineering for Data & Comms and Basic Data Visualisation & Storytelling. These are the areas where the higher-paid, future-proof work is heading.

The honest bit

You’ve started things before

Most of them were built for a room full of people who aren’t you. A cohort moves on whether or not your week allowed it, and by the third week the thing you’re behind on becomes the reason you stop opening it.

There’s no cohort here, and no timetable to fall behind. Before anything starts, Zavmo asks when you’re sharpest and how long you can realistically sit down for, then builds the sessions around those answers. A bad fortnight changes your pace. It doesn’t put you behind.

And you only pay once you start learning. Searching and planning are free, and you can cancel any time — so the cost of finding out is an afternoon, not a year.

What it costs

Less than one coaching session. Every month.

A single career-coaching hour costs more than a month of this, and it ends when the hour does. Zavmo doesn't. It's £70 a month, about £2.30 a day, for a companion that knows a Sustainable Procurement Coordinator, works on the job you actually do, and keeps going at your pace rather than a timetable's.

  • Searching and planning stay free. You only pay when you start learning.
  • Your credits are yours. Regulated, and they don't vanish when a subscription ends.
  • Cancel any time and billing stops. No notice period, no minimum term.

Your path, personalised

You have the map. Walking it is the part we do together.

This route runs to 10 national skill standards. That is a real journey.

Zavmo shapes a learning experience as unique as you are. It fits how you learn, your pace and the work you already do. Every step stays benchmarked to recognised national standards. That’s the plan for becoming a Sustainable Procurement Coordinator: personal to you, and it still counts. The first steps are free.

Independent research finds well-designed intelligent tutoring performs nearly as well as one-to-one human tutoring: VanLehn (2011), Educational Psychologist.

A private tutor in the UK averages £35–40 an hour . Zavmo is £70/month.

A real plan on learn.zavmo.ai: Ofqual-regulated units, credits, and a three-month run at your own pace.
Start free No commitment. See your first steps free.

15Where to go from here

Other roles at Level 2

Same depth of qualification, different job. Useful if the work appeals but this particular role does not.

Other roles in Sustainability Corporate Social

Stay in the field you know and move sideways rather than up.

If you leave this industry

The skills you'll gain here are highly transferable across industries. Every company needs to manage its supply chain sustainability, so you could move into roles in retail, manufacturing, finance, or even consultancy, applying your expertise in different contexts.

Not sure this is the right direction?

Work out what you actually want from work first, then come back and see which roles fit it. Takes about ten minutes.

This role profile is © 2026Growth Engineering Technologies Ltd. Built from UK occupational standards and regulated qualification data, and written for Zavmo.

You're not behind. You're right on time. The shift is only just beginning. Your role won't look the same in two years. Be the one who leads the change, not the one it happens to. Build my plan, free Here's the first ten minutes: a 2-minute confidence check → your personalised roadmap → meet the tutors matched to you. No card, cancel any time. No card. Build your plan, see your roadmap and meet the twelve tutors matched to you. All free. When you're ready to start learning, it's £70 a month, billed monthly. Cancel any time and billing stops.