Head of Supply Chain Optimization
Head of Supply Chain Optimization
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Job Description
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS
23 August 2025-23:59-GMT01:00 Central European Time (Rome)WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race colour national origin ethnic or social background genetic information gender gender identity and/or expression sexual orientation religion or belief HIV status or disability.
ABOUT WFP
The World Food Programme is the worlds largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict disasters and the impact of climate change.
At WFP people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse committed skilled and high performing teams selected on merit operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment living WFPs values (Integrity Collaboration Commitment Humanity and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.
To learn more about WFP visit our website: follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Twitter TikTok.
WHY JOIN WFP
WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
WFP offers a highly inclusive diverse and multicultural working environment.
WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training accreditation coaching mentorship and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.
A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country regional and global offices around the world and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.
We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the worlds largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict disasters and the impact of climate change. Supply chain management is at the core of WFPs humanitarian response and therefore an area of constant strategic focus. Over 4.500 supply chain staff work around the clock to deliver food assistance to beneficiaries in some of the most complex environments.
With a strong focus on end-to-end planning visibility and optimization the Supply Chain Planning & Optimization unit (SCDO) works intensively with colleagues in the field and WFP headquarters (HQ) in Rome to provide a holistic view of each operation to all functional areas ensuring there is alignment both horizontally and vertically across key actors and decision makers. Building on this shared view analytical tools are deployed to anticipate issues down the line and support the creation of supply chain plans and what-if scenarios. Through this pro-active approach WFP decision makers can make more integrated evidence-based decisions that improve the overall efficiency and effectiveness of their operations. Increasingly the same approach is being applied to support the operations of WFP partners in particular in the humanitarian health sector.
WFP has been developing an optimization approach that considers the end-to-end supply chain covering food basket design transfer modality selection and sourcing & delivery planning. The process brings together stakeholders from key functions to plan beneficiary needs and lay out supply chain options under various resource scenarios. The output is a sourcing & delivery plan that drives the implementation of WFPs programs. In order to facilitate this process SCDO has been developing optimization tools such as Optimus and Route The Meals. These advanced decision support tools assist WFP decision makers to maximize beneficiary outcomes while minimizing all costs related to delivering the food assistance through in-kind food or cash-based transfers. WFP is in the process of rolling out these tools globally integrating them in core business processses using them to support strategic decision making as well as using them to support technical assistance activities to governments and WFP partners.
The incumbent will lead SCDO initiatives related to optimization and manage its portfolio of optimization tools supervise staff working on optimization-related activities and provide technical assistance in the area of supply chain optimization to other functions governments and WFP partners.
ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:
1.
Lead SCDO initiatives related to optimization supervise staff working on optimization-relatedactivities and provide technical oversight to staff and offices working on optimization projects(e.g. through Technical Assistance / Capacity Strengthening activities).
2.
Manage SCDO optimization projects (e.g. Optimus and Route The Meals) including theirchange management management of internal and external software developers coordinationwith key stakeholders (e.g. SCO TEC NUT CBT APP SBP) and resource management.
3.
Manage strategic partnerships with universities (incl. MIT Georgia Tech INSEAD TilburgUniversity University of Amsterdam) specializing in the optimization of humanitarianoperations.
4.
Manage SCDOs roster of Supply Chain Planning & Optimization candidates and lead the recruitment of new planners for vacancies globally.
5.
Develop optimized sourcing and delivery plans for WFP operations accounting for all physical and financial constraints.
6.
Create forward-looking projections and scenario analyses to maximize demand coverage anticipate potential issues and identify mitigating actions.
7.
Produce and leverage performance metrics for improved supply chain planning.
8.
Evaluate the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of different operational designs using SCDO tools such as Optimus Route The Meals and SCOUT.
9.
Enable the adoption of best practices and advanced analytics in operations management and strengthen the capacity of WFP staff in these areas.
10.
Engage in discussions on replenishment of corporate inventories ensuring adequate inventory levels to meet forecasted demand.
11.
Perform what-if scenario analyses to support the resolution of ad-hoc issues and emergencies affecting WFP operations.
12.
Coordinate closely with relevant business functions to ensure end-to-end visibility and cross-functional buy-in.
13.
Support the development testing and implementation of analytical solutions that improve or optimize WFP operations (e.g. Prisma SCOUT).
14.
Other as required.
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Education:
Advanced university degree in the area of Supply Chain Management Engineering Data Science Operations Research or Business Management or related fields.
Specialization in Operations Research Management Science Business Analytics or Data Science.
Experience:
9 years of experience in SC-related industry (e.g. supporting S&OP-type processes material planning distribution planning procurement shipping etc.) is required.
9 years of experience in using analytics to support operations management (e.g. planning optimizing supply chain networks development of KPIs and visualization dashboards etc.) is required.
Experience with consultancy-type activities (e.g. business analysis process mapping data transformation and analysis presenting conclusions to senior management etc.) is required.
Experience working with government or humanitarian agencies (e.g. UN NGOs etc.) is desired particularly in the areas of technical assistance and/or capacity strengthening.
Experience with developing analytical solutions (e.g. dashboards optimization models data transformation pipelines) is desired.
Experience with software development adapted to data analytics (e.g. python R SQL git version control) is desired.
Experience with optimization tools and methods (e.g. linear programming graphs algorithms heuristics) is desired.
Experience with forecasting and statistical models (e.g. regression analysis clustering random forest) is desired.
Knowledge & Skills:
Highly numerate able to rapidly analyze and interpret data.
Problem-solving attitude able to structure ambiguous problems and solve them through a mix of quantitative and qualitative analyses.
Highly developed communication skills able to use written and verbal mediums to communicate recommendations and influence outcomes.
Strong time management skills with an ability to plan ahead and anticipate requirements problems and obstacles.
Self-motivated and proactive able to take initiative and work autonomously to achieve objectives.
Ability to juggle competing priorities successfully while working under (sometimes) tight deadlines.
Effective people skills able to work both individually and in a team in a multi-cultural environment.
Ability to interact with senior leaders and a wide range of stakeholders with credibility and tact.
Fully committed and motivated to achieve the aims of the World Food Programme.
Languages:
Verbal and written fluency in English.
WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK
WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.
Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION
WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation please contact:
NO FEE DISCLAIMER
The United Nations does not charge any application processing training interviewing testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee please disregard it. Furthermore please note that emblems logos names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.
REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION
We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate complete and includes your employment records academic qualifications language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).
Once your profile is completed please apply and submit your application.
Please make sure you upload your professional CV in the English language
Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter
Additional documents such as passport recommendation letters academic certificates etc. may potentially be requested at a future time
Please contact us at in case you face any challenges with submitting your application
Only shortlisted candidates will be notified
All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs job requirements merit and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse all forms of discrimination any kind of harassment sexual harassment and abuse of authority. Therefore all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) FAO Finance Committee WFP External Auditor WFP Audit Committee Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.
Required Experience:
Director
Employment Type
Full-Time
