Administrative Specialist

SCOPE OF WORK

Administrative Specialist

Background

Improving Private Sector Competitiveness (IPSC) is a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) technical assistance project, and the Agency for Enterprise Development (AED) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) is the project owner. The project is implemented by Deloitte Consulting LLP (“Deloitte”) and runs from 2020 to 2025.

The purpose of the USAID IPSC Activity is to remove constraints and build the competitiveness of small and growing businesses (SGBs) in Vietnam, including those led by vulnerable populations. With this activity, USAID/Vietnam is supporting Vietnam’s competitiveness: vertically at the policy, market, and firm level; and horizontally by working along the entire spectrum of enterprise growth models, from household businesses transforming into registered firms to small firms on the cusp of scaling up.

IPSC is made up of four interrelated Objectives:

• Objective 1. Building business management capacity of SGBs, including those led by vulnerable populations, particularly women and ethnic minorities.
• Objective 2. Improving efficiency and productivity by promoting innovation, technology adoption, and sustainable business models.
• Objective 3. Enhancing business enabling environment for a broad-based inclusive economy.
• Objective 4. Strengthening business-to-business (B2B) and cross-sectoral linkages.

Summary of Activities

Position Objective: Support IPSC in the smooth management of project Operations activities while ensuring compliance to successfully achieve project work plan and objectives.

The post will be a member of the Operations team under the guidance/ supervision of the Operations Manager, and he/she will work in close collaboration with the team and provide daily administrative, office operations, procurement, events/logistic and finance support. Job responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Admin – Event/Training support:

• Provide administrative assistance to staff, visitors and consultants when required.
• Assist with arrangements for workshops, meetings, office events and visitors.
• Assist with procurement of office supplies and equipment.
• Provide the admin orientation and logistics preparation for new staff.
• Maintain office filing system, storage, stock of office supplies, stationery and promotion items.
• Keep inventory of equipment, software and furniture, monitor office equipment and printer/photocopier cartridge log-book consistency in the application of IPSC, Deloitte and USAID IT rules and procedures.  Perform the annual physical check of office inventory.
• Maintain contracts with office supplies vendors. Keep track of vendor bills and coordinate payments to vendors.
• Provide administrative and logistics support for trainings, events and project activities (e.g., printing materials, photocopying, desk research, travel and logistics arrangements, etc.).

Procurement support:

• Provides support to procurement projects and activities, following standard processes and protocols by Deloitte and USAID; raise requests for goods, services, and support hiring of consultants/individual contractors. Monitors expenditures and compares with approved budget; prepares adjustments as necessary.
• Draft contracts/ service agreements
• Administrate and update Contract Masterfile and make sure the file is up-to-date and at the highest level of accuracy.
• Maintains internal files and relevant documentation of procurement activities.
• Inspects and receipts goods/services received against the purchase order, invoices provided by the contractor and perform asset management activities.
• Processes the payment of vendors/contractors' invoices and monitor payments upon satisfactory receipt and performance.

Finance support and other tasks:

• Support basic accounting tasks including recording, tracking expenditures and payments, ensuring completeness of supporting documentations for payment.
• Accounting/Booking keeping support when required under guidance of OM.
• Support with Recruitment adverts, reviews, processes and follows-up on actions related to the administration of the unit’s human resource recruitment activities.
• Assist in translation and interpretation from English to Vietnamese and vice versa when necessary.
• Other tasks as assigned.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in related fields from accredited university
• Minimum of 5-years of experience in managing complex business processes
• Experience of international donor-funded projects
• Experience of USAID funded projects is an asset
• Ability to work with various diverse teams
• Ability to multitask and troubleshoot
• Efficient, detailed oriented and organized
• Ability to take initiative and complete tasks under tight deadlines
• Experience working in a team environment and having excellent people skills
• Strong Microsoft skills (PowerPoint, word and excel)
• Vietnamese nationality
• Fluency in spoken and written English and Vietnamese and proficiency in reporting and presenting

Reporting Requirements

• This position will report to the Operations Manager (OM)
• Period of performance:           June 2024 – May 2025 with possible extension.
• Level of Effort:                       Full time
• Location:                               Hanoi, Vietnam, with travel to other provinces as required 
• Compensation & Benefits:       Competitive

Submission and Deadline:

Interested candidates are invited to submit their CV and Cover letter in English to [email protected]

• Please state “Application for Administrative Specialist – Full name” in the subject line.
• Due to the high volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Deadline for applications is COB 31 May, 2024, Hanoi time.

USAID Improving Private Sector Competitiveness Key Concepts and Definitions

• Small and Growing Business (SGB): An organization/economic unit of Vietnam, including enterprises, under the provisions of the Law on Enterprises, cooperatives operating under the provisions of the Law on Cooperatives, and business households registered in accordance with Vietnamese law, which employs no more than 500 full-time employees, has growth potential but lacks the resources of knowledge, finance, human resources, and technology to realize its goals and growth potential.
• Pioneering SGBs or Pioneering Enterprises (PEs): A growing Vietnamese enterprise with Vietnamese-branded products, good competitiveness, the ability to lead and expand in the industry, sector, and locality, good management capacity and willingness to innovate and produce products with high added value, the vision/objective to build a Vietnamese brand in the international market.
• Business Development Service Provider (BDSP): Agencies, organizations and enterprises in both the public and private sectors with functions, duties/business lines providing non-financial services to support enterprises to improve operational efficiency and business development.
• Business Support Organization (BSO): An organization with the function and mission to connect and support business development, often including business associations/clubs, industries, etc.
• Department of Planning and Investment (DPI): A specialized agency of the Provincial People’s Committee, which functions as a consultancy and assists the Provincial People’s Committee in managing planning and investment, including the management of domestic and foreign investment in the province; management of official development assistance (ODA) sources, concessional loans from donors, foreign non-governmental aids; Business registration within the province; providing public services within the scope of state management of the Department in accordance with the law.