Procurement Specialist - P3 - Fast Hire

We are hiring a motivated Procurement Specialist - P3 to join our growing team at United Nations Development Programme in New York, NY.
Growing your career as a Full Time Procurement Specialist - P3 is an amazing opportunity to develop excellent skills.
If you are strong in cooperation, decision-making and have the right personality for the job, then apply for the position of Procurement Specialist - P3 at United Nations Development Programme today!

Job Description Background

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

The  Office of Procurement is a part of the Bureau Management Services (BMS), in UNDP providing vital management support in areas such as administrative services, budget and finance, human resources, information and communications technology, legal issues, procurement, safety and security, administration of multi-donor trust funds, change management, and crosscutting business solutions.   Procurement is a fundamental component of UNDP, accounting for nearly 70 percent of UNDP programme delivery. Despite its critical role, procurement as an operational service can be traced back to as recently as 1999, when UNDP transitioned from a developmental funding model to one that included direct execution projects in its portfolio. In the years following this shift in models, UNDP procurement experienced unprecedented growth in terms of its volume and complexity. 

Office of Procurement's mandate includes development and updating of procurement policy, providing procurement advisory and operational support to country offices and HQ units including Oversight and professionalization of the procurement function. Procurement supports programme delivery in line with UNDP's Strategic Plan and best practices in public sustainable procurement.  Procurement acts in accordance with rules and regulations, the accountability framework, and ensures appropriate risk management for UNDP.   

Office of Procurement  is a global team based in UNDP/HQ New York, Copenhagen/Denmark and in Cyberjaya/Malaysia, with additional Regional Procurement Specialists located in each Bureau Hub (Panama, Addis Ababa, Amman, Istanbul and Bangkok). The policy team in New York (HQ) provides overall direction and guidance to UNDP on procurement activities, and is primarily responsible for UNDP procurement policy, processes and systems. The Procurement Oversight Unit ensures that procurement undertaken by UNDP business units complies with procurement policies and procedures as well as financial rules and regulations, taking into account best practices and risk mitigation measures. The Central Procurement Unit provides procurement services for Business Units/Central Bureaux in UNDP Headquarters and support almost 1000 clients.  The Global Procurement Unit (GPU), based in Copenhagen, provides direct procurement services for the Global Fund, crisis prevention and recovery support, procurement support to elections programmes, and hosts the PSU Global QAP Training team. The PSU team in Cyberjaya/Malaysia, provides transactional support to global operations and manages global LTAs through an emerging eProcurement platform.

Position Purpose:

Under the guidance and supervision of the Chairperson of the ACP, the Procurement Specialist will analyze cases submitted to the ACP for review to ensure 1) compliance with the regulatory and policy framework, 2) that sufficient budgetary funding exists for the proposed contract, and 3) risks are properly assessed and mitigated.

The Procurement Specialist shall be responsible for collecting and analyzing procurement data to support business decisions, assess procurement capacity of BUs, improve the quality of business processes and promote the use of best practices. 

The Procurement Specialist shall be responsible for documenting and updating business processes such as user guides, especially within the frame of #NextGenERP project.

The Procurement Specialist shall act as the focal point and coordinate the business aspects of the ACP such as budgets and annual work plans

The key results have an impact on the overall Unit's efficiency in procurement management and success in establishment and implementation of operational strategies. Strategic approach to procurement, establishment and implementation of the monitoring and control system, timely and appropriate delivery of services, introduction of e-procurement ensure client satisfaction and overall timely delivery of UNDP programmes and projects.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Efficient operation of Procurement Oversight:

• Full compliance of procurement activities with UN/UNDP rules, regulations, policies and strategies; elaboration of the effective internal control, proper design and functioning of a client-oriented procurement management system.
• Procurement business processes mapping and elaboration/establishment of internal Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in Procurement, control of the workflows in the Procurement Unit, harmonization of the workflows in the office.
• Analyze high volume and complex procurement cases submitted to the ACP; the analysis shall be based on the case information as well as related documentation and background checks as necessary in UNDP procurement applications (UNall, OracleCloud, ACP online, Atlas) to ensure compliance with the policy and regulatory framework of the Organization, procurement principles of competition and integrity, accountability, transparency and ethical behavior, and the achievement of value for money. 
• Liaising with Regional ACP Chairpersons on cases from their respective regions 
• In review of cases, assessing and mitigating risks for UNDP during key milestones of the procurement process; 
• Maintaining adequate communication with Requestors to ensure timely and adequate response to committee clarifications
• Preparing initial review notes; participation in the ACP meetings as advisor and preparing meeting recommendation summaries. 
• Following up on implementation of the conditions subject to which cases were approved utilizing procurement systems and other means, as necessary. 

2. Elaboration and support to procurement function in UNDP :

• Analyze the procurement and oversight data of business units with high procurement volume and coordinate with RACP Chairperson, Procurement Services Unit (PSU) and other HQ/Regional stakeholders in reviewing requests for increased delegation of procurement authority;
• Collect, analyse procurement, and oversight data from various procurement systems incl. UNall, OracleCloud, ACPonline, Atlas, etc., to develop reports, live dashboards using corporate platforms that enable data drive business decisions;
• Identify, filter, analyze, and interpret trends or patterns in procurement data sets as required by UNDP procurement management.
• Provide inputs and collaborate with PSU in updating of the Corporate Procurement Dashboard; 
• In cooperation with the Regional ACP Chairpersons, implement the recommendations of internal and external audit by means of providing concrete recommendations to management. 

3. Elaboration and implementation of ACP operational and business strategies:

• Focal point for ACP budget, including liaising with regional bureaus and their respective regional centers on budget allocation and expenditures for R/ACPs; 
• Preparation of annual workplans and other Unit corporate requirements. 

4. Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing focusing on achievement of the following results:

• In cooperation with Regional ACP Chairpersons prepare the lessons learnt from cases reviewed at R/ACP meetings; 
• Interact with Country Offices to improve their quality of submissions by means of providing best practices; 
• In coordination with Regional ACP Chairpersons maintain and update the standard operating procedures of ACP; 
• Organization of training in use of procurement systems and committee reviews.  

Competencies

• Core Competencies -  UNDP Core Competencies can be found  here . 
• Achieve Results - LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact    
• Think Innovatively - LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems   
• Learn Continuously - LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences
• Adapt with Agility - LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands 
• Act with Determination -LEVEL 3:Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results    
• Engage and Partner - LEVEL 3:Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration  
• Enable Diversity and Inclusion - LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity

eople Management:

UNDP People: Management Competencies can be found on the dedicate d  site . 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Customer Satisfaction / Client Management: 

• Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfill and understand the real customers' needs.
• Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy
• Look for ways to add value beyond clients' immediate requests
• Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns

Effective Decision Making

• Ability to take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one's authority, area of expertise and resources

UN Policy knowledge - ethics          

• Knowledge and understanding of the UN Staff Regulations and Rules and other policies relating to ethics and integrity

Procurement management  

• The ability to acquire goods, services or works from an outside external source

Strategic Sourcing    

• Knowledge of strategic sourcing concepts, principles and methods, and ability to apply this to strategic and/or practical situations

Supplier/ relationship management 

• Knowledge of supplier management concepts, principles and methods, and ability to apply this to strategic and/or practical situations

Contract Management         

• Knowledge of contract management concepts, principles and methods, and ability to apply this to strategic and/or practical situations

Required Skills and Experience

Education : 

• Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in business or public administration, procurement, logistics, supply chain management, commerce, engineering, law or a related field is required or  
• A Bachelor's Degree with additional 2 years of relevant experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the Master's degree.
• Specialized Certification in Procurement is required, minimum CIPS III or equivalent. 

Experience : 

• A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in procurement, contract management, contract administration, logistics/supply chain management or related area is  required or seven (7) years of experience with Bachelor's degree  
• A minimum of two (2) years of direct experience in procurement management is required.
• Relevant experience in international operations, international organizations specially working with developing countries is  highly desirable .
• Experience in all phases of high-value procurement operations  is desirable.
• Experience in business analytics, defining functional specifications and QA applications development  is desirable.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.)  is required
• Knowledge of web-based management systems including ServiceNow, PowerBi, SharePoint online, database and e-commerce  is an asset

Language Requirement:

• Fluency in English  is required
• Working knowledge of another UN official language would be  an asset

Please note that continuance of appointment beyond the initial 12 months is contingent upon the successful completion of a probationary period.

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More details

Type of contract: Staff (Permanent and Fixed Term)

Duration: 1 year

Macro-area: North America

Level of experience: Senior Professional, more than 5 years

Area of work: Democracy, Governance, Human Rights, Law, Public Administration

Type of organisation: Multilateral Organisations

Benefits of working as a Procurement Specialist - P3 in New York, NY:

● Company offers great benefits
● Company offers career progression opportunities
● Competitive salary