The Alight Sudan Program started in 2004 in response to the emergency needs of some 600,000 war-affected IDPs and host populations in the Tulus and Gereida corridors in South Darfur. In 2014, Alight expanded services into underserved villages in the East Darfur, and more recently in Kassala state, East of Sudan. The overall aim of the program is to improve the well-being of the target populations by addressing their immediate humanitarian needs and contributing to long-term community stabilization.

PRIMARY PURPOSE OF THE POSITION:

The Procurement Officer (PO) will lead a comprehensive range of procurement support activities, performing research and analysis, and providing recommendations to support the efficient and effective procurement services in the Alight Sudan program. The Procurement Officer(PO) will work towards delivery and continuous improvement of the performance of Procurement function to achieve better service delivery and cost-effectiveness.

Procurement Planning and Supplier Management

• Ensure that field monthly and quarterly procurement plans are developed, submitted, and within budget limits and compliant with donor requirements.
• Coordinate regular market assessments to ensure accurate knowledge of local market prices for most common goods and services and maintain a local supplier’s database.
• Identify, assess and recommend potential suppliers and ensure necessary information is available to support the selection of suppliers while ensuring standard processes (thresholds, approvals, filing) are followed.
• Contribute to negotiations with new suppliers on terms and conditions of orders, with guidance from the Field Operations Manager, in order to ensure Alight obtains the best terms and lowest costs.
• Build and maintain constructive and ethical business relationship with suppliers and private sector’s operators
• Providing guidance, advice, support and training to the field team and program staff to ensure procurement processes are effective, efficient, and ethical and provide the best possible value to the office;

Sourcing 

• Provide procurement services, including but not limited to, procuring goods and services in accordance with Alight Procurement policies and standards.
• Assist the requestors to identify their needs in order to make the most efficient and effective procurement process based on established policies, practices, and experience.
• Compile data, prepare and distribute documents to support successful procurement programs and operational activities, (e.g. issue tenders, evaluate offers and negotiate/award contracts), ensuring standard processes are followed.
• Review, amend and prioritize purchase requests and provide recommendations to requesters, to support the procurement of goods and services, at competitive quality and value for Alight.
• Follow standard emergency response practices to support Alight to quickly respond and deploy emergency supplies and needed resources to affected areas in case of crisis

Logistics Management Information & Reporting 

• Prepare monthly status reports on procurement, contractor database and payments;
• Submitting a weekly procurement tracking tool for all the procurement requests under all grants to provide the status for each procurement request, as well as the vendors contracted for each procurement request and the delivery time for each.
• Monitor the progress of contractual agreements, reviews and process invoices for payment, resolves any problems that arise, performs post contract evaluations, creates and maintains procurement records.
• Perform any other duties assigned by the supervisor, or any other ALIGHT Senior Manager.

• Bachelor’s degree in Logistics or Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Business Administration, Humanitarian Logistics, or other related field required, with additional relevant work experience
• Professional certifications such as CIPS, CPP CSCP preferred& will be considered.
• Demonstrated continuous education and specialized trainings in procurement and logistics management.
• Minimum 5 years’ experience in key positions in procurement or operations, with experience working for a reputable and large humanitarian or development INGO preferred.
• Demonstrated ability and technical skills in supply chain and asset management
• Proven skills and knowledge in the design and use of Information Management Systems (IMS)
• Knowledge of donor’s procurement policies (US Gov, UNHCR etc.).
• Computer literacy skills with Microsoft application packages.
• Experience working on procurement activities including purchasing, vendor research, etc.
• Experience coordinating with suppliers (e.g. retailers, wholesalers and traders)
• Experience supervising staff desired.
• Ability to communicate in spoken and written English with aptitude in reporting are mandatory.

KEY BEHAVIORS & ABILITIES

1. Self-motivated, client orientated individual with a strong sense of personal ethic, integrity and a big appetite for quality improvement and accountability to improve stewardship of Alight’s resources
2. Strong interpersonal and intercultural skills with ability to build and maintain strong relationships and trust among stakeholders
3. High level of flexibility and tolerance to ambiguity
4. Ability to work under pressure and adapt to situations as required due to changes on the ground
5. Self-starter who takes direction well, but also works independently
6. Keen eye for detail
7. Capacity to think ahead and highlight areas of risk and concern
8. Excellent communication skills with a strong sense of diplomacy
9. Ability to work in a sensitive, multi-cultural context as a respectful team player and manager
10. Demonstrate commitment to Alight’s core values and policies
11. Ability and willingness to travel and spend long periods of time in remote field areas, up to 25%

We are on a journey to build Alight, a new platform of amazing people and organizations providing lifesaving services and creating breakthrough solutions for and with the displaced. WeAreAlight.org
Alight is an Equal Opportunity Employer offering employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, citizenship, physical or mental disability, or protected veteran status.  Alight complies with all applicable laws governing nondiscrimination in employment.