Procurement and Grants Coordinator

Background

Indonesias Vision 2045 sets the goal for Indonesia to transition from a resource-based economy towards an advanced service, technology, and knowledge-based economy by the centenary of its independence (2045). The 2025-2045 National Long Term Development Plan emphasises the urgency of Indonesias human resource development to fully realise 2045 goals.

Faced however with persistent low student performance that is emblematic of a learning crisis, significant improvement in student learning will be required to reach Indonesias 2045 goals. Government of Indonesia (GoI) has started an ambitious program of education reforms. Successive education ministers have set out to modernise the education system through reforming the national curriculum and teaching and assessment approaches, to produce citizens with strong foundational skills, open minds, and inclusive values.

Australia is a long-term supporter of the Indonesian basic education sector, with continuous investments supporting education quality improvements for the past two decades, including through the INOVASI program (Phase 1 2016-2020; Phase 2 2020-2023) that focused on supporting acquisition of literacy and numeracy foundational skills in early grades classrooms; exploring local problems and solutions; and generating evidence to inform government policy development and practices.

This third phase of INOVASI (2024-2027) builds upon the existing programs approach and lessons learned and takes the focus on the development of foundational skills through to the end of the primary grades. Phase 3 will engage with priority issues of Australias development policy: gender equality, effective inclusion of children with a disability, responses to the climate change challenge in education. It will focus on the challenge of policy implementation and the gaps that exist between national policies and practices at district and school levels, and use the well attested-success of INOVASIs local problem-based approach to continuously support policy development for effective fit between policy and implementation context.

The Program is implemented by Palladium on behalf of DFAT.

Purpose of the Position:

The Procurement and Grants Coordinator oversees procurement and grants management, ensuring compliance with DFAT and Palladium guidelines. Key responsibilities include coordinating procurement processes, managing contracts and grants, supervising the procurement and grants team, and supporting financial and administrative functions to ensure the effective implementation of INOVASI Phase 3. This role also involves developing procurement strategies, managing risks, and ensuring continuous improvement of procurement practices.

Duties: Under the direction of the Head of Operations, the Procurement and Grants Coordinator will:

1. Coordinate the end-to-end process for procurement of goods and services, including purchase requests, requests for tenders, evaluating proposals, negotiating contracts, and signing agreements

2. Coordinate, negotiate, prepare and execute all types of contracts, including subcontracts grant agreements, blanket purchase agreements, and service agreements.

3. Comply with all Palladium procurement procedures outlined in the INOVASI Operations Manual and relevant DFAT policies, including the Australian Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPR) and Commonwealth Grant Rules (CGR).

4. Oversee the Procurement and Grants team, including supervising officers, assistants, consultants, and daily workers related to procurement and grants.

5. Uphold Palladiums Zero Tolerance policy on bribery and corruption, ensuring the due diligence process is followed.

6. Support the implementation of new procurement data management systems to automate the storage, reporting and approval processes of INOVASI procurements. Systems may include MS Dynamics 365, Power Automate, or other platforms as needed. Ensure procurement processes, forms and data integrate seamlessly with these systems andPalladium guidelines.

7. Lead the review, revision and adaptation of INOVASI Procurement Guidelines for Phase 3 to improve efficiency, streamline work processes, and align with the new structure and implementation requirements.

8. Develop and implement procurement strategies and policies, and manage associated risks.

9. Conduct regular spot checks in provincial offices to ensure the procurement process complies with Palladium and DFAT procurement policies and procedures.

10. Support cash flow management by providing accurate, regular forecasts of contract payments to the finance team.

11. Manage the contracts tracker and monitor deliverables and milestones from subcontractors, as well as the payment schedule stipulated in contracts;

12. Establish and manage all aspects of INOVASI Partnership and Grants program, implementing the full cycle including grants solicitation, pre-award assessments, negotiation, sub-award issuance, monitoring and compliance visits, and close- out procedures.

13. Monitor Partnerships and Grants implementation and develop a Grant Monitoring System, including tools to monitor the period of grants contracts and extensions (if any), deliverables, remaining payments, spending percentages, payment schedules, payment forecasts, and other relevant information.

14. Lead the pre-qualifications process of preferred suppliers, ensuring the Project has a list of preferred vendors. In coordination with the Admin team Jakarta and provincial teams, monitor and evaluate the performance of preferred suppliers.

15. Establish and maintain a database of preferred suppliers.

16. Support the process of planning and seeking VAT exemption and restitution with subcontractors and suppliers.

17. Analyse proposal budget cost structures and initiate negotiations for cost savings.

18. Work closely with the Finance Coordinator to review invoices and supporting documentation, ensuring all payment requests submitted are complete and on-time;

19. Work closely with provincial operations teams in the implementation of provincial procurements and grants. Archive all procurement documents upon completion of activities, in both in hard copies and soft copies, ensuring all required approvals are available;

20. Manage and monitor the filing system for all procurement documents, ensuring they are securely stored in both hard copies and soft copies.

21. Update and manage the procurement database, including the contract register, contract management system, and supplier database on regular basis.

22. Prepare and complete supporting documents for invoices from subcontractors.

23. Promote continuous learning and development within the procurement team

24. Perform other duties as reasonably be required by the Head of Operations, consistent with the incumbents qualifications and experience.

Qualifications and Experience

The Procurement and Grant Coordinator will possess the following qualifications and experience:

1. Degree in Finance, Accounting, Management, or other relevant fields.

2. Minimum of 5 years of work experience overseeing procurement and grants in international development programs. Previous experience with DFAT-funded programs is an advantage.

3. Demonstrated strong understanding of procurement principles and practices, including Commonwealth procurement rules and legal aspects.

4. Ability to understand legal contractual language, draft contract clauses, and assess contract risks.

5. Strong understanding of IT systems, with advanced skills in MS Word, MS Excel, and the internet, and the ability to work with data management systems.

6. Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.

7. Proven ability to negotiate effectively with subcontractors, grantees, and suppliers.

8. Demonstrated ability to promote and initiate work processes and complete assignments with minimal supervision.

9. Strong interpersonal skills, including in cross-cultural contexts.

10. Fluent in English (written and spoken) and Bahasa Indonesia.