Procurement Manager - Turkana County at Mary’s Meals International

We are delighted to be recruiting for a talented Procurement Manager to join our team in Lodwar, Turkana County. Reporting to the Head of Finance and Operations, the Procurement Manager (PM) is responsible for managing and coordinating procurement activities, working on the most complex purchases for Mary’s Meals Kenya (MMK), and ensuring that agreements are in-place to protect MMK. The PM will research, evaluate and buy products for MMK to use in their everyday operations. The PM will be responsible for ensuring all procurement activities are in-line with Mary’s Meals Kenya procurement and financial policies and will chair the Kenya Local Procurement Committee (LPC) ensuring that it’s mandate is met.

Key areas of responsibility include:

Procurement Management

• Ensure efficient procurement of goods and services in a transparent and fully accountable manner, ensuring compliance with financial procedures, value for money and justifiable use of funds;
• Coordinate the Kenya LPC and ensure that the basis for all major procurement decisions are documented and transparent;
• Plans, develops and manages all procurement and contractual aspects of significant complexity;
• Prepare and present procurement recommendation to the LPC and Mary’s Meals International (MMI) IPC
• Ensure all procurement is approved in-line with Mary’s Meals procurement policies (e.g. purchase order, contract, service agreements);
• Provide input and recommend improvements to MMK Procurement Policy and processes;
• Liaise with the key budget holders and other staff to determine their product and service needs;
• Monitor trends and product availability to pay the best price for goods and services without sacrificing quality;
• Nurture relationships with suppliers, and for mid-level procurement, independently negotiate the best prices for goods and services on behalf of Mary’s Meals;
• Ensure compliance with professional ethics, statutory regulations, and organizational policies and procedures;
• Identify gaps in supplier base, and Pro-actively research and identify potential new suppliers;

Contract and Supplier Management

• Ensure robust supplier and contract performance management against agreed KPIs and through agreed reporting mechanisms;
• Ensure that MMK goals are achieved through contract implementation;
• Perform risk management for supply contracts and agreements;
• Develop and implement strategies for procurement, including robust follow-up on routine procurement activities;

Team Management

• Develop the capacity of all appropriate staff in sound procurement practices;
• Facilitate the engagement and provision of high-quality results and services of the team supervised through effective work planning, performance management, coaching, and promotion of learning and development.
• Provide oversight, ensuring compliance by team members with existing policies and best practices
• Lead and conduct initiatives on capacity building development with Head of Finance & Operations and MMI.

Qualifications, skills and experience - Essential:

• A Degree in a relevant field/subject.
• Must be a Certified Procurement Professional with CPSP-K.
• At least 5 previous years’ experience working in a similar role.
• Fluency in English for effective oral and written communication.
• Highly organized with an ability to pay close attention to detail and capable of reporting in a timely manner.
• Ability to analyse information, evaluate options and to think and plan strategically
• Ability to present information in a clear, logical, and concise manner
• Proven capacity to supervise, train and coach staff
• Proficiency working with Microsoft Programmes, especially Outlook, Word, and Excel
• Creative and innovative
• Good communication skills across all levels and with a wide range of different people
• Experience working towards tight deadlines
• Dependable honest and always fostering an atmosphere of trust and integrity

Qualifications, skills and experience - Desirable:

• Possess a valid driving licence