Office Manager at Voices for Change (V4C) - Palladium Group

Palladium Group -, Voices for Change (V4C) is a recently designed, UK Aid funded, four year programme running from October 2013 to December 2017. The goal of V4C is to help transform social attitudes towards girls and women in Nigeria by working on specific individual, social and institutional changes.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Office Manager

Location: Abuja

Job Description

• The purpose of the Office Manager role is to support the effective performance, wellbeing and security of V4C staff, the smooth operation and security of the V4C offices, and to ensure value for money in procurement.

Responsibilities
Key Responsibilities:

Support the effective selection of V4C staff and consultants, including:

• Coordinating and supporting new staff / consultant selection, including determining selection criteria, preparing vacancy announcements and advertisements, proactively seeking relevant networks from which to source necessary skills, initial filtering of CVs, further short-listing, coordinating skills assessment, obtaining references, carrying out competency based interviews, preparing the interview panel, evaluating candidates, compiling interview results, coordinating due diligence processes, and providing feedback to candidates.
• Completing necessary documentation for new staff including preparation of contracts, entering details on the staff database, facilitating immigration and other official documentation.
• Ensure that thematic leads develop timely, good quality TORs for consultants and short term staff.

Ensure the effective performance and wellbeing of V4C staff and consultants, including:

• Coordinating development and roll out of staff performance measurement process
• Developing a values based induction for all new staff and consultants.
• Co-coordinating the annual staff performance reviews by line managers (initiating, capturing results in staff files, compiling annual performance review summary for submission to Palladium).
• Ensuring probation reviews are carried out within three months of new staff joining.
• Supporting managers with the identification of staff training needs.
• Supporting managers with capability (poor performance) issues.
• Supporting managers with staff grievances.
• Ensuring exit processes are carried out by line managers (including completion of exit checklist forms, return of programme assets, liaising with Deputy Team Leader Operations on exit benefits, and exit interviews to capture key findings / feedback for action and filing) ? including: following up with Output leads on the acknowledgement of resignation letter issued to exiting staff; liaise with the staff and line managers on the completion of the exit checklist form, ensuring that all programme assets are handed over; liaising with the Deputy Team Leader Operations on all exit benefits.
• Designing new staff management systems, as required.
• Providing a practical and comfortable working environment.
• Coordination of contract amendments as required

Lead on personnel administration and maintain accurate personnel records for staff and consultants, including:

• Responsible for updating the Personnel Input Tracker (tracking consultant payments, tracking consultant allocated days, collating and submitting monthly timesheets to Palladium).
• Maintaining offline Tracker Planning (inputting and tracking Terms of Reference (ToR) allocated days.
• Maintaining staff records for new and existing staff (staff contact details, emergency contacts, sickness, health, insurance, leave, maternity, overtime, grievance, capability, disciplinary).
• Maintaining registration of all staff for health insurance, group life insurance, work men?s compensation, NSITF, NHF, and pension
• Regularly updating V4C organogram and contact list
• Issuing new staff with ID cards
• Coordinating and tracking staff time, including a monthly check of timesheets, reviewing and tracking TOIL applications

Ensure the smooth operation of the V4C offices and vehicles, including:

• Ensuring efficient use of all office facilities (vehicle use, fuel consumption, office consumables maintained at minimum stock levels).
• Preparing monthly cash forecasts for office costs (utilities, courier services etc.).
• Approving and ensuring bill payment for all office supplies and services.
• Reviewing office space to ensure its efficient use, identifying and managing move in the event new space is required.
• In liaison with the Office Assistant, collating and maintaining the asset register and providing monthly reports to senior management.
• In liaison with the Office Assistant, providing logistical support for activities in states where V4C has no offices.
• Updating operations manuals and circulating to staff. Ensuring document security (use of filing systems, file coding, data protocols, electronic version control, document and data back-up).

Ensure the safety and security of V4C staff, consultants and visitors, including:

• Liaising with the Palladium Security Manager to keep abreast of relevant security updates to be communicated in V4C state offices.
• As Security Focal Point, carry out duties outlined in the ?Security Focal Point ? Responsibilities? document attached.
• Ensuring all approvals, and necessary pre-visit security forms are completed and given by Palladium Security Manager in advance of ALL travel.
• Making recommendations for improved staff security where necessary.
• Providing security briefing updates for consultants
• Training staff on ?guidelines for conduct? while in the field.
• As Journey Manager for all staff travel, coordinate approval requests, maintaining constant communication with staff to ensure all out of state travel SOPs are strictly followed.
• Designing, implementing, reviewing and ensuring staff compliance with office operations, policies and procedures.
• Developing and maintaining visitors welcome pack concerning safety and security issues in coordination with Palladium Security Manager.
• Completing regular Occupational Health, Safety and Security (OHSS) checks in line with Palladium SOPs
• Liaising with Palladium Security Manager (SM) to ensure that all visitors receive security briefings and are in touch with Palladium SM in case of emergencies
• Liaising with Palladium SM to coordinate security checks and clearance of hotels and programme activity venues
• Ensuring staff from overseas have received all security briefings from Palladium security manager including health preparation.
• Leading on security refreshers and updates when consultants return from overseas.

Ensure the safety and security of V4C offices and vehicles, including:

• Line Management of programme drivers for V4C
• Ensuring vehicle safety and security (vehicle condition checked, driver requirements verified, and fuel).
• Purchasing safety equipment for the office and office vehicle.
• Checking safety equipment in line with required standards, and replenishing as necessary to ensure a safe, healthy working environment.
• Overseeing performance management for drivers including coordinating training and corrective actions for driving infringements.

Ensure value for money is achieved on all V4C office related procurement activities, including:

• Liaising with Palladium projects and Palladium corporate to identify recommended suppliers as well as liaising with DFID and other DFID programmes to compare pricing.
• Support to procurement processes including reviewing and advertising for request for tenders and request for quotations, developing selection criteria and coordinating procurement evaluation panels, coordinating due diligence and reference checks, and preparing procurement recommendations.
• Supporting contracting processes including preparation of purchase orders and local supplier agreements
• Maintaining records of procurement and contracting documentation
• Where charged with this task, ensuring quality of goods and services received, and preparation and processing of invoices
• Developing, and regularly updating, a database of approved suppliers (including hotels, car hire, taxi companies, electricians, plumbers, stationery etc.)
• Leading in all procurement, managing negotiations with hotels
• Collating and analysing information using the ?Internal Quotation and Evaluation? format to identify preferred suppliers, making recommendations for and engaging reliable suppliers via a competitive process based on demonstrable value for money quotes, and demonstrating value for money.
• Developing, managing and overseeing relationships with service providers and suppliers.
• Tracking payments.
• Ensuring a monitoring system is in place for purchases to ensure all service provision is transparent and quality controlled.
• Conducting bi-annual assessment of service providers to ensure V4C continuously obtains best price and value for money.
• Support the Finance Manager in disbursements / financial management as required.

Supervise the Office Assistant, Driver and Cleaner, including:

• Developing team work plans and ensuring individual work plans are developed appropriately.
• Managing on-going performance:
  • Carrying out formal performance reviews.
  • Defining and monitoring achievement towards objectives and tasks.
  • Providing on-going feedback and coaching.
  • Developing action plans to address any gaps in skills, knowledge, motivation or confidence.
  • Managing leave and sickness absence.

Act as the point of contact within the Programme for all matters relating to security. Duties include:

• Distribute all security information and alerts on an as required basis to relevant programme staff.
• Inform the Palladium Security Manager of all security related events taking place locally in a timely and detailed manner and respond to requests for information.
• Provide security related advice to the Team Leader on an as required basis.
• Establish, where possible, a working relationship with the senior staff within the Nigerian Police Force and State Security Service.
• Supervise the conduct of the contracted security company.
• Ensure that movement controls, as described in SOP 15, are observed by programme members.
• Issue and ensure the accountability and serviceability of all security related equipment (First aid boxes, trackers).
• Coordinate the nomination of personnel for security related training.
• Ensure that all programme staff have an up to date copy of Security SOPs.
• Provide a security brief to all new arrivals in the absence of the Security Manager.
• Establish and maintain a professional working relationship with the management and security staff of the hotels that are used by the programme for meeting and conferences, or by visitors.
• Any other reasonable activities determined by the Team Leader, Deputy Team Leader or Finance Manager.

Requirements
Qualifications and / or Experience:

• A graduate Degree in Business Administration, Human Resources or similar.
• 4 to 6 years? experience working in the above field.

Functional Competencies
Demonstrated ability in:

• Managing HR systems, including selection, responding to salary grievances in country, induction, performance management, sickness, grievance, exit interviewing.
• Competency-based interviewing and selection. Implementing best practice recruitment and selection, including carrying out and coaching others in competency based interviewing.
• Developing and implementing HR policies and procedures. Managing personnel records, including personnel database.
• Managing safety and security in line with statutory and company requirements.
• Keeping abreast of anticipated safety and security issues and threats. Complying with and effectively influencing others to voluntarily comply with essential safety and security requirements and SOPs.
• Company vehicle management
• Demonstrating value for money procurement on office services and supplies; cash forecasting.
• Presenting and training
• Coaching and mentoring
• Building collaborative relationships
• Negotiating

Management Competencies:

• Managing Team Performance

Key Knowledge

• Employment law and best practice selection practices.
• Health and Safety at Work law and best practice.
• Palladium policies (security, safety, staff and consultant recruitment, staff leave, sickness, insurance administration, procurement).
• Basic knowledge of national safety and security response procedures (information available from Palladium)
• Understanding of how to work effectively with the Nigerian Police Force and State Security Service and how to benefit from the support available from them would be beneficial.
• Awareness of how to investigate anticipated safety and security issues and threats.

Application Closing Date
7th February, 2017.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online