Procurement Manager at African Agricultural Technology Foundation

The Procurement Manager will manage AATF’s supply chain for goods and services. The Procurement Manager’s duty is to discover the best ways to manage cost effectiveness, so that the foundation can invest in growth and people. This position will have primary responsibility in the oversight of the subsidiaries and partners’ procurement function across AATF’s countries of operation in the African Continent.

This will include providing direction to the subsidiaries and partners procurement teams and liaising with the leadership to coordinate the procurement activities across the continent. Unique challenges in the different operational geographies will require creative problem-solving skills. The position will be in charge of ensuring that procurement policies, processes/procedures, and systems are aligned, coordinated, and followed.

The position holder will be responsible for ensuring that the lifetime cost of a product is minimized, and that procurement sourcing approaches/systems are well-designed and cost-effective. He/she will collaborate closely with the Director, Corporate Services to identify gaps and make suggestions for improvement in the procurement function.

This position reports to the Director, Corporate Services.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• The procurement manager, working under the direction and supervision of the director of corporate services, will implement procurement and contracting of commodities, materials, equipment, and services for AATF and its subsidiaries. In doing so, the manager will provide management support in a variety of processes and transactions, ensuring the work is of the highest quality and accuracy.
• He/she will use his/her own judgment to deal with unforeseen situations, seeking advice from and/or reporting to the supervisor as necessary.
• The procurement manager will collaborate with department/program heads to provide the best support to the unit’s internal clients. The procurement manager will promote a client-centered, quality-driven, and results-oriented approach in his or her work.

KEY FUNCTIONS

Support the management/coordination of procurement support services by:

• Taking lead in the coordination of the procurement support activities, ensuring compliance with the Donor and AATF’s regulations, policies and strategies relating to Procurement, by incorporating the necessary steps to ensure sustainability in the procurement processes within the organization.
• Supporting the program/project teams in the compliance of submissions to the Procurement and Tender Committees.
• Coordinating the program/project teams for routine market research to determine sources of supplies, using available resources.
• Reviewing and signing off to the supplier database and ensuring regular update of the data is done.
• Take the lead in ensuring that all procurement files and records are updated and maintained by teams.
• Reviewing monthly or periodic procurement status reports from program/project teams as required.
• Be the point person for all procurement audit queries in all programs and business units during the statutory and project audits.

Procurement planning, requisitions, and sourcing

Take lead in management of the organization’s annual procurement planning by:

• Collaborating with program leads and departmental leads in the preparation of their procurement plan, awarding, administering, and monitoring of all matters related to procurement for the given geographical area / project activity.
• Coordinating the maintenance and updating of procurement monitoring processes for projects and provision of feedback to program leads.
• Management of proper and complete specification for equipment and materials, Job Profiles and Statement of Works for the preparation of RFP, RFQ and ITB, ensuring clearance/approval by respective units of the requests.
• Coordinate the monitoring of progress and liaison with vendors during the entire procurement cycle, investigation, and resolution of post-order problems and of progress reports on procurement matters.
• Track and report key functional metrics to reduce expenses and improve effectiveness.
• Collaborate with key persons to ensure clarity of the specifications and expectations of the foundation.
• Negotiate with external vendors to secure advantageous terms.

Management of resources of the unit

Support program teams in the bidding and tendering processes, focusing on achievement of the following results:

• Preparation of shortlists of suitable contractors/suppliers for purchases.
• Preparation and issuance of EOI, RFQ, ITB, RFP or other tender documents as required.
• Together with the requesting department support review and evaluation of bids or proposals received and preparation of analysis for submission to the Procurement or Tender Committees.
• Coordinate the setup of Procurement and Tender Committee meetings as may be required.
• Take the lead in all strategic procurements.
• Devise and use fruitful sourcing strategies.

Bidding and tendering processes

Support program teams in ensuring efficient contract administration, focusing on achievement of the following results:

• Review, test, and examination of all the existing contracts.
• Follow-up signing of contracts by vendors.
• Dissemination of contract advertisement and awards.
• Maintenance of contracts and filing system.
• Perform risk management for supply contracts and agreements.

Imports and Exports

• Manage the entire international procurement cycle, including but not limited to sourcing for bids, analysis, issue of Purchase orders, expediting orders, receipt of orders, inspection, verification of invoices and processing of payments.

Team Management

• Facilitates the engagement and provision of high-quality results and services of the program teams by offering technical support in work planning, performance management, coaching, and promotion of learning and development. Provides oversight, ensuring compliance by program team members with existing policies and best practices. Control spend and build a culture of long-term saving on procurement costs. Working closely with the program Leads to ensure high performance of the relevant teams in the within the organization and subsidiaries.

Supply Chain Support

• Working closely with the program leads and the supply chain lead, ensure all program supplies are ready for distribution as per the agreed delivery dates. Approve the ordering of necessary goods. Finalize purchase details of orders and deliveries.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE.

• Undergraduate degree in Business Administration or Commerce, Science, supply chain management, logistics or related field. A post graduate degree will be an added advantage.
• Membership of Professional Associations in procurement related fields is desirable.
• Professional qualifications in procurement, and or master’s degree will be advantageous.
• Proven working experience (over 7 years) in Procurement or Supply Chain Management managing annual procurement budgets of over $3m.
• Knowledge of sourcing and procurement techniques as well as a dexterity in “reading” the market
• Talent in negotiations and networking
• Good knowledge of supplier or third-party management software
• Aptitude in decision-making and working with numbers.
• Experience in collecting and analyzing data.
• Strong leadership capabilities with supervisory skills
• Knowledge of CFR 200.26 regulations will be advantageous.
• Demonstrated experience with Gates, USAID, DFID, CIDA and donor agencies and their grants management, report and audit requirements is a plus;
• Supervision experience.
• Fluency in English is required, Proficiency in French is a plus.
• Proven experience in developing policies at strategic corporate level

OTHER SKILLS AND ABILITIES

• Talent in negotiations and networking.
• Strong leadership capabilities with supervisory skills.
• A strong service orientation to colleagues.
• Strong interpersonal and communications skills (oral and written)
• A high level of self-discipline, capacity to multitask, and function well under pressure.
• Cross-cultural competency.