The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners' peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. UNOPS supports partners to build a better future by providing services that increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of peace building, humanitarian and development projects. Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations.
In the Latin America and the Caribbean region, UNOPS has operations in 13 countries. The objective of this call is to create a pool of prequalified candidates for the role of Procurement Specialist / Manager at ICS10 level. Individuals who successfully pass the competitive process will be included in a pool of pre-qualified candidates and will be contacted whenever there is an opportunity in this role and level in any of the 13 countries where UNOPS operates in the region: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru, Panama, Costa Rica, English / Dutch Caribbean Countries, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Mexico, and if required also in any other place globally.
This position will be located in Managua, Nicaragua. Nicaragua is part of the Multi Country Office (MCO) that includes El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. This position will lead and be mainly responsible for the HR operations in Nicaragua, as well as will support the other MCO country offices as required. The portfolio of projects in Nicaragua include infrastructure and procurement, projects are complex and involve the acquisition of highly specialized talent, so this role will be key to assure the attraction, selection and retention of the best local and international talent for UNOPS operations in Nicaragua.
Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Head of Support Services, the Procurement Specialist / Manager is responsible for the development and implementation of strategic and effective procurement services reflecting international public procurement best practices, compliance with UNOPS procurement policy, rules, regulations and procedures, ensuring appropriate risk management and obtaining the best value for money for the acquisition of goods, services and the contracting of works.
He/she analyzes and interprets the respective rules and regulations and provides advice and solutions to a wide spectrum of complex issues related to procurement. The role requires a deep understanding of procurement policy and processes and the Procurement Specialist should be able to apply them to the appropriate situations.
In addition to responsibility for the deliverables of the work team, the incumbent’s work is focused on strategic relationship building and demand management, mainly referred to aggregation and dealing with complex organizational structures, preparation of business cases and understanding of the supply market, as well as sharing knowledge with projects in order to achieve reductions of costs and savings.
Maintaining the highest degree of personal and professional ethics, the Procurement Specialist promotes a collaborative, client-focused, quality and results-oriented approach in the Business Unit.
The Procurement Specialist works in close collaboration with the programme/project colleagues in the given geographical area and with UNOPS HQ personnel, particularly with the Procurement Group (PG), as well as the Government officials, to successfully deliver procurement services.
The Procurement Specialist will work in close cooperation with the Business Unit and Project Managers and report to the management on central issues related to procurement activities. S/he supervises and leads procurement personnel to deliver work results, in close cooperation with the leadership team in the given geographical area.