UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to Education

UNICEF Supply Division (SD) works to ensure equitable and inclusive access to essential supplies and services for children and their families, in development, humanitarian and fragile contexts. These supplies are critical to saving lives, supporting children’s health and education, and protecting them from abuse, exploitation, and neglect. As the UN’s largest end to end supply chain entity, UNICEF leverages its global reach, market influence, supply chain expertise and partnerships with governments, civil society, private sector, industry, and other stakeholders to meet children’s needs and protect their rights around the world.

SD focuses on three result areas to maximize impact, scale, and effectiveness: strategic procurement; supply preparedness and response in humanitarian and fragile contexts; and supply chain optimization. To facilitate and accelerate progress toward these results, SD employs three change strategies: financing for supply and services, supply chain digitalization and supply chain localization
The Service Contracting Centre is part of UNICEF Supply Division (main location Copenhagen, Denmark). Established in 2017 to bring efficiencies and improve compliance by leading the procurement of services for diverse categories of services across 18 NY Headquarters (NYHQ) Divisions/Offices including Hosted Funds & becoming source of expert knowledge and resources in the various categories of services.

The Centre works closely with the other UNICEF Headquarter Divisions. The Senior Contracts Associate performs highly skilled work in service contracting and supports the more complex cases and client requests, which frequently requires the evaluation of difficult situations and adaptation of procedures and processes to resolve such cases. This is the senior GS level for more specialized service contracting work and requires advanced service contracting knowledge acquired through training and experience.

How can you make a difference? 

Under the supervision of the Contracts Specialist, the Senior Contracts Associate provides a broad range of high level transactional, procedural and administrative tasks in support of service contracting activities carried out by Headquarters Divisions/Offices, ensuring timely and efficient output that is in compliance with UNICEF rules and regulations, whilst demonstrating the capacity to research, adapt and evaluate irregular cases, and also to recommend improvements to process delivery and design.

Key functions, accountabilities and related duties/tasks

• Provides input to and advice on the annual supply plan through coordination with UNICEF Headquarters Divisions. Conduct data review and analysis for category management and development of procurement strategies including collaboration with other UN agencies. In collaboration with the supervisor, develop procurement management strategies and best practices which help to strengthen supply chain systems which significantly contribute to Programme results. Conducts market research in relevant areas for UNICEF and advice on best approaches to obtain best value for money and sustainable procurement. Supports innovation and market shaping initiatives for specific service categories that support the organization to deliver on Programme commitments and the related targets in the strategic plans that include community engagement, social and behavior change, business engagement for results, humanitarian , development risk informed programming, scaling of innovative solutions for every child, and other cross cutting areas such as strengthening of evaluation capacity at the country level.

• Liaises with clients’ Divisions in planning procurement and contracting initiatives, supporting development of appropriate specifications, terms of reference, and contracting strategies and project timelines. Identifies opportunities to strengthen sustainability of supply chains. Provides support to Divisions through the requisitioning stage.

• Ensure establishment of Long-Term Arrangements (LTAs) and act on specific procurement requisitions as might be required. In consultation with the supervisor, review and provide input on Terms of References for service contracting. Review technical evaluations to ensure equal assessment of suppliers and that scores are commensurate with comments. Prepare and process Request for Quotations (RFQs), Invitations to Bid (ITBs) and Requests for Proposals (RFPs), as might be requested by the Supervisor. Coordinate preliminary assessments and conduct technical and financial analysis of offers ensuring procurement processes are conducted in a timely manner with transparency and fairness, promoting competition to achieve value for money, as well as coordinate demo meetings with bidders as needed. Conduct pre-bid meetings, clarifications and negotiations with suppliers and contractors.

• Maintains highest level of integrity, ethical standards and accountability in the procurement and contracting of Program services. Supports and guides potential suppliers to register through the United Nations Market Place platform (UNGM).

• Prepare award recommendations including submissions to Contract Review Committee including facilitating supplier evaluations as required. Prepare purchase orders and Institutional Services contracts in SAP (ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning system), and submit for relevant approvals, ensuring completeness of documentation in UNICEF systems.

• Monitors and follows up on progress of contracts ensuring proper contract management is followed, and contracts are fully implemented. Coordinates required amendments to contracts and the evaluation of suppliers with respective contract managers, and ensures timely support is provided.

• Keeps Services Contracting Dashboard and SharePoint as well as other information management systems updated with contractual information, to be able to populate PSU LTAS and related documents, prepare supply reports and reports on progress of contracting processes.

• Ensures appropriate filing of procurement documents on the SharePoint in accordance with UNICEF guidelines and maintains up to date records for future reference including for audit.
• Prepare procurement reports for services as requested by supervisor. Keeps supervisor abreast of potential problem areas. Conducts procurement analysis and provides inputs to reporting to management and Divisions client colleagues on procurement status, timelines, trends and KPIs.

• In collaboration with supervisor, Supply Division, provide input to help ensure knowledge exchange and learning is prioritized to continuously build capacity of individuals, the team and other UNICEF offices as required. Develop and facilitate training of newcomers, establish processes or standard operating procedures to support effective workflows.

• Any other duties or assignments as requested by the supervisor.

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: JD _Senior Contracts Associate GS7_TA_SCC_Budapest .pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

[Include the vacancy requirements aligned to the category and level of the position. You can see examples in the branded VA example.]

• Education: Completion of secondary education is required, preferably supplemented by technical or university courses related to supply chain management, business administration, contract/commercial law, finance or a relevant technical field.

 

• Work Experience:

  A minimum of 7 years of progressively responsible experience in supply chain management or a commercial context (contracting, procurement, supply) is required. Experience with contracting services is an advantage.

  Good knowledge of the latest trends in procurement and contracting services and sustainable procurement for public sector or international organizations is strongly desirable.

  Strong skills in cost analysis, market assessment, and risk identification and the ability to manage complex documents while ensuring compliance with policies and standards.

  Strong communication and presentation skills for various stakeholders and contracting purposes. And working collaboratively with all stakeholders.

  Experience with managing vendor relationships, effective negotiations, and resolving disputes.

  Experience working in a multicultural setting, working with diverse teams operating in various regions with different time zones.

  Familiarity with UNICEF, UN / International organizations, Supply procedures and systems, and understanding of the principles of public procurement is advantageous.

 

• Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is an asset.

 

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others 

 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

UNICEF staff members holding fixed-term, continuing, or permanent appointments who are considered to be on abolished post status may apply for this temporary position and, if selected with a start date before 31 December 2025, may take it up as a temporary assignment, in line with UNICEF guidance on separation due to the abolition of posts or staff reduction. They will retain their fixed-term entitlements but will not hold a lien to their abolished post. For other scenarios where a Temporary Assignment may be possible, please refer to Additional guidance on IP to IP temporary assignments after completion of the full TOD.pdf (accessible to UNICEF personnel only).

The conditions of a temporary assignment, including relocation entitlements, will depend on the status of the staff member’s original appointment and may be limited in accordance with applicable UNICEF policies, procedures, and practices in force.

In this role, you will collaborate with colleagues across multiple locations. For effective collaboration, we encourage flexible working hours that accommodate different time zones while prioritizing staff wellbeing.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

CO/ HQ specific: visa residence requirements: i.e.: UNICEF shall not facilitate the issuance of a visa and working authorization for candidates under consideration for positions at the national officer and general service category.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.