Regional Supply Chain Specialist (Substitution) at Danish Refugee Council

Overall purpose of the role:

• Act as substitute senior supply chain staff in the Regional Office (RO) and in the Country operations (CO), generally as a Suppy Chain Specialist/Coordinator/Manager, on short and long term missions – up to 75% of time. Role is in a RO, and will primarily serve COs in the  EAGL region.
• Under the minimal supervision of the Regional Supply Chain Manager provide day-to-day technical support (capacity building, expert advice, compliance monitoring and substitution) to Country Operations in Region on supply chain matters to ensure high quality supply chain performance as a complimentary capacity to core capacity at Regional Office
• Support the Regional Supply Chain Manager in daily operation of the Regional Supply chain management setup
• Ability to deploy with short notice.

The position can be based in Nairobi (Kenya), Nairobi (Kenya) or any other DRC Country office in the EAGL region and opened to national applicants across the EAGL Region.

Responsibilities:

General

Leadership

• Keep abreast of leadership best practice in DRC, continuously hone management skills;
• Develop, review, and implement short/long term plans for implementation in country operations when on mission;
• Actively support development of Terms of Reference with regional and country leadership in preparation for missions.

Learning and development

• Continuously keep abreast of best practice for supply chain matters in DRC, including DRC Dynamics and other tools;
• In collaboration with regional office core supply chain staff, review, adapt and prepare material to be used on mission to enhance capabilities of staff in country offices – both stakeholders and supply chain staff.

Collaboration

• Under the auspices of the relevant Regional Supply Chain manager, participate in a Regional and global collaboration with other Supply Chain staff;

• In collaboration with regional office core supply chain staff, review, adapt and prepare material to be used on mission to enhance capabilities of staff in country offices – both stakeholders and supply chain staff.

When on substitution mission (up to 75% of time)

Act as senior supply chain capacity in Country Operation

• Provide independent technical leadership and support to Country operations commensurate with the position that is being substituted – generally as Country Office Supply Chain Manager, Supply Chain Team Lead or similar. If deployed into a non-management role, then provide technical support to CO Supply Chain Management on all relevant supply chain matters.
• Perform tasks in accordance with Terms of Reference for the specific mission, such as:
  • Procurement – ensure adherence to global governance framework, review procurement cases by other supply chain staff, undertake independent procurement using the relevant tools in country office, support other procurement staff in exercising their duties, ensure timely documentation and archiving of all relevant procurement files;
  • Asset management – ensure adherence to global governance framework, oversee the asset management process, ensure timely processing of assets, including registration, lending and write off;
  • Inventory management – ensure adherence to global governance framework, monitor and oversee warehouse and inventory functions, perform relevant warehouse and inventory functions as appropriate, ensure correct recording of transactions;
  • Fleet management – ensure adherence to global governance framework, monitor, and oversee fleet management functions.

Reporting

• Keep Regional Supply Chain manager informed of issues, cases and gap filling needs in country operation to ensure that ongoing country support can be streamlined.
• Upon completion of mission, complete mission reports and discuss with regional and country leadership to ensure knowledge transfer to relevant staff.
• Develop lessons learned and support RSCM in sharing with stakeholders at HQ, RO and CO level.
• Support (remotely) new staff filling role that was substituted for a period of up to 4 weeks if possible.

When working in regional office, support Regional Supply Chain Manager in executing his/her responsibilities within designated supply chain areas as follows (up to 25% of time)

Regional Supply Chain Specialist cover

• Act as the first line support to COs in Supply Chain Operations
• Interpret global policies with relation to the technical advisor area defined for this position
• Read and understand DRC OHs as per the Supply Chain governance framework in English. Give input and support to other Supply Chain related Operations Handbooks as requested.
• Give input and support to other Supply Chain related Operations Handbooks as requested.
• Complete all SC related eLearning courses
• Consult the Regional Supply chain Manager on High Value procurements and exceptions to policy matters.
• Develop standardized monthly reporting templates and ensure timely Monthly Reporting of CO SC Operations
• Support the COs as needed in the recruitment of Supply Chain staff.
• Support in development of CO context specific SOPs and bring these to the attention of the RSCM
• Continuously keep abreast of best practice regarding Supply Chain management in remote and harsh environments. Drive professionalization of staff involved in this area at all levels of the organization.
• Act as a liaison for supply chain matters for the countries assigned, including review of approvals and derogations. Day-to-day working contact with countries as assigned, giving professional advice on supply chain matters.
• Work with CO staff in Supply Chain, Programme Support and others as necessary, to find optimal solutions within DRC’s governance framework to support country and regional operations.
• Assist countries in the implementation and utilization of DRC Dynamics and be a Superuser for the Supply Chain track.
• Review of CO KPIs and BI dashboards and follow up on areas needing improvement
• Assist COs in the review and implementation of resolutions from SC audit findings
• Provide introduction to DRC SC processes for all new SC Managers and SC Coordinators in the countries.
• Ensure country office is filing on SharePoint as per the DRC archiving SOP by carrying out regular spot checks
• Any other tasks as will be assigned from time to time.

Technical support to Regional  and Country Operations

• Provide independent technical support to Country operations in region on supply chain matters (procurement, assets, warehousing, and other logistics) in accordance with global supply chain policies and processes
• Support capacity building of staff based on training material developed by HQ and refined to meet local context
• Provide independent expert advice on complex queries from stakeholders in regional and country offices.

Compliance control and tools

• Collect data on supply chain performance at regional and country level in line with RO/CO KPIs
• Perform regional compliance verification in region and country offices through high-level data controls and spot checks
• Monitor proper archiving of supply chain documentation in region and country offices accordance with global standards
• Review supply chain cases from country offices and recommend for approval in accordance with global standards for authorization and/or derogation
• Support CO in donor audits, including reviewing documentation.

About you

In this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’s five core competencies:

• Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process.
• Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback.
• Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation.
• Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly.
• Demonstrating integrity: You act in line with our vision and values.

Experience and Technical comptencies

• 5 years’ experience within one or more of the technical supply chain areas,
• 3-5  years’ experience in a field setting
• 1-3 years’ experience with ERP systems
• Work experience in relevant field INGO or other agencies experience in Supply Chain management.
• Degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration or Purchasing and Supplies
• This position will require a demonstrated ability to achieve results in a demanding and fast paced environment.
• Knowledge of international humanitarian and development systems, institutions and donor’s programs (including ECHO, DFID, DANIDA and OFDA), and of procedures, accountability frameworks and best practices
• High integrity, pro-active, stable, robust character and a good team-player
• Excellent communication skills
• Excellent analytical and negotiation skills.
• Proven commitment to accountable practices.
• Knowledge of working in challenging environments.
• Proven ability to manage large varied workloads and deal constructively with stress and periods with long hours.
• Proven ability to prioritize tasks, meet deadlines and work with limited supervision.
• Excellent interpersonal skills & demonstrated ability to establish effective working relations between CO and RO
• Ability to travel regularly within the region and beyond for up to 4 weeks at a short time notice and sometimes in conflict areas and physically difficult conditions.
• Excellent Communication skills in English required and the communication skills in French is an added advantage.