Procurement Officer

The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) is an unarmed, civilian mission, present on the ground 24/7 throughout Ukraine. Its main tasks are to observe and report in an impartial and objective way on the situation in Ukraine; and to facilitate dialogue among all parties to the crisis. The Mission contributes to reducing tensions and to fostering peace, stability and security. The Mission engages with authorities at all levels, as well as civil society, ethnic and religious groups and local communities. The Mission gathers information and reports on the security situation; and establishes and reports facts in response to specific incidents, including those concerning alleged violations of fundamental OSCE principles. The Mission currently foresees around 1,450 mission members spread across 10 Monitoring Teams and budgetary resources of about EUR 100 million.

For additional information about the mission, please see: https://www.osce.org/special-monitoring-mission-to-ukraine

The OSCE is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified male and female candidates from all religious, ethnic and social backgrounds to apply to become a part of the Organization.

Initial duration of assignment for this post is for a period of 24 months, with a possibility of extension, subject to a subsequent OSCE Permanent Council Decision to extend the mandate of the Mission. If applicable, deployment is subject to attendance to and successful completion of pre-deployment training and assessment.

Under the direct supervision of the Chief of Procurement and Contracts and overall supervision of the Director of Administration and Finance (DAF), the Procurement Officer provides support in coordination of the implementation and control of procurement and travel related activities of the Mission that amount in the range between EUR 40 million and EUR 50 million annually. More specifically, the incumbent performs the following duties:

1. 

• Supporting the Chief  of Procurement and Contracts in co-ordination and control of procurement processes for goods and services required by the Mission;
• Assisting in the drafting of Terms of Reference for various high value goods and services;
• Clarifying and verifying the precise requirements of the requestor, keeping in mind the cost of items/equipment or services from market research, catalogues, technical specifications, quotations and product samples;
• Ensuring proper application of procurement procedures; informs mission members of these procedures and verifies that they have been complied with;
• Participating in negotiations with suppliers and recommending the course of action to the Chief of Procurement and Contracts;
• Conducting contract management;

2. 

• Managing tendering processes for large high value procurements, including for the award of local window contracts;
• Reviewing Purchase Requests (PRs) and distributing them among procurement buyers;
• Approving Purchase Orders (POs) up to a delegated authority;
• Drafting/reviewing invitations to bid in co-ordination with the requesting unit;
• Compiling comparative tables to analyse financial aspects of bids; drafting summaries of evaluation and reports from tendering processes for the approval by the Chief of Procurement and Contracts and DAF;
• Reviewing and evaluating requests for sole-source and exigency procurement, preparing justification for waiver of standard bidding procedure and making recommendations;
• Implementing the finalization of the purchase and the award of contracts, taking into account the technical proposals of the suppliers and the cost/benefit analysis;
• Answering queries from requestors on the status of purchase orders; monitoring the performance of suppliers until delivery of goods to the Mission warehouse, ensuring contractual obligations under the Mission's contracts are consistently met;

3. 

• Supervising, co-ordinating and evaluating the work of Procurement Unit Team;
• When requested by Chief of Procurement and Contracts, conducting co-ordination meetings to organize the Section's activities in line with the workload and timelines;
• Participating in recruitment process for new Procurement and Travel staff;

4. 

• Conducting market research and screening suppliers, ensuring they meet OSCE requirements;
• Undertaking supplier visits, inspecting facilities and equipment;
• Reviewing requests for inclusion in the Mission's roster of suppliers, reviewing relevant documentation (official registration, customer references etc.);
• Preparing procurement reports and statistics analysis for the Chief of Procurement and Contracts;

5. 

• Delivering training and presentations to Mission staff on purpose, activities and performance of the Procurement and Contract Management Section on behalf of Chief of Procurement and Contracts;
• Acting as Chief of Procurement and Contracts in his/her absence;

6. Performs other related duties as assigned.

• Citizenship of an OSCE participating State, excluding citizenship of Ukraine;
• First-level university degree in business administration, commerce, supply chain management, economics or related field;
• A minimum of six years of progressively responsible professional experience in procurement, contracting, or supply chain management, preferably in an international context; 
• Experience of working in Eastern Europe and/or knowledge of the region is an asset; 
• Computer literacy with practical experience with Microsoft applications and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems;
• Professional fluency in the English language, both oral and written, and the ability to communicate clearly and concisely;
• Knowledge of Ukrainian and/or Russian language(s) would be an asset;
• Ability to establish contact and build professional relations with local counterparts including stakeholders;
• Ability to cope with physical hardship and willingness to work extra hours and in an environment with limited infrastructure; proven resilience to high stress environments;
• Demonstrated commitment to gender equality objectives as well as the ability to integrate a gender perspective into tasks and activities;
• Ability to establish and maintain effective and constructive working relationships with people of different national and cultural backgrounds while maintaining impartiality and objectivity.

• Commitment: Actively contributes to achieving organizational goals
• Diversity: Respects others and values their diverse perspectives and contributions
• Integrity: Acts in a manner consistent with the Organization’s core values and organizational principles
• Accountability: Takes responsibility for own action and delegated work

• Communication: Actively works to achieve clear and transparent communication with colleagues and with stakeholders of the Organization
• Collaboration: Works effectively with others on common goals and fosters a positive, trust-based working environment
• Planning: Works towards the achievement of goals in a structured and measured manner
• Analysis and decision-making: Analyses available information, draws well-founded conclusions and takes appropriate decisions
• Initiative-taking: Proposes and initiates new ideas, activities and projects
• Flexibility: Responds positively and effectively to changing circumstances

• Leadership: Provides a clear sense of direction, builds trust and creates an enabling environment
• Strategic thinking: Identifies goals that advance the organizational agenda and develops plans for achieving them
• Managing performance: Helps to maximize team performance by providing active feedback and skill development opportunities

Monthly remuneration subject to social security deductions is about USD 4,929 to which is added Board and Lodging Allowance (currently EUR 125 per day subject to change without prior notice). Social benefits will include possibility of participation in the Cigna medical insurance scheme and the OSCE Provident Fund.

Appointments are normally made at step 1 of the applicable OSCE salary scale.

If you wish to apply for this position, please use the OSCE's online application link found under https://jobs.osce.org/vacancies.

Applicants are hereby notified that the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) is designated by the OSCE as a non-family duty station. This designation is based on the fluid and dynamic working environment in the SMM.

The currently prevailing working conditions in the duty station may include working in a hazardous location with extended hours of service, and possibly curtailed freedom of movement. Successful candidates who are appointed to locations deemed by the OSCE as hazardous will receive hazard pay. In addition, all successful candidates will be required to participate in the OSCE accident and life insurance scheme in accordance with the OSCE Staff Regulations and Staff Rules.

The OSCE retains the discretion to re-advertise the vacancy, to cancel the recruitment, to offer an appointment at a lower grade or to offer an appointment with a modified job description or for a different duration.

Only those applicants who are selected to participate in the subsequent stages of recruitment will be contacted.