Contracts Officer

GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY: The Contracts Officer will assume responsibility of assisting MC Lebanon’s Operations Manager during development, management, and maintenance of all major commodity and service contracts of Mercy Corps Lebanon.  The Mercy Corps office implements substantial material aid, rehabilitation and construction works as well as other consulting services  in Lebanon and maintains numerous contracts with commodity and transportation suppliers to ensure that aid is effectively and efficiently delivered to those who need assistance.  The Contracts Officer will play a major role ensuring the performance of contracts and facilitating supplier relations, handling supplier communications, execute drafting of contracts and issuing of purchase orders, maintain and administer supplier database, conduct tracking of contract deliverables and payments, conduct general contract administration tasks, trouble shoot and avoid bottlenecks in MC business processes, advise internal clients on internal business procedure for contracts, assist in development and implementation of Mercy Corp annual procurement plan, prepare internal financial requests and reconcile contractual payments, represent Mercy Corps at contract negotiations. To be successful in this role, the chosen candidate will have significant experience in large procurement operations and contract management in public or private sector.  He or she shall be highly motivated, able to handle pressure, excellent with details, identify and remove operational risks and translate that into contracts and outgoing tender documentation, have developed interpersonal and communication skills, and have experience in negotiating with stakeholders and suppliers. Above all the chosen candidate must be a team player with desire to work in high achieving /best practice environment, with can-do attitude to facilitate solutions and assisting internal clients, achieve work targets, and capable of operating with discretion and at arm’s length with suppliers of MC and act with the highest discretion and integrity. ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS: Support Operations Manager in all functions of contract management and execution Liaise with the Procurement team for drafting of tender documents and maintain and advise on a variety of contract templates. Assist in managing supplier relations and communications as first point of contact, including organizing workshops, seminars, and open day for MC suppliers. Manage and update contracts master list and database Assist in maintaining MC Supplier Database and vetting of supplier capabilities Main point of contact to use internet platforms for sourcing, procurement and contracting activities Participate in and advise MC tender committees for a variety of goods and services Draft, negotiate and finalize contracts/POs and manage contract deviations according to MC Procurement and Financial rules Monitor and drive review, approval, reconciliation, and amendment processes to ensure timely movement of contract actions through the MC workflow processes Help Operations Manager to liaise with vendors on troubleshooting contractual obligations, including conducting explanation of contract clauses to suppliers and MC staff. Conduct field visits to vendors place to ensure vendors project implementation capacities Reconcile supporting documents against invoices as needed Prepare and process payments to relevant signatories Support Procurement Section in tendering process to ensure tender documents adequately and appropriately align with  the project, anticipated contractual terms and conditions, MC and donor Financial rules Administer contracts system and maintain all contract files Follow-up on all payments, prepare payment reports to Operations Manager and inform vendors on payment status Prepare incident reports and update procurement issue log related to contract management Produce vendors performance reports Conduct field visits to vendors and prepare necessary documents for such visit Draft and finalize contracts and POs, ensure in house visibility and awareness by distribution, and assist with interpretation of contract terms to support implementation Liaise with programs team as needed to ensure that contractors are meeting their contractual obligations in terms of content and specification of goods provided. Liaise and coordinate with MC’s legal firm as needed for legal aid and opinions Prepare cash monthly cash projections for on-going contractual obligations Work with Finance to ensure adherence to broader finance and risk requirements defined in donor agreements or donor policy Monitor MC vendor satisfaction with placed contracts and ensure MC terms and conditions and contracting practices are adhered to by all parties. Recommend changes to improve Mercy Corps processes to procure needed goods and services on an ongoing basis Coordinate with MC’s legal firm in order to conduct legal analysis and research on various legal matters In coordination with MC’s legal firm, be actively involved in preparing and drafting of different acts and legal submissions and draft the authoritative legal opinions as well In coordination with MC’s legal firm, conduct legal research by utilizing various resources and selecting the relevant material to analyze the legal information In coordination with MC’s legal firm, assist in reviewing the legal material and any other relevant documents and to identify the most important issues that need to be sorted out on a priority basis. In coordination with MC’s legal firm, draw up formalities regarding the settlement of disputes and monitor the implementation of the legal clauses Negotiate with vendors, agencies, government departments, local authorities, legal institutes, solicitors and other bodies in order to secure organization’s entitlements and/or access services. Research individual cases, assess problems and identify possible courses of action together with the organization’s lawyers. Other duties as assigned     Accountability to Beneficiaries Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.   SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: n/a   REPORTS DIRECTLY TO:  Operations Manager and Operations Director   ACCOUNTABILITY:  Works with the Procurement Team, Programs teams, Finance and Compliance Manager.   KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE: Degree in law, economics and related business field is desired. 2-3 years of experience in large scale supply chain and /or contract management; Understanding of supplier data bases and basic vetting skills Strong organizational and financial planning skills; Experience in internet procurement platforms Understanding of different types of contract models and ability to analyze complex contract clauses Strong drafting skills in English and knowledge of contract law; Experience in drafting contracts and issuing/managing Purchase Orders; Good understanding of commercial issues and financial proposals; Ability to interact effectively with international and national personnel; Excellent oral and written English skills, is a must; High computer skills on MS Office programs, especially in MS Excel; A demonstrated ability to multi-task and process information into action as to not delay program activities; A clear understanding of procurement public process and donor compliance.    SUCCESS FACTORS: Conscientious with an excellent sense of judgment Dynamic with hands on attitude Ability to work simultaneously on multiple tasks Willingness and ability to work effectively with a wide variety of people Ability to work as part of a team and coordinate with project personnel Good spoken and written English and Arabic Computer literate and strong organizational skills.