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Job
Title:          Senior Procurement Officer 

Organization: Mercy Corps

Duty Station:  Kampala, Uganda

Reports to: Operations Manager, Kampala

About US:

Mercy Corps is an International NGO that exists to alleviate
poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive and just
communities. Mercy Corps has been fully registered in Uganda as an operational
NGO. Currently Mercy Corps has an office in Kampala and is implementing Food
Security programs which comprise of Water and Sanitation, Livelihood and
Agriculture and Conflict Mitigation Management Program in North and North
Eastern Uganda. We implement programs in the northern districts of Pader,
Kitgum, Agago, Lamwo, Kaabong, Abim and Kotido with funding from USAID, USDA,
Walmart Foundation, SDC, DFID as well as other private donations.

Job Summary:  The Senior Procurement Officer will have full
oversight and responsibility for the procurement aspects of Mercy Corps.
Working closely with Program, Administration, Finance and Logistics the Senior
Procurement Officer is instrumental in supporting program activities through
his/her services.

The Senior Procurement Officer provides general supervision
and coordination for all procurement functions not just in Kampala but in field
office level too. The Senior Procurement Officer proactively and informatively
communicates and coordinates the procurement functions and activities within
Kampala keeping in view that most procurement is carried out on behalf of field
offices.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:  

Team Management

·       
Develop the capacity of the procurement team.

·       
Facilitate the procurement aspects of program
planning.

·       
Work with all Mercy Corps staff to ensure smooth
introduction and adoption of procurement policies and regulations.

·       
Assist team members in understanding their roles
and responsibilities in terms of interaction with procurement.

·       
Be responsible for full and proper
implementation of Mercy Corps systems of procurement management, compliance and
control as described in Mercy Corps Field Procurement manual (FP3).

·       
Work with Finance and with the Internal Risk
department to mitigate fraud, conflict of interest and legal ramifications of
Mercy Corps activities.

·       
Conduct regular staff meetings for procurement
as well as cross-departmental. Circulate minutes of meetings.

Procurement and Logistics

·       
Prepare procurement reports on a regular basis.
Ensure the integrity and high quality of data used in reports.

·       
Has overall responsibility for procurement to
ensure that the procurement department supports the programs efficiently,
compliantly and in a timely fashion.

·       
Directly manage all High Value tenders, above
USD 150,000.

·       
Directly in charge of preparing amendment of all
service contracts above the value of 20,000USD

·       
Accountable for the Contracts Tracker to be
updated at all times

·       
Process all MPP and MEP related documents
including all coordination with Mercy Corps HQ team members

·       
Demonstrate full understanding of Mercy Corps
procurement policies, procedures and templates.

·       
Provide procurement training and development to
all procurement team members on these policies.

·       
Provide procurement training for non-procurement
staff, including but not limited to Program, Finance and Operations staff.

·       
Enforce adherence to procurement thresholds and
approval procedures.

·       
Enforce adherence to Time-to-Award timelines.
Ensure procurement department completes transactions within those timeframes.

·       
Ensure that Mercy Corps’ procurement activities
are legal and moral.

·       
Lead regular procurement planning exercises with
all program teams in all field office locations. Procurement planning must be a
joint exercise including the procurement and program staff in each office
location.

·       
Ensure all programs have procurement plans for
the period of minimum 2 month and is updated at a minimum of monthly basis.

·       
Provide assistance on timely completion of
purchase requests and other documentation.

·       
Establish master service agreements (MSA) for
commonly used items. Ensure such agreements are re-tendered on time.

·       
Oversee the gathering and quality of quotations
and bids from the market for purchases as per Mercy Corps standards and
formats.

·       
Ensure Quotation Analysis Committees are
assembled and functioning according the MC regulations. Regularly provide
refresher trainings on roles and responsibilities of QA members.

·       
Coordinate with the Finance Department to ensure
that payments to vendors are made on-time and without unnecessary strain on the
financial systems of Mercy Corps.

·       
Conduct bi-weekly meetings with Finance team to
ensure no payments are pending and any misunderstanding or discrepancy is
cleared in a timely fashion.

·       
Interact with contractors, if and when needed.

·       
Preparation of monthly procurement reports on
achievements and deliverables.

·       
Provide regular input and update to Heads of
Office and field Operations Leads regarding procurement activities.

·       
Assist in the maintenance of thorough
procurement files as outlined in the MC procurement policy.

·       
Ensure that the procurement filing system is in
place and in accordance with the procurement filing procedures as outlined in
the Procurement Manual

·       
Ensure vendor database is up-to-date.

·       
Ensure timely coordination with the Warehouse on
delivery of items including completion of Goods Received Notes, storage of
items and transfer of items to field sites.

·       
Ensure assets identified during the course of
procurement and the Logistics personnel notified in advance.

·       
Maintain file on market prices for
regularly-procured items.

·       
Carry out procurement system audits in field
offices and bring clarity to field staff on shortcomings.

·       
Identify gaps of staffing, staff capacity, procurement
system, segregation of duties, cross-departmental coordination and information
sharing and notify Kampala Operations Manager accordingly.

·       
20% travel to field locations is expected.

·       
Other duties as assigned by supervisor.

Finance & Compliance Management

·       
Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps
regulations related to Mercy Corps Field Procurement Manual, Field Finance
Manual, Conflict of Interest Policy and all Mercy Corps Uganda policies

Security

·       
Ensure compliance with security procedures and
policies as determined by country

·       
Proactively ensure that team members operate in
a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Organizational Learning

·       
As part of our commitment to organizational
learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are
more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect
all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit
Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

Accountability to Beneficiaries

·       
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support
all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to
international standards guiding international relief and development work,
while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the
design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience: 

·       
The applicant for the Mercy Corps Senior
Procurement Officer job must hold a Bachelor’s Degree in relevant field, such
as Procurement and Supply Chain Management, or Business Administration

·       
Three years of relevant experience

·       
Sound understanding of procurement,
administration, and logistics management systems

·       
Analytical thinking

·       
Proven record of capacity building and team
coordination

·       
Experience working in INGOs or businesses in
support functions may be advantage

·       
Good organizational and management skills and
the ability to anticipate project needs

·       
Proven ability to work cooperatively with others
in a team environment, and be able to work with a diverse group of national and
international staff

·       
Ability to manage team performance and keep
staff on target

·       
Demonstrated proficiency with MS Office software
(i.e., Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint) is required.

·       
Fluent in both written and spoken English

·       
The successful Senior Procurement Officer will
be good at problem solving and have the ability to work out methods to deliver
successful and timely procurement support to all running programs and on
compliance with Mercy Corps and donor regulations.

·       
An impeccable professional standard and
procurement ethics and the willingness and ability to enforce compliance with
Mercy Corps and donor policies and procedures is essential.

·       
S/he will maintain strong cooperative
relationships with other departments and interact effectively with all
personnel during daily routine work as well as in a training capacity.

·       
Meets deadlines and process information in
support of changing program activities.

·       
S/he will be able to work closely with a diverse
team of individuals in a highly intense and fluid work environment and be
willing to travel regularly to Mercy Corps field offices and project sites.

·       
The most successful Mercy Corps staff members
have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and
changing environments and make effective written and verbal communication a
priority in all situations.

How to Apply:

All suitably qualified and interested candidates should apply
online at the link below.

Click
Here

Deadline: 4^th March 2020

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