Procurement Associate, G6 TA, 364 days, UNFPA PSB, Copenhagen, Denmark

1. Organizational Location

The Procurement Associate position is located in Procurement Services Branch (PSB) in Copenhagen. The incumbent reports to and receives policy support from the Procurement Specialist who leads the regional team serving the procurement and contracting needs of a geographical area. The Procurement Associate can supervise other support staff in the team. The Procurement Associate works in close collaboration with the operations, programme and projects staff in the Country Offices (COs) and UNFPA Headquarters (HQs) staff for resolving complex procurement-related issues and information exchange.

The Procurement Associate ensures execution of transparent and efficient procurement services and processes in PSB as well as in the COs under his/her area of responsibility. The Procurement Associate promotes a client-focused, quality and results- oriented approach in the branch in accordance with Financial Rules and Regulation and Procurement procedures of the UNFPA.

2. Job Purpose

In direct support of UNFPA’s strategy to achieve the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) goals and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and under the supervision and guidance of the Procurement Specialist ensure the effective and efficient implementation of procurement processes in accordance with Financial Rules and Regulation and Procurement procedures of the UNFPA for the provision of the following services:

• Administration, execution and coordination of procurement activities
• Provision of advice and guidance to country offices and other parties on procurement processes and procedures
• Perform other job related duties as assigned.

3. Major Activities/Expected Results

Summary of Key Functions:

• Administer, execute and coordinate procurement activities
• Provide advice and guidance to country offices and other parties on procurement processes and procedures
• Assist in provision of capacity building in procurement and logistics management to UNFPA Country Offices and co-operating agencies and external Reproductive health (RH) commodity partners.
• Perform other job related duties as assigned

1. Administer, execute and coordinate supply chain management activities:

• Analyze requisitions; communicate with Commodity Security Branch, COs and/or other customers to ensure correctness of the data entered into the Atlas system, clarity of the specifications, appropriateness of the products, quantities, delivery requirements and dates, special requirements such as product registration in the country and special printing on packages in different languages;
• Prepare Requests for Quotations (RFQs), Invitation to Bids (ITBs)/Request for Proposals (RFPs). Respond to all request for bid clarifications from the prospective bidder while ensuring transparency of the process, evaluate bids received and review recommendations from the technical panel and financial panel ensuring that the evaluation process is performed consistent with the requirement specified in the bid, prepare Contracts Review Committee (CRC) submissions whenever applicable and/or negotiations with suppliers to ensure that the most cost effective proposals are selected;
• Conduct tenders on behalf of the COs;
• Consult with requestor on specifications, advise on best processes and initiate purchase procedures;
• Conduct market research to identify potential suppliers for goods and services to be procured;
• Work with other UN organizations to establish Memorandums of Agreement (MOAs);
• Review ITBs/RFPs prepared by country offices before these are issued to ensure that the documents are in line with UNFPA Procurement Procedures, support COs during tendering processes;
• Debrief unsuccessful bidders, if required and resolve issues and problems that may arise as a result of disqualification;
• Confirm fund validity, ensuring that the codes are valid until the respective financial receipt is done;
• Run solicitation processes on behalf of COs;
• Review CRC submissions prepared by country offices to ensure they are complete and accurate and that proper application of processes and procedures has been made. Present submissions to CRC when required;
• Process, issue and manage Purchase Orders using the Enterprise resource planning (ERP) system of UNFPA (Atlas) after ensuring completeness of the requests to reflect vital details and ensuring that the most cost effective proposals are selected, communicated and followed up with the customers;
• Issue POs in accordance with the guidelines provided by the Strategic Procurement Cluster (SPC);
• Do Vendor Registration in the ERP system;
• Follow up on orders to ensure timely delivery of goods and services as stipulated in the Purchases Orders; liaise with the suppliers, country offices and inspection agencies in order to resolve problem deliveries such as product damage or quality issues that may lead to batch rejections, potential import problems, cargo retention at port of entry or logistic matters among others; with the ultimate goal of ensuring the delivery of the commodities to the Consignee/s;
• Review and validate invoices and shipping documents for completeness, including liaising with the UNFPA Finance Branch and/or respective supplier to solve any issues;
• Liaise with the Quality Assurance Team during pre-shipment inspections (PSI), to ensure that discrepancies found are resolved by manufacturers, and to find potential solutions in collaboration with suppliers, ensuring compliance with the applicable PSI method for each category of product;
• Work in collaboration with the Quality Assurance Team to review technical specifications received from COs or from external partners to ensure correctness of technical specifications when conducting ITBs for items that are not covered by UNFPA Long Term Agreements (LTAs);
• Help COs on Asset Management Issues;
• Conduct procurement related webinars for Country Offices;
• Ensure the most effective route is selected for shipments to land locked countries and proactively solve logistic issues;
• Manage insurance claims;
• Work on solutions to address stock-out situations;
• Negotiate with suppliers on cases of late/non-deliveries;
• Negotiate with suppliers on cases of damaged or non-compliant deliveries;
• Negotiate with suppliers when problems of different natures arise, requesting compensation measures/discounts;
• Facilitate post-shipment inspections when required;
• Elaborate country specific strategies in cooperation Country Offices;
• Promote the Third Party Procurement (TPP) mechanism in co-operation with Country Offices;
• Conduct webinars on the TPP;
• Handle TPP requests from external partners during the whole process, from the pre-ordering stage to issuance of purchase orders and vendor performance evaluation. At the pre-order stage, provide information to partners on UNFPA procurement services and its benefits, parties’ responsibilities, variety of products, price comparison and cost savings; assess customer eligibility and prepare customer risk assessment; prepare Cost Estimates and Pro Forma Invoices (PI) in the Order Management System (OMS) system; follow-up on PI acceptance and transfer of funds. Issue final invoices when applicable. During the order stage, issue Purchase Orders and monitor shipments until goods arrive at the port. Incumbent is the main liaison with external customers to ensure their requirements are acted upon in a timely manner and resolve any problems that partners may report. This also includes liaising with the Finance Team to ensure funds are applied properly and following-up on issues related to payment of final invoices, when applicable;
• Work on solutions if TPP clients report complaints;
• Participate in the negotiation of Collaboration Agreements (MoU) with Governments, Ministries of Health (MoH) or International Institutions such as the World Bank, including the review of UNFPA legal documents (e.g. Service Conditions, Financial Rules and Regulations) to make proposals for special conditions that can accommodate external partners’ requests, respecting the UNFPA legal framework;
• Work on special projects within his/her country portfolio such as procurement of products for humanitarian response and procurement for population census projects. This also includes conducting market research and selecting the appropriate procurement method;
• Work with suppliers and SPC in cases of product aversion;
• Monitor and evaluate the performance of suppliers with respect to on-time delivery, communication, quality and commercial acceptability and liaise with UNFPA’s Strategic Procurement Cluster (SPC) when required;
• Ensure that all correspondence and documents related to procurement activities are properly filed in the designated e-filing system. Maintain and monitor the development of all procurement cases using electronic sheets;
• Assist in transformational and strategic projects of the team, as applicable;

2. Give advice and guidance to country offices and other parties on procurement processes and procedures

• Investigate and follow-up on all procurement related inquiries submitted by Country Offices, other UNFPA departments and/or clients, and provide prompt responses;
• Create awareness on the importance of procurement and procurement planning to deliver in line with the UNFPA mandate;
• Communicate changes in procurement processes and procedures as well as updates in the relating financial procedures, providing clarifications and guidance as required;
• Monitor CO compliance with the Procurement Procedures (thresholds, vendor evaluation, ethics, supplier relations etc.);
• Follow-up on CO audit observations;
• Monitor requests and ensure compliance with the mandate of UNFPA and procurement procedures; take action in case of violation;
• Advise Country Offices on system-related questions, such as use of e-Procurement or Order Tracking System of UNFPA (OTS), and in their procurement planning, in terms of availability of Reproductive Health products, their relevance, specifications, prices and other costs;
• Assist in development of capacity building missions/training tools for country offices and government officials and deliver training packages on procurement and logistics to counterparts as well as to new staff in PSB/secondment colleagues upon request;
• Work with the team lead, other members of the team, Country Offices and other partners as applicable in streamlining the procurement function of the COs through initiatives such as generating country-specific strategies;

3. Perform other job related duties as assigned

• In the absence of the Team Lead, support and supervise the work of regional procurement assistants;
• Coordinate procurement projects within the Regional Team, as applicable;
• Serve as a facilitator or contribute to learning materials production incl. Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) or other internal documents;
• Contribute to the development of a corporate system of Business Processes and SOPs;
• Support COs with audit recommendations;
• Test UNFPA’s ERP system (Atlas);
• Roll-out and support logistical agreements (e.g. UNFPA partnership with WFP);
• Participate in interview panels;
• Provide direct training and supervision to interns, when required;

4. Work Relations

Establishes and maintains professional contacts with UNFPA staff at country offices at all levels, HQ staff in various departments, Finance Branch, and with partners in other UN agencies and external clients such as Non-governmental organizations (NGOs), ministry representatives at the relevant levels. Maintains daily contact with other procurement staff at PSB. Sustains close contact with suppliers.

5. Job Requirements

Education:

• Completion of Secondary education.
• University degree or equivalent certification in Public or Business administration, Procurement, Logistics, Marketing, Commerce, Engineering, Law or related discipline would be very useful and weighted accordingly, but is not a requirement.

Knowledge and Experience:

• Minimum 6 years of relevant work experience preferably in public or private sector procurement, logistics, marketing, public or business administration, commercial or law related disciplines or program at local level, preferably in organizations working in international development or public sector institutions. Experience from non-governmental organizations, non-profit organizations and private sector will also be treated equivalent.
• Note that Advanced university degree Note that an Advanced University degree (or equivalent: i.e CPA, ACCA, Jurist Doctor etc) in Procurement, Supply Chain Management/Logistics, Commerce, Business Administration, Public Administration in combination with 4 years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of 6 years of experience.
• Excellent working knowledge of MS Office (in particular, applications related to database and data analysis), ERP systems such as PeopleSoft or alternatively Oracle, E-filing system and other software applications is a strong advantage.
• Experience in working with international procurement and logistics or business operations is desirable.
• Knowledge of reproductive health related commodities and medical terminology is an asset.
• Experience from working with UNFPA or another UN agency is an asset.
• CIPS 2 Certificate is an asset.

Required Competencies:

Core Competencies:

• Analytical and strategic thinking
• Communicating information and ideas
• Working in teams
• Cultural Sensitivity/valuing diversity

Functional Competencies:

• Managing data
• Managing information and work flow
• Planning, organizing and multi-tasking
• Providing financial and budget support

Other Desirable Skills:

• Ability to analyze and utilize complex data
• Excellent organizational and time management skills
• Ability to establish and maintain harmonious relationships with customers, suppliers and colleagues
• Ability to perform well under pressure and flexibility in handling unexpected work assignments as and when necessary
• Service minded

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required
• Good working knowledge of other UN language is an asset

Other Desirable Skills:

• Highly motivated and dedicated
• High level of professionalism
• Desire and ability to learn
• Ability to work independently
• Highly responsible with deadlines and follow-up
  
  

  HOW TO APPLY:

  UNFPA offers a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, teamwork, respect for diversity, integrity, and a healthy work/life balance. We are committed to maintaining our balanced gender distribution and therefore encourage women to apply.

  We offer an attractive salary, subsidized medical/dental insurance and pension benefits. This is a Temporary Appointment position for 364 days.
  Possibility for Roster.

  Applications in English (including letter of interest and completed/signed UN Personal History Form (P11) should be submitted not later than 21 April 2019 at 24:00 (Copenhagen time) via email to: psb.vacancies@unfpa.org.

  The Personal history form can be downloaded from: http://www.unfpa.org/resources/p11-un-personal-history-form

  Evaluation of qualified candidates for this position may include a written test or other assessment methodologies followed by a competency-based interview.

  Please note that the selected candidate must have a valid residence and working permit in Denmark or in any of the countries belonging to the European Union. In case of equally qualified candidates, candidates with working permits in Denmark will be given preference.

  UNFPA will only be able to respond to those applicants in whom UNFPA has a further interest.

  The UN City is a smoke-free work environment.

  There is no application, processing or other fee at any stage of the application process.

  UNFPA does not solicit or screen for information in respect of HIV or AIDS and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.