Pharmacy Warehouse Inventory Officer at the International Rescue Committee (IRC)

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Pharmacy Warehouse Inventory Officer

Requisition ID: req45362
Location: Borno
Sector: Health
Employment Type: Full-Time
Employment Category: Regular

Scope of Work / Job overview

• The Global Supply Chain Department supports the organization’s work by providing reliable and scalable application development and operations for the IRC’s offices in the US and around the world, in the aspect of procurement, assets, inventory and management of the IRC’s GSC policies.
• IRC is seeking an experienced warehouse management professional to provide support to HeRON consortium program.
• Under the direct supervision of HeRON Consortium Pharmacy Manager, with technical reference to the Senior Pharmacy Manager, the post bearer will be tasked with overseeing, managing, and auditing medical commodities inventory systems, day-to-day pharma warehouse activities, as well as inventory stocking processes and coordination across all HeRON project locations
• Working in close collaboration with the Pharma Manager, He/she will be responsible for applying IRC’s warehouse management SOPs.

Major Responsibilities
Procurement Policies, Standards and Coordination:

• Understand, implement and maintain standard IRC inventory management policies and procedures
• Ensures that all pharmaceuticals purchased are received by Supply Chain by the warehouse, in coordination with a HeRON program before being delivered or collected by the requesting field teams.
• Ensures that all pharmaceuticals stored in the warehouse are released by relevant HeRON personnel.
• Ensures that all cold chain items are always kept under proper storage conditions, in readiness for dispatch
• Ensures that quarantined products are stored in a separate locked area which can be subdivided in different zones for the different categories of items (which must be labelled accordingly)
• Overall, the pharma warehouse inventory officer will be required to:
• Maintain the adequacy of storage conditions
• Help with physical inventories
• Help in arranging dispatches to the project locations (packing, transportation arrangements, etc.)
• Report discrepancies
• Monitor safety and security of storage and supplies
• Manage and document the receipt, handling, storage, and release of goods through the warehouse
• Advise the supervisor on eventual shortages.
• Manage casual laborers in the warehouse.
• Ensure the maintenance of warehouse building (s), fittings and equipment.
• Implement and ensure clear safety procedures.
• Implement and ensure clear loading / unloading procedures, correct stocking, and turnover (FIFO) procedures.
• Advise on warehouse-specific issues for quality improvement
• Maintain the Warehouse activity book recording of all outgoing and incoming receipts and activities.

Receipt and storage of goods:

• Check the number of packages against the cargo manifest, check packaging and cases and inform the Senior Pharma manager/SCC of any problems (missing or damaged goods, etc.).
• After receipt, immediately update the stock cards, recording the reference number of the receipt document, Bin cards and put the goods in stock.
• Give the cargo manifest, packing list / Waybill and certificate of the items received to the Senior Pharma Manager, to centralize the filing of these documents.
• Update the stock record cards and Bin card regularly.
• Ensure that all items are well organized and correctly stored, well protected, fully identified and easily accessible (cleanliness, security, access, etc.).

Inventory management & Preparation of outgoing items:

• Carry out stock rotation by FIFO /FEFO to ensure no product expires on the stock or becomes obsolete.
• Receive completed store’s release forms and prepare the goods for issuance. 
• Ensure all received/ dispatched goods and equipment are signed/ documented
• Ensure that the shipping areas (by destination) are clearly identified
• Store goods on shelves or palettes (as necessary), in a clean, tidy, and easily accessible manner.
• Pack (appropriately for the mode of transport chosen), weigh and label freight (destination, number of shipping units, waybill number, weight, and mode of transport) and assign a shipping number to each package, in accordance with the instructions of the Pharma Manager.
• Prepare the shipping note, as well as a copy of the freight document for international shipments, complete the delivery note and send a copy to the office the same day.
• Update the register stock cards/ bid card immediately after the delivery of goods and record the reference number of the delivery document or stock request.
• Provide TA and capacity building to all tiers of the government of Nigeria and to strengthen national/state systems for procurement and supply chain management of health commodities.
• Provide Logistics support to HeRoN partners focusing on reporting, distribution, shipping, storage, and warehousing of commodities.
• To provide technical coordination in product selection, quality assurance, receipt of commodities and efficient storage and distribution systems.
• Work with the state team/GON team in developing, maintaining, and improving a logistics management information system and an electronic inventory control system of stocking and tracking commodities.
• Support the state government team in the development of warehousing and distribution budgets Conduct periodic visits to facility warehouses to follow up on all warehouse-related matters such as the environment, sterilization, refrigeration etc. and generate reports to management and other stakeholders.
• Monitor safety standards in accordance with regulations; ensure safety code and quality compliance are met daily and report any issues arising to the Pharmacy manager.
• Work with the Pharmacy Manager and HeRoN partner teams in designing coordinated systems HeRoN to transport health commodities report and forecast delivery times, transport costs and performance to reduce stock-outs, eliminate waste and lower costs jointly with the government.
• Ensure that all distribution documentation for health commodities in the project with funding agencies, suppliers, implementing partners and regulatory bodies is complete and compliant.
• Work with the state team to institute data entries into the health commodity platforms.

Stocks Management, Administration and Reporting:

• Ensure that all necessary information is correctly and fully recorded on the stock cards: IRC code, batch number, and expiry date, date of receipt or delivery, stock balance (incoming/outgoing), receipt and delivery document reference numbers.
• Complete all the tables for monitoring stock movements and consumption on the PIT
• In conjunction with the Pharma Manager, perform periodic physical stocks counts in accordance with the frequency defined in the SOP
• Timely Inform the Pharma Manager and Consortium leadership when the stock of goods is nearing the minimum or maximum threshold, and regularly provide a list of the items with expiry dates within the next six months.
• Monitor the temperature of the warehouse and ensure that products requiring cold chain (vaccines) are always stored at a suitable temperature (between +2°C and +8°C) - manually record twice daily - Reports any deviation, using the cold chain breech report.
• Prepare the cold chain boxes as per Cold chain SOP
• Ensure the availability of enough icepacks, clean cold chain containers for the activities.
• Ensure cleaning, defrosting and maintenance of fridges
• Medical waste management: Prepare the list of expired drugs and items and inform the Pharma Manager. Ensure safe storage of expired drugs/items
• Timely prepares and submit the monthly stocks reports to the pharmacy manager
• Prepare a weekly/monthly report of movements of goods (incoming/outgoing) in the warehouse and submit report to pharma manager and consortium leadership.
• Immediately inform the Senior Pharma Manager and the pharma manager of any problems arising in the course of the work, particularly regarding damage, loss, attempted break-ins, or theft in the warehouse.
• Conduct routine inventory inspection and submit report to the Pharma Manager in a timely fashion.

Pharma Warehouse Maintenance Support:

• Carry out various maintenance tasks
• Ensure that the warehouse is kept in good condition (cleaning).
• To check and control the pest infestation
• Keep and file all warehouse documents (reception, dispatch, complaints forms, maintenance activities and calibration of thermometers, warehouse registers, cleaning records, etc.)

Key Working Relationship

• Line Manager:  HeRON Consortium Pharmacy Manager
• Indirect/Technical:  IRC’s Senior Pharmacy Manager
• Working Collaboration: HeRON Managers, Consortium Leadership
• Position directly Supervises:   Storekeeper, casual laborers
• Key Internal Contacts:
• Country Program:  HeRON Consortium Leadership
• Region/Global: N/A
• Key External Contacts:  N/A

Educational Qualifications

• Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) and Doctor of Pharmacy (D. Pharm)
• Post graduate Diploma or master’s in supply chain management is an added advantage

Work Experience, Required Technical Skills & Leadership Competencies:

• Minimum 1-2 years’ experience in a similar role
• Previous experience in warehouse operations support for health programs
• Good skills general stocks management
• Good judgment and proactive mind
• Flexibility and ability
• Strong commitment to IRC’s mission, purpose, and values.

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.

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