Job: Procurement Assistant - 5 Positions

Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
Closing Date: Tuesday, 17 December 2013

Organization: UN Population Fund Country: Denmark Closing date: 17 Dec 2013

Organizational Location

The Procurement Assistant position is located in Procurement Services Branch (PSB) of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Copenhagen. The incumbent reports to and receives guidance and policy support from the Procurement Specialist who leads the regional team that serves the procurement and contracting needs of their geographical areas and ensuring that procurement and commercial considerations are fully taken into account in country programmes.

Job Purpose

In direct support of UNFPA's strategy to achieve the ICPD goals and MDG's 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.

Major Activities/Expected Results

• Administer, execute and coordinate procurement activities:
• Analyze requisitions; communicate with country offices and/or other customers to ensure correctness of the data entered into the Atlas system, clarity of the specifications, appropriateness of the products, delivery requirements and dates;
• Prepare Requests For Quotations, Invitation to Bids (ITBs)/Request for Proposals (RFPs), evaluate bids received, prepare CRC submissions whenever applicable and/or negotiations with suppliers to ensure that the most cost effective proposals are selected;
• Review ITBs/RFPs prepared by country offices before these are issued to ensure that the documents are in line with UNFPA Procurement Procedures;
• Review CRC submissions prepared by country offices to ensure they are complete and accurate and that proper application of processes and procedures have been made. Present submissions to CRC if required;
• Process and issue Purchase Orders in Atlas;
• Follow up on delivery of orders to ensure timely delivery of goods and services as stipulated in the Purchases Orders; liaise with the suppliers and country offices in order to resolve problem deliveries;
• Review and validate invoices including liaising with the finance branch and/or the supplier involved to solve any issues;
• Handling 3rd party procurement/AccessRH including preparation of pro forma invoices and liaison with customers to ensure their requirements are acted upon in a timely manner and resolve any problems the clients may report. This also includes liaison with finance focal points to ensure that funds are applied properly and following up on issues related to payment of final invoice if applicable;
• Monitor and evaluate the performance of suppliers with respect to on-time delivery, quality and commercial acceptability and liaise with Contracting Team when required;
• Ensure that all correspondences and documents related to all procurement activities are properly filed in designated e-filing system
• 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 or clients and provide prompt responses or follow-up;
• Upon request communicate changes in procurement processes and procedures or updates in relating financial procedure provide clarifications and guidance if required;
• Monitor requests and relevant submission in terms of their compliance with the mandate of UNFPA and procurement procedures; take action in case of their violation;
• Advise Country Offices in system related question such as using of e-Procurement or OTS, and in their procurement planning in terms of availability of RH products, their relevance, specifications, prices and other costs.
• Assist in development of capacity building missions/training tools for country offices and government officials (when applicable) and deliver training packages to counterparts as well as to new staff in PSB/secondment colleagues upon request;
• Perform other job related duties as assigned

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 NGOs, ministry representatives at the relevant levels. Maintains daily contact with other procurement staff at PSB. Sustain close contact with suppliers.

Job Requirements

Education:

• Completion of Secondary education.
• University degree or equivalent certification in business administration, logistics and supply chain management, procurement, professional development, law or related discipline would be very useful and weighted accordingly, but is not a requirement.

Knowledge and Experience:

• Minimum 5 years' related work experience preferably in an international, development focused organization and/or the public sector. Note that a Master's Degree in combination with 3 years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of 5 years of experience.
• Excellent working knowledge of MS Office (in particular, applications related to database and data analysis), Atlas (PeopleSoft or alternatively Oracle), E-filing system and other software applications is required.
• Experience in working with international procurement and logistics desirable.
• Knowledge of reproductive health related commodities and medical terminology an asset.
• Experience from working with UNFPA or another UN agency is an asset.

Required Competencies:

• Ability to analyze and utilize complicated 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 required for all posts. In addition, fluency in Spanish required for the position in the Latin America team and fluency in French required for the position in the Francophone Africa team.
• For all positions, a working knowledge of UN languages in addition to English is an asset.

Other Desirable Skills:

• Highly motivated
• 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 Fixed Term Assignment (FTA) for one year renewable subject to funding.

Applications in English (including letter of interest, CV and completed/signed UN Personal History Form (P11)), quoting Procurement Assistant should be sent not later than 17:00hours Copenhagen time on Tuesday, 17 December 2013 via email to: vacancies@unfpa.dk

The Personal History Form can be downloaded from UNFPA's website: http://www.unfpa.ru/en/vacancy/108

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 residence/working permit in Denmark.

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

The UN Common Premises 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.

Note that this is a re-advertisement of the Procurement Assistant positions that were advertised on September 6, 2013. Candidates who submitted their application for those vacancies are highly encouraged to re-apply.

More Info and Application