University of Greenwich: Sustainable Procurement Officer

Objective:

To assist in the implementation of the University’s Sustainable Procurement Strategy, and to provide support to staff in Procurement & Business Services in the adoption of Government Buying Standards for the procurement of commonly used Supplies and Services.

Background:

The University of Greenwich has over 20,000 students and over 1,500 staff based across three campuses. The University aims to be a sector leader in sustainability and has ambitious sustainability objectives and targets to meet over the next 5 years which include a 35% reduction in carbon and achieving Level 5 of the Flexible Procurement Framework. 

The Procurement and Business services team provide centralised Procurement services i.e. researching demand, specifying requirements, tendering, administering contracts, monitoring performance and reporting our findings, all aimed at supporting the cost-effective purchase of supplies, services and works requirements on behalf of a range of clients and end-users throughout the University.

The post-holder will be required to have an understanding of Sustainability and particularly Sustainable Procurement and will from time to time be expected to work closely with Schools, Offices and Institutes located in its various different sections.  This may entail travel between campuses and may involve participating in internal and external University networks.  The post-holder may also be expected to participate in, and in some cases to direct projects relating to Sustainable Procurement pursued by the Procurement & Business Services Team.

This role offers an exciting opportunity to gain practical experience and knowledge of the procurement process and the implementation of a sustainable procurement strategy at a large organisation. The postholder will also gain a more in depth knowledge of sustainability - environmental, economic and social issues and how these need to be understood, analysed and communicated to inform decision makers.

Working with both the Procurement team and the Sustainability team the role would suit someone who is a quick learner, passionate about sustainability, has an attention to detail, and has excellent interpersonal, project and time management skills.

Benefits of the Project Work to the Graduate:

The successful graduate will have opportunities to develop transferrable skills in a number of areas including communications, project management and sustainable procurement.

The project will also offer the post-holder a greater understanding of procurement standards and sustainability strategy, and skills in implementing procedures to ensure compliance, as well as gaining experience in managing internal and external change.

 Output 1: Review and carry out a gap analysis of baseline of current procurement activities and processes versus achievement the levels of the Flexible procurement framework and best practice identifying recommendations for actions required.

Output 2: Implement action plan to achieve Level 2 of the Flexible Framework

Output 3: Update Sustainability policy and strategy and communication/ engagement plan to enable sustainable procurement policy/strategy to be communicated to all appropriate stakeholders including staff and suppliers.

Personal Specification 

Essential Selection Criteria                                            

Candidates must be a recent graduate (within the past three years) or if graduating more than three years ago if you are changing career and this experience is vital to achieve this.

Commitment  and interest in a wide range of environmental and sustainability issues including energy and carbon, waste, transport, biodiversity.                                           

Ability to plan and manage projects successfully and to work independently with initiative, prioritising workloads and meeting deadlines.                                        

Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with a range of internal and external stakeholders.                                         

Ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing at all levels, with professionalism, tact and diplomacy.                                           

Energy, commitment and resilience and the ability to motivate others into action, with an innovative and proactive approach.

Well-developed interpersonal, team working and leadership skills                   

Ability to use MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint to an advanced level for data entry, management, detailed analysis and report presentation.

High level numeracy skills including the ability to author detailed analytical reports

Atleast 12 months experience of working in a professional environment