Chief Corporate General Services and Procurement Officer at African Development Bank

The Hiring Department/ Division

The primary roles of the General Services and Procurement Department  are to manage the Bank’s assets, oversee all corporate procurement of goods, services, works and real estate, coordinate all staff travel and transport of Bank’s goods and staff, catering services and other logistics arrangements and the mail services and keep staff informed about services offered. To this end the General Services and Procurement Department (CHGS)  formulates and applies rules for procurement, storage, and maintenance of furniture, office equipment and supply; design, prepare and implement programmes for the construction or acquisition and maintenance of buildings and premises; formulate and ensure the proper and effective application of administration policies within the Bank in such areas as communications, transport, travels, security, protection and safety of the Bank’s staff and property; and perform related duties. The department is responsible for managing the Bank’s fixed assets (valued at over UA 100,000,000). The General Services and Procurement Department comprises 3 divisions supervised by the Director General Services and Procurement. These divisions are: (i). Operations and Maintenance Division; (ii). Corporate Procurement Division; and (iii). Support Services Division.

The position

The objectives given to the incumbent will be to lead, plan, manage and ensure timely execution of facilities management, procurement, and travel & support services in the region and to approve procurement cases as per the Delegation of Authority.  The incumbent works under direct supervision of the Director General and obtains functional support and guidance from the General Services and Procurement Department management team on the Bank’s policies and strategies governing facilities management, real estate, procurement and support services. The Country in which the activities take place is in East Africa in the Bank’s Regional Office and its affiliated countries.

Duties and responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Director, General Services and Procurement and the Director General, Regional Directorate General, the incumbent will:

1. Serve as CHGS liaison person on Cross Cutting Matters in the Region. Plan, organize, coordinate and supervise the activities of General Services and Procurement in the Regional and Country Offices.
2. Prepare work programmes including resources and budget requirement for yearly budget planning for acquisition of goods and services under the responsibility of CHGS for the Region. Supervise the work program implementation including contracts monitoring required by the Bank; report on budget utilization and programme progress.
3. Lead preparation of annual as well as long-term procurement plans from the region perspective and supervises their implementation. Lead Procurement and Contracting Management by deciding on complex procurement cases up to UA 150,000, prepare procurement cases up to UA 300,000 for the approval of Director General and above the threshold submit complex procurement cases for approvals to the General Services and Procurement Department management or to the Purchasing Committee, as per the Delegation of Authority.  This includes preparation of reports, identifying the weaknesses and proposing improvements required by the Bank in corporate general services, procurement and contracting as well as improvements in service quality.
4. Provide Leadership  in management of facilities such as buildings, equipment, generators, UPS, CCTV security cameras, utilities and communication infrastructure aesthetics, functionality and operationality and report to the General Services and Procurement Department Management if changes are required on facilities; This include Leading in the management of operation, maintenance and upgrades of offices facilities in the region; Establishing  and implementing all programs that ensure proper operations and maintenance of facilities, including custodial programs and  managing related vendors and service providers and contracts
5. Coordinate the management of Assets (acquisition, inventory to Disposal) in the Region. Analyse the use and allocation of right quantities of office furniture and equipment and report any issue that may impact on the asset management policy.
6. Provide Leadership for Travel, Missions, Transport and Logistic activities for the Region  to ensure that travel requests are processed in line with the travel policy. Supervise the activities and assess the performance of any selected travel agency to ensure that the services providers are in line with the Terms of Reference for the contract.
7. Lead on ensuring availability of framework contracts with negotiated rates for hotels, hospitality, and transport for staff on missions as well as for the Business Continuity Program for the BCP (Business Continuity Plan) site and designated Regional and Country Offices.
8. Supervise the use of the official vehicles in the Regional and Country Offices and have assurance that they are used in line with the Land Transport Policy and manual, and also that related reports are prepared and sent out on a monthly basis.
9. Provide leadership and technical guidance to other professional and support staff in the Regional and Country on corporate general services and institutional procurement
10. Provide advice on procurement issues within the delegated authorities as amended from time to time. Provide expert internal procurement advice to the entire Bank’s Regional and Country Offices under the incumbent’s purview.
11. Recommend policy change to the General Services and Procurement Department management in terms of the Bank institutional procurement of goods, services, and works, and assist in preparation of application documents for the policy instrument (guidelines, manuals, standard bidding documents, Procurement Directives, and Presidential Instructions).
12. Resolve complex corporate procurement issues such as disputes involving large amounts, interpreting rules and guidelines for situations not provided in existing manuals, approving terms of reference for complex specifications, etc.
13. Set priorities for staff concerning the corporate general services and institutional procurement of goods, services and works, from the overall department work program.
14. Lead the assessment of corporate general services and internal procurement process effectiveness and propose to the Management any review and update the directives of the procedures governing the internal procurement of works and services from the Bank capital and administrative budgets and propose policy changes.
15. Participate in or lead negotiation and preparatory work required for the approval of contracts. Lead local and international market research, procurement of high risk, complex or large amount procurements.
16. Act as subject matter Expert in resolving dispute on Bank’s contracts before they are transferred to other rightful authorities as per Bank’s procurement policy.
17. Disseminate information on the Directives and procurement opportunities offered by the Bank’s procurement to the local and international business communities.
18. Lead assessment of existing computerised systems for procurement and propose improvements in view of best practices and introduction of new technologies.
19. Analyse and draw conclusions and lessons concerning suppliers’ performance to assist the Bank’s management in formulation of guidelines for recruitment and future use of suppliers. lead contract assessment, satisfaction to both parties, close the gaps in the contract and ensure that it is closed-out.
20. Draft a write-up for annual report which is submitted to the Management, Regional Directorate General, the General Services and Procurement Department and the Boards. Provide and support preparation of briefings and papers on the General Services and Procurement Department issues and provide statistics periodically etc. for the Management, Regional Directorate General, the General Services and Procurement Department, and/or Board Directors
21. Lead in responding to all CHGS related Audit queries and lead in implementation of the recommendations for Regional and Country Offices.
22. Train and coach the Administration and Finance Officers / Assistants, local procurement officers on the job pertaining to the General Services and Procurement Department activities.
23. Design, develop and deliver training and outreach on institutional procurement for the Bank staff at the Regional and Country Offices in coordination with the the General Services and Procurement Department management team. Design, develop and deliver training and outreach programs for vendor and supplier community in the region.

Selection Criteria

1. Hold at least a Master’s degree in Administration, Business, Economics, Procurement and Supply Chain Management, Civil Engineering, Facilities Management (any combined qualification will be a plus) .
2. Have a minimum of seven (7) years’ work experience related to the assignment.
3. A qualification in Procurement and/or Supply Chain Management, specialized training in Procurement or Supply Chain Management combined with Technical expertise (i.e. Engineering) would be desirable.
4. Private sector experience will be an added advantage
5. Competency in providing strategic leadership in managing large Corporate Services Projects and procurement, assets and facility management and other related support services matters.
6. Strategic procurement handling and contracting – establishing long range procurement plans for commodity procurement that anticipate regional and global market trends.
7. Abilities to cost effectively supervise corporate services projects, while ensuring quality, risks and timely delivery.
8. Professionalism – Ability to produce quality work, think carefully about the likely effects on others of words, actions’, appearance and mode of behavior.
9. Accountability – Establishing accountability, timeliness and paramount goals for corporate general services and procurement roles in the regions and affiliated countries.
10. Procurement projects management – driving the procurement process by designing, planning, managing and implementing diverse activities to a successful project conclusion.
11. Negotiation competencies – ability to discuss, explore and influence positions and alternatives in order to reach outcomes that will gain acceptance of all parties and meet the intended strategic procurement objectives.
12. Analytical skills – Ability to visualize, articulate and solve complex problems, concepts and make decisions that make sensed based on all available information, particularly important in the selection of vendors.
13. Aptitude for Technology – must be able to utilize technological tools available.
14. Results Oriented – ability to drive for achieving and surpassing targets against an internal and external standard of excellence.
15. Integrity and ethical – Act with integrity and maintain confidentiality at all times, observing the highest standard of ethics, honesty and accountability.
16. Coordinates and promotes client-orientated behavior across the team.
17. Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English or French, preferably with a working knowledge of the other.
18. Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office Suite applications; knowledge of SAP is an added advantage.