Summary

​​Giga is building a Global Connectivity Marketplace. The marketplace is envisioned to operate at the intersection of a carbon credits market and a universal service/access fund, serving as a catalyst for incentivizing connectivity in individual countries by issuing tokens for companies connecting rural areas, underserved populations, and public facilities. This system is currently being piloted at a country level using existing financial incentives from national governments; the Connectivity Credits Marketplace seeks to create liquidity and attract further financing at a global level.

The Contract Manager’s effectiveness in strategic procurement and contract management will directly impact Giga’s ability to improve governments’ access to high-quality, affordable connectivity solutions for their schools. This role will ensure that procurement strategies are scalable, data-driven, innovative, and aligned with UNICEF’s mission, ultimately contributing to improved educational outcomes and equitable access to digital resources for children globally.

Your responsibilities will be…

Under the general guidance of the Programme Manager, Giga Procurement Section, and with matrix reporting to UNICEF Supply Division’s Service Contracting Center Chief, the Contract Manager will be responsible for:

Strategic Leadership and Management:

• Lead a team of supply professionals including a Contract Specialist, a Technical Specialist (Connectivity Solutions), and a Quality Assurance Specialist.
• Develop and implement procurement strategies based on market intelligence and evidence, ensuring alignment with Giga’s objectives.
• Monitor team performance, provide guidance, and evaluate achievements.

Procurement Strategy and Execution:

• Develop global & regional sustainable procurement strategies for school connectivity solutions, leveraging Giga and partners market knowledge UNICEF Supply Division’s expertise and resources.
• Manage the procurement of school connectivity services, including proposal of supply strategies and methods of purchase, LTAs, contract implementation, analysis and evaluation of procurement requests and appropriateness of Terms of Reference/Scope of services.
• Ensure all procurement activities comply with UNICEF’s Financial Rules and Regulations and other applicable procedures.
• Oversee the finalization of contracting processes, including negotiation of terms and conditions.

Secondary Bidding:

• Lead and manage secondary bidding processes, including the evaluation of proposals, contracting, and management of contracts.
• Ensure that the secondary bidding process is transparent, competitive, and in compliance with UNICEF’s Financial Rules and Regulations and other applicable procedures.
• Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to design and implement effective secondary bidding strategies.
• Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of secondary bidding exercises and make recommendations for improvement.

Contract Management:

• Monitor supplier performance to ensure compliance with Long-Term Agreements (LTAs) and contractual terms (Service Level Agreements) leveraging Giga open-source real-time monitoring and contract management tools.
• Address any issues related to contract execution and seek support from the Legal Office as necessary.

Stakeholder Engagement and Collaboration:

• Contribute to the development of institutional policies, procedures, and tools for procurement and contracting of school connectivity.
• Design and conduct training programs to enhance procurement capacity within UNICEF, governments and partner organizations.
• Provide technical advice on procurement and contracting of connectivity to HQ Divisions, Regional Offices, and Country Offices.

Policy Development and Capacity Building:

• Prepare detailed reports and presentations for senior management, highlighting procurement achievements and challenges.
• Conduct impact assessments to evaluate the effectiveness of procurement strategies and their contribution to Giga’s goals.
• Contribute to the development of institutional policies, procedures, and tools for procurement and contracting of school connectivity.
• Design and conduct training programs to enhance procurement capacity within UNICEF, governments and partner organizations.
• Provide technical advice on procurement and contracting of connectivity to HQ Divisions, Regional Offices, and Country Offices.

Reporting and Impact Assessment:

• Prepare detailed reports and presentations for senior management, highlighting procurement achievements and challenges.
• Conduct impact assessments to evaluate the effectiveness of procurement strategies and their contribution to Giga’s goals.

To qualify for this position, you will have…

Education:

• An advanced university degree (master’s or higher) in Procurement, Contract / Commercial Law, Business Administration, Economics, Supply Chain Management, or a related field.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of 8 years of professional experience in procurement/contracting, with a focus on high-value, high-risk contracts.
• Demonstrated experience in contract management and procurement of connectivity services in the public and private sectors will be required for this role. The candidate must have a strong understanding of market dynamics and procurement strategies.
• Previous experience in procuring internet connectivity services in developing (or LMIC/MIC) countries, preferably in Africa, will be considered a strong asset.
• Knowledge and experience of the UN procurement rules and regulations, as well as UNICEF’s programmes, policy, and principles are an asset.

Skills:

• Proven ability to work collaboratively with teams across different locations, within various UNICEF country offices, and possess different technical skills sets is essential.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

About our team

We are a fast-paced, multi-disciplinary team of software engineers, finance specialists, data scientists, policy experts, and much more. Our team is a distributed workforce and plans to remain distributed into the foreseeable future. We are growing fast. Our team has grown by over 400% in the last 6 months as we rapidly scale to meet our stated mission.