Procurement Coordinator

Website Healthy Learners

TITLE: Procurement Coordinator

Background

Healthy Learners is an award-winning non-profit organization committed to improving the health of children in Zambia and beyond. We partner directly with the government and local communities in Zambia so that school children can stay healthy, learn effectively and have a brighter future. This year, Healthy Learners was the inaugural winner of the 2021 Duke F.M. Kirby Prize for Scaling Social Impact and the UBS Optimus Foundation COVID-19 Relief Prize and has seen strong, steady growth in philanthropic support over time.

School-aged children in low resource settings suffer from a high burden of disease and lack access to even basic healthcare, which causes otherwise preventable and curable illnesses to frequently result in life-long health challenges or disability. In the short term, these illnesses contribute to school absenteeism, poor academic performance, and high drop-out rates. In the long term, they undermine physical, cognitive, and emotional development and hinder economic prosperity.

Healthy Learners is bridging this gap in Zambia through our unique model of school-based community health. By training teachers to be community health workers and making schools entry points into the public healthcare system, children now receive medical attention in substantially greater numbers, improving health outcomes and reducing absenteeism. We currently serve 250,000 students in Lusaka and, with our program now adopted by the government as a policy, we are working with the Zambian government to scale nationally.

Overall Purpose of the Role:

The Procurement Coordinator will support the execution of day-to-day procurement and contracting activities following standard practices, set procedures, manuals, and regulatory guidelines. He/she will lead efforts for the procurement of goods, materials, and services including office supplies. The Procurement Coordinator will work closely with program and administrative staff to ensure well-thought forecasts and timely acquisition of items and services for all Healthy Learners procurement.

Job duties and responsibilities

Implement procurement processes and strategy

  • Prepare, analyze, track supply plans and review the current state of the organization’s inventory needs to factor in that knowledge into upcoming purchasing decisions.
  • Coordinate and implement all procurement processes and execute day-to-day procurement functions, such as: analyzing market conditions.
  • Preparing bid analyses, ensuring price reasonableness, verifying technical soundness and functionality
  • Support coordination of tasks related to the procurement of goods, services, and civil works for all organizational needs.
  • Determine quantity and timing of deliveries.
  • Monitor and forecast upcoming levels of demand
  • Analyze specifications or terms of references and prepare and launch tender documents.
  • Coordinate and facilitate site visits of bidders with procurement evaluation panels.
  • Support management to periodically review internal processes flows, procedures, policies and recommend updated recommendations.
  • Track and report key functional metrics to reduce expenses and improve procurement efficiencies.
  • Craft negotiation strategies and close deals with optimal terms.
  • Manage Relationships and policy adherence
  • Maintain healthy, reliable, and positive relationships with suppliers and service providers.
  • Provide contract management services including arranging for proper inspection, ensuring compliance with terms and conditions of contracts, and addressing delays.
  • Lead the troubleshooting efforts, assisting in contract amendments and ensuring completion of works and delivery of goods;
  • Periodically review current vendor lists and their cost structures; scan the market for new suppliers for possible quality and cost improvements.
  • Carry out vendor orientation to ensure that all contracted vendors and service providers comply with Healthy Learners’ principles including child safety, anti-terrorism, do-no-harm, etc.
  • Stay abreast of the latest changes to internal, external, procedures, policies, laws, and regulations to ensure that all Healthy Learners’ procurement process conforms with all framework requirements
  • Execute every procurement activity in conformity with local and international standard practices, policies, and donor regulations.
  • Protect the procurement activity from fraud, waste, and abuse.
  • Process Documentation
  • Gather and analyze metrics and data which support purchasing decisions.
  • Prepare standard bidding documentation as per organizational, and donor guidelines and policies.
  • Ensure that all approvals are executed and procurements records are kept safely and filed appropriately;

Supervision and reporting

  •  Supervise and mentor procurement officers and assistants.
  • Review and approve leave and other requests from subordinates
  • Perform periodic performance reviews of his/her subordinates
  • Recommend training needs for procurement staff
  • Conduct orientations for new procurement staff as required
  • Ensure that all subordinates follow and adhere to all standard practices and policies

Key competencies:

  • Should be Organized,
  • Time conscious and Resourceful Personality with an eye for detail
  • Possess relevant Analytical and strategic thinking skills
  • Ability to Negotiate and network in favor of the organization
  • Good understanding of Local Purchasing Order system and related software
  • High Ethical and Integrity standards of operation
  • Excellent interpersonal, communication, and Leadership skills
  • Focused on Managing Performance
  • Energetic and Self- motivated can work with minimum supervision

Qualifications

  • Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree required with education and training in supply chain management, purchasing, logistics, or business administration
  • Prior working experience as Purchasing professional with a minimum of 4 -7 years.
  • Knowledge and understanding of best practices in procurement procedures, USAID rules and regulations, project administration and follow-up, and contract management;
  • Prior USAID or other international donor experience required;
  • Membership of an appropriate professional body such as the Chartered Institute of purchasing and supply management is required
  • Strong IT systems knowledge and skills including knowledge and understanding of specialist systems such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP).
  • Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe applications;
  • Strong written and verbal communications skills

Proposed Start Date: November 2021

Interested applicants should email their CV and 1 page cover letter to [email protected] no later than 24th September 2021.

All application must be addressed to;

The Director of Administration

Healthy Learners

Olympia Extension

Lusaka

Note: You can learn more about our work by visiting www.healthylearners.org

To apply for this job email your details to jobs.admin@healthylearners.org.

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