Logistics Outsourcing Expert & Team Lead

ABOUT VILLAGEREACH
VillageReach transforms health care delivery to reach everyone. Our vision is a world where every person has the health care needed to thrive. Our programs focus building people-centered health systems that make sure health products and services are available when and where they are needed, with a focus on developing scalable, high-impact solutions. We are driven by a passion for collaboration and partnership, as we believe strongly that collective action is the only way to achieve sustainable change. Our work improves the lives of more than 35 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. VillageReach in incorporated in Washington State and has offices in Seattle (USA), Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, and Mozambique.

Summary
In Mozambique, VillageReach has been working over the last four years to help MISAU scale up its supply chain strategy, including integrating 3PLs and 4PLs into their last mile delivery system. This has involved building political will for the integration of outsourced transport with the actors currently performing these functions (provincial and district authorities), setting up standards for vetting and managing transporters, helping the government monitor cost and performance, identifying and addressing performance gaps and putting in place the mechanisms for collaboration between government and private sector firms. VillageReach now aims to share that experience with other organizations supporting governments in their outsourcing journey and is seeking to hire a Logistics Outsourcing Expert to share this experience with at least 7 countries (including Mozambique), with a target of 3 countries and 3 in-country Technical Assistance (TA) providers in the first two years.
The Logistics Outsourcing Expert will lead our work in enabling in-country government TA partners to successfully support governments to assess, evaluate, contract and implement transport outsourcing for public health supply chains. The role will oversee three Outsourcing Advisors and be responsible for defining the specific services VillageReach will offer, packaging the Mozambique experience into useable tools, defining agreements with in-country TA partners, overseeing service delivery to the in-country TA partners by the VillageReach team, leading Advocacy on outsourced transportation.

This position is cross-cutting and will work with the Last Mile Supply Chain program in Mozambique, the VillageReach private sector team, and key partners such as the Africa Resource Center, donors, and private sector firms.

This role will be part of the Supply Chain Global Technical Team and will be based in Mozambique. The successful candidate will have relevant experience in the implementation of transport outsourcing with the ability to work with government stakeholders in developing their capacity to understand and use private sector solutions.

Description

Essential Duties and Responsibilities are included in the list below. Other duties, responsibilities, and activities may change or be assigned at any time. The approximate yearly breakdown of time is provided below. In the first 12 months, it is likely that a greater percentage of effort will be required in Mozambique.

Mozambique

• Government capacity building (30%): lead activities to strengthen central government (CMAM) and provincial DPS management of outsourced transporters; ensure alignment with LMSC overall strategy for solution transition to government
• Stakeholder engagement (10%): work with partners such as the Africa Resource Center (ARC) and the IAPHL to set up and facilitate a Transport Outsourcing Expert Group to promote public-private sector collaboration and support advocacy in other countries
• Performance monitoring (5%) Develop/refine tools to benchmark/analyze the performance of outsourced transporters, analyze performance data and identify opportunities for improvement
• Advocacy (5%) support advocacy activities promoting use of private sector transport in Mozambique’s public health supply chain.

Regional

• Technical support development (10%): Define the technical support model (services, service delivery model, Terms of Reference template, performance monitoring, etc.) to develop capacity of in-country TA partners. Ensure use of LMSC experience and the Outsourcing Toolkit (OSTK) managed by the Africa Resource Center.
• Technical support delivery (30%): work with key partners to identify priority countries and the associated in-country TA partners; lead execution of engagements per agreed Terms of Reference to build capacity of in-country TA partners. Manage the VillageReach Outsourced Transport team. Assess skills development acquisition of supported in-country TA partners. Assess government satisfaction with quality of support received on transportation outsourcing by the in-country TA partners. Contribute lessons learned to further development of the Outsourcing Toolkit (OSTK).
• Advocacy (10%): support advocacy events in sub-Saharan Africa promoting use of private sector transport in public health supply chains; set up and facilitate outsourced transport expert group in Francophone Africa to promote public-private sector collaboration and support advocacy, contribute lessons learned to advocacy efforts.

Competencies:

The following competencies reflect what is expected of all VillageReach employees; including examples of how one might demonstrate each of these competencies in one’s role.

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion: Takes personal responsibility for and supports others across the organization in creating and sustaining a diverse work environment where individuals are welcomed, valued, respected and supported; personally committed to attaining cultural competency including self-awareness of one’s own attitudes about culture and cross-cultural interactions; exhibits the willingness and ability to engage openly and respectfully around issues of race, colonialism, identity and culture; upholds equity in access to sharing of information, ideas, and opportunities throughout VillageReach

Personal Motivation and Drive: Is self-directed in one’s approach to work, but asks for help when needed; holds oneself accountable; undertakes self-development activities; seeks to build and master new skills; looks for and takes advantage of opportunities within the organization

Collaboration & Effective Communication: Establishes and maintains effective relations with coworkers, partners & stakeholders and external parties; works collaboratively with others to accomplish organizational and team goals and objectives; works actively to resolve conflicts; expresses ideas and thoughts effectively; selects and uses appropriate communication methods and maintains meaningful communication with virtual coworkers and other parties to keep them informed

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion: Takes personal responsibility for and supports others across the organization in creating and sustaining a diverse work environment where individuals are welcomed, valued, respected and supported; personally committed to attaining cultural competency including self-awareness of one’s own attitudes about culture and cross-cultural interactions; exhibits the willingness and ability to engage openly and respectfully around issues of race, colonialism, identity and culture; upholds equity in access to sharing of information, ideas, and opportunities throughout VillageReach

Commitment to Excellence: Produces a high output of work, both in terms of quality and quantity; looks for ways to improve and promote quality; monitors work to ensure quality; has a personal commitment to the mission of VillageReach

Solution Orientation & Innovation: Focuses on results and desired outcomes and how to best achieve them; gets the job done; sees opportunities for creative problem-solving while staying within the parameters of good practice; sees old problems in new ways and has novel approaches to solving those problems; contributes original and/or resourceful ideas to their area of responsibility; is able to consider and articulate risks and consequences of proposed innovations and factor these into decision-making

REQUIREMENTS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

This position will supervise a team of three individuals including 2 based in Mozambique and one based in DRC.

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor of Business Administration degree or equivalent; Masters preferred
• Minimum 5 years’ work experience working for or with private sector logistics firms
• Understanding of the general challenges of outsourcing and the specific challenges of integrating private sector capacity into public health systems
• Experience in integrating private sector transporter capacity into public health systems supply chains
• Experience providing consulting services, specifically supporting the implementation of changes to an organization’s processes, systems and organizations
• Experience managing a geographically distributed team

Other Qualifications:

• Comply with VillageReach’s COVID-19 vaccination policy.
• Eligibility to work in Mozambique and excellent understanding of Mozambique health system
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Excel), and comfortable in a fast-paced technical environment.
• Consulting skills to design engagements and manage complex stakeholder environments
• Collaboration skills to develop and manage relationships with clients (TA providers) and key stakeholders
• Communications skills to present convincingly to senior govt. officials, TA partners and conference audiences
• Analytical skills to support development of the business case for adopting outsourced transportation
• Full professional proficiency in written and spoken Portuguese and English. One additional language (French) preferred.
• Established cultural competency in partnering with racial, cultural, and linguistically diverse groups.
• Demonstrated understanding of challenges with working in rural, underserved, and low-income context; experience living in and/or working in a low-income country a plus.
• Previous experience working with LMIC governments preferred

Environment and Physical Demands
VillageReach employees work in a shared, open environment with task and conference rooms accessible to employees for privacy and meetings. The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet. Due to the time zone differences between our Seattle office and our Country Offices and location of other global staff, US based staff are expected to be available for early morning meetings starting at 6am. In addition, our global HQ and Country office staff are expected to be available for late afternoon/evening meetings up to 6pm.

APPLICATION INFORMATION:
This is an immediate hire and therefore resumes will be reviewed on a rolling basis until filled. To apply, please submit your resume and a cover letter to our online portal: http://www.villagereach.org/join-us/

COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY & INCLUSION: VillageReach is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer committed to workforce diversity. We believe that diverse, equitably weighted perspectives foster an organizational capacity to create novel solutions that improve health in the most underserved and hard-to-reach areas. To align our values, innovations and impact, VillageReach is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse global workforce.

Safeguarding:
VillageReach is committed to promoting the welfare of children, young people, adults, and beneficiaries with whom it engages. We expect everyone working with us to share this commitment through our code of conduct. All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which may include criminal records. VillageReach participates in the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme and, in line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By applying, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Compensation:
VillageReach has an established compensation structure that is based on the relevant market and internally transparent. The range for this position is $65,900 to $81,100. We hire people into the established range based on one’s experience and education and considering internal equity. We do not inquire about salary history.