About One Acre Fund

Founded in 2006, One Acre Fund supplies smallholder farmers with the agricultural services they need to make their farms vastly more productive. We provide quality farm supplies on credit, delivered within walking distance of farmers homes, and agricultural trainings to improve harvests. We measure our success by our ability to make farmers more prosperous: On average, farmers harvest 50 percent more food after working with One Acre Fund.

We are growing quickly. We currently serve more than 800,000 farm families in Eastern and Southern Africa, with more than 7,500 full-time staff, and we aim to serve 1 million farm families by 2020.

Job Description

The Global Procurement teams are responsible for over $5M in spending each year across over 12,000 transactions and are responsible for all operational goods and service purchasing on behalf of over 800,000 smallholder farmers. We are seeking a strong individual to help improve process efficiency, drive 5% of purchasing cost out of the system, implement process/systems improvement projects, and help build team capacity across multiple countries of operation.

You will directly oversee procurement operations in at least 2 countries of operation and contribute to delivering a world-class purchasing department at the feet of our 800,000+ farmers across East and Southern Africa.

The overarching goals of this role are to:

• Manage procurement teams while driving execution excellence
• Save costs through improved process efficiency and effective negotiation
• Drive process adherence and compliance
• Drive data-based decision-making
• Build team capacity and support staff professional development

Responsibilities of the Global Procurement Associate will include:

Team Management

• Directly manage 2+ in-country procurement teams (i.e. Tanzania and Zambia) providing support on daily operations and capacity building
• Deliver requested items to clients 100% on time, at the right specifications and at prices consistently below market rates
• Set clear and well-documented expectations for all staff members and hold staff accountable to clear, rigorous expectations
• Tap into strong local talent pools to higher top performers with strong potential for growth

Save Costs for the Organization Your goal is to save over $500K every year in new cost savings across the value chain for procurement of operational goods and services.

• Coordinate cost-saving measurement activities across OAF countries and continuously improve cost-saving measurement techniques and tools
• Coordinate operational goods and services forecasting activities across countries to help increase on-time delivery, benefit from economies of scale and reduce process repeatability
• Drive procurement cost reduction by developing and implementing strategies including, but not limited to, process-automation of repeatable tasks
• Provide support to in-country teams on major tendering activities
• Map out current procurement practices to identify and implement cost- and time-saving improvements that drive efficiency through reduced cycle times, increased value per transaction, and increased transactions per full-time employee (FTE).

Tighten Controls Environment Drive efficiency across the Procurement team by tactically implementing loss prevention tactics and smooth processes.

• Support in-country Procurement Managers in running and assessing of monthly controls to ensure process compliance and minimal fraud risks. This includes developing and running process compliance controls checks across all country procurement teams and reporting on controls to systems and organizational leadership on a monthly basis
• Help reduce financial losses due to fraud by running fraud prevention controls & checks across all OAF countries & rolling out fraud prevention trainings by delivering trainings directly and monitoring compliance to fraud trainings
• Re-think and implement reinforced quality assurance and inventory management processes to reduce % stock outs and eliminate quality issues across the supply chain for operational goods
• Support the implementation of internal audit findings across countries that relate to process improvements and performance metrics
• Quality check data collection and help maintain 100% accurate procurement data to support in/cross-country analysis and procurement strategic decisions. This includes collaborating with SAP Data team to standardize product categories and improve data granularity.

Performance Management

• Support in-country Procurement Managers in identifying operational challenges and defining strategies to reach KPI targets. This involves helping country managers with professional development goal setting, accountability, and capacity building initiatives.
• Collaborate with SAP Data team to improve performance tracking tools in terms of accuracy, usefulness, and transparency
• Coordinate procurement performance reporting activities while providing visibility to country program leadership

Success in this role means:

• Reduce sourcing cycle times to 14 days max across all countries through streamlined processes and staff performance improvement
• Procurement data is 100% accurate and entered on time
• Drive new cost savings of $500K per year
• Goods & services delivered 100% OTIF at the right specifications and following the correct procurement procedures in countries you directly manage
• Increased value per transaction and transaction per FTE through reduced process repetition, bulk procurement of commonly requested goods, and other process automation
• Full transparency in team performance metrics to Purchasers and country leadership

Career Growth and Development

We have a strong culture of constant learning and we invest in developing our people. Youll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance. We hold career reviews every six months, and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. Youll have the opportunity to shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.

Qualifications

We are seeking exceptional professionals with experience in and a passion for procurement and supply chain. Experience in an entrepreneurial environment is a plus. Candidates that meet the following criteria are strongly encouraged to apply:

• Professional Skills:
  • Work experience in a demanding professional environment, preferably in positions where frequent cross-department communication was required
  • Experience in procurement, supply chain, engineering, or consulting preferred, but not required
  • Ability to work and make decisions independently
  • A passion for world class customer service
  • Strong sense of ethics, honesty, and integrity
  • Creativity and strong problem-solving skills. You dont take no for an answer and constantly look for alternative solutions to problems.
• Management Skills:
  • At least 5 years experience including 2 years of people or project management experience
  • Passion for capacity building and investing in others
  • Experience managing remote teams is a plus
• Execution Skills
  • Strong computer skills in at least Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint required, experience using SAP preferred
  • Able to independently structure analyses related to procurement subject matter
  • Strong attention to detail
  • Strong verbal and written communication skills with reports, peers, and management
• Academic Background
  • Related Masters Degree is an asset, but not strictly required
  • Language: Fluent in English, French preferred