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COORDINATOR, GLOBAL PROCUREMENT AND LOGISTICS (GPL) Grade: P5

The WHO Global Service Centre provides administrative services to all staff and all WHO offices worldwide in respect of human resources, payroll, procurement, accounts payable and support of specific corporate IT applications. The aim of this Centre is to serve as the global processing platform for the swift and reliable delivery of a comprehensive array of products and services covering all these fields.

In addition to developing global policies and procedures on contracting and procurement, the objective of the Global Procurement and Logistics unit is to set standards for the goods and services contracted or procured as well as control and oversight of the adherence to applicable rules, procedures and standards associated with such procurement. GPL is also responsible for market research, purchasing of and evaluating suppliers for a vast range of commodities and services for WHO's technical programmes and projects. Finally GPL provides administrative services to all staff and all WHO Offices worldwide in respect of purchasing and shipping of both goods and services.
Description of duties:
Under the overall guidance of Director, GSC, the Coordinator provides authoritative advice to Programme Managers both at Headquarters and in the Regions, Office of the Legal Counsel (LEG), HQ, and the Contract Review Committee on issues under his/her purview (namely procurement and logistics matters, air and maritime transport, market possibilities, development of specifications and delivery schedules). He/she is responsible for the leadership and management of specialized teams dealing with centralized procurement, provision of global processing services of contracting and procurement and shipping and advisory functions of the Organization. He/she empowers and promotes collaborative relationships between the various departments, Regional Offices, in order to maximize cost benefits for the Organization.

The Coordinator, GPL is the recognized authoritative advisor and the senior expert on matters of procurement, contracting of goods and services and shipping, and develops policies and procedures accordingly. He/she carries the responsibility and accountability for the provision of global processing services of contracting, procurement and shipping and the delivery of these services on a global scale in accordance with the Organization's Rules and Regulations and Manual provisions and against the agreed Service Level Agreement (SLA) in a cost effective manner.

The incumbent will lead, guide, motivate and manage a team of specialists who are accountable for planning, directing, managing and controlling the World Health Organization contracting and procurement services and functions. The execution of services covering the transactional aspects of purchasing and shipping- transactions will for the most part be completed through the Oracle Based Global Management System (GSM).

The incumbent will liaise and collaborate with counterpart positions at Headquarters as well as with supply officers in Regional offices, as needed. The incumbent will optimize performance through motivation, guidance, work-load management, work-flow improvements and will maintain a professional transaction processing environment in order to provide a service-oriented, timely, cost-effective and reliable delivery of services.

More specificially:
1) Contracting of Goods and Services:
- Ensures the implementation and monitoring of the Organization's procurement and contract standards (e.g. specification requirements and catalogues, identification of procurement sources, determination of contract types to be used on major projects and ways of settling contractual disputes and production problems) while seeking to improve cost effectiveness and performance, to facilitate and enhance the utilization and impact of automated technology, and seek simplification of HQ and field procurement/contract processes and procedures;
- Formulates the Units strategic objectives, plans, leads and manages its implementation and results within the financial and human resources allocated to him/her.
- Provides authoritative advice for and intervenes when necessary in negotiating difficult and highly complex contracts, ensuring that quality, costs, and legal requirements in the interest of the Organization are fully safeguarded;

2. Processing of Purchase Orders (POs) for Goods & Services. Areas of activities managed by GPL and falling under the ultimate accountability of the incumbent cover - inter alia - the following:
- Approval of draft goods Purchase Orders, following validation and completion of purchase ordering processes, including adding shipping information;
- Creation and approval of shipping and insurance purchase orders for payment purposes;
- Checking and validating of all shipping invoices from the Forwarding Agent before passing them to Accounts Payable (AP) for payment;
- Creation and Approval of Service POs, following validation of requisitions;
- Rejection of incomplete/incorrect requisitions for services or draft POs for goods;
- Revision and cancellation of POs for goods and services in GSM;
- Distribution of global POs orders to suppliers and follow up on acknowledgment copies; uploading copies into the WHO Records Management System (RMS);
- Recording of Goods receipt in GSM, for goods shipped via forwarding agent;
- Queries and Reports: The incumbent will generate and analyze reports from the GSM using the information to improve performance, monitor results and timelines of goods and services purchased.
- Ensuring collaboration and efficient cooperation with the WHO's Forwarding Agent team in KL
- Ensuring an efficient cooperation with GSC/AP Team
- Other duties as required
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Education:
Essential:
Advanced university degree in engineering, logistics, business administration, or other fields closely related to the position (procurement/purchasing).

Desirable:
Specialization in medicine, pharmacological biological or paramedical sciences would be desirable.
Skills:
- Extensive knowledge of, and demonstrated skills in worldwide procurement and contract negotiation;
- Knowledge of economic and market perspectives that can impact WHO;
- Ability to develop new concepts in designing and planning cost-effective procurement, logistical support and long-term contracts, understanding of cost analysis evaluation techniques, combined with knowledge of administrative and management principles and practices;
- Good knowledge of WHO or an equivalent organization's procurement programmes in international health matters;
- Thorough knowledge of a wide range of technical cooperation terms;
- Ability to take a leadership role, to supervise staff and to maintain a motivated team;
- Ability to apply, specify and implement computer systems pertaining to the treatment and processing of procurement, such as Oracle.

WHO Competencies:
1. Ensuring the effective use of resources
2. Building and Promoting Partnerships across the Organization and beyond
3. Creating an empowering and motivating environment
4. Moving forward in a changing environment
5. Promoting innovation and organizational learning

Other Skills (e.g. IT)
- Has a good understanding of and experience with ERP systems such as Oracle in order to make strategic and operational use of the said system.
- Is familiar with querying and reporting and can analyze error reports from the system.
Experience:
Essential:
At least ten years' experience at the managerial level in procurement and the servicing of supplies and equipment, of which at least seven years are in an international organization/setting or multi-national organization, involving the negotiation and administration of procurement activities, contracts, facilities and logistical support. A sound knowledge of best practices of procurement and guidelines; Proven problem solving and statistical analyses capacity; Ability to manage and prioritize among projects;

Desirable
Experience in or knowledge of the UN system and its procurement policies and practices.
Languages:
Excellent knowledge of English both written and spoken with a good working knowledge of French. Knowledge of other WHO official languages would be an asset.
Additional Information:
A written test may be used as a form of screening.
Annual salary: (Net of tax)
US$ 80,629 at single rate
US$ 86,791 with primary dependants
Post Adjustment: 42.3 % of the above figure(s). This percentage is to be considered as indicative since variations may occur each month either upwards or downwards due to currency exchange rate fluctuations or inflation.

Online applications are strongly encouraged to enable WHO to store your profile in a permanent database. Please visit WHO's e-Recruitment website at: www.who.int/employment. The system provides instructions for online application procedures.
All applicants are encouraged to apply online as soon as possible after the vacancy has been posted and well before the deadline stated in the vacancy announcement.