A Humourless Lot

• One that is a bit different from our regular fare: Emory University (Atlanta, USA) is looking for a coordinator, programme logistics to coordinate distribution of a large donation antibiotics for the International Trachoma Initiative.
• IRC is looking for for a senior logistics coordinator for Congo (DRC), a logistics technical specialist for Chad and Congo (DRC), a logistics process and controls documentation consultant for their HQ in the USA, a logistics manager for Haiti, and a logistics coordinator for their refugee programme in the USA.
• Merlin is looking for logisticians for North Maniema, Congo (DRC) and for Haiti/Dominican Republic; logistics coordinators for Liberia, Kenya, Haiti, and Congo (DRC); and a supply chain coordinator for Congo (DRC).
• Oxfam GB is looking for a regional logistics manager for West Africa, based in Dakar (Senegal). Apparently they are also looking for a regional logistics manager for Latin America and the Caribbean and a logistics coordinator for Sudan, but this is not advertised on their own site.
• Save The Children UK is looking for a logistics adviser for Angola. They also seem to be looking for a global supply chain manager (based in the UK), but I cannot locate this vacancy on their site.
• The IMC is looking for logistics coordinators for Haiti and Congo (DRC), and a logistics and commodities officer for their HQ in the USA.
• Management Systems International (MSI) is looking for an administration and logistics coordinator for Afghanistan. They also seem to be looking for a deputy chief of party, finance and logistics management for Afghanistan, but that vacancy is not advertised on their own site.
• The Louis Berger Group is looking for an administration and logistics coordinator for Afghanistan; I suspect that this is the same position that is advertised by MSI. They are also looking for a procurement manager for Afghanistan.
• Intermón Oxfam is looking for a logadmin officer for Abéché (Chad) and a logistics officer for Warrab State (Sudan).
• The American Refugee Committee (ARC) is looking for a logistics and security coordinator for Haiti.
• Apparently, the Samaritan’s Purse is looking for a program manager, logistics for Haiti, but this vacancy is not advertised on their site.
• Populations Services International (PSI) are looking for a consultant, operations and logistics technical advisor for Haiti; and a contracts analyst, a contracts assistant, a senior Zprocurement and logistics officer, a voluntary pooled procurement and logistics officer and a senior ditto, all for the HQ in Washington DC (USA).
• Solidarités are looking for a logistics coordinator, a logistician, and a distribution manager for Haiti; an administrative and logistics coordinator for Zimbabwe, and a logistics and administrative field coordinator for Teknaf (Bangladesh).
• ACTED is looking for logistic interns for Chad and Haiti, country logistic managers for Sudan, Chad and Haiti, and country logistic and security managers for Yemen and Iraq.
• UNICEF are looking for a logistics officer for Sierra Leone, two supply and logistics specialists for Senegal, a senior contracts assistant for their HQ in New York (USA), a logistics specialist for Chad, a procurement assistant – planning for their supply division in Copenhagen (Denmark). As usual, their vacancies are hidden in a password-protected system, so I cannot link. Please don’t forget to bitch about this when applying!
• The British Red Cross is looking for a logistician for their emergency response unit.

Sigh. Did anyone read my earlier rant on bad job advertisement practices?

[Image: Job opportunities by Coffeechica]

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

• The Global Fund is looking for a senior technical officer – global health supply and a senior advisor: supply chain management and strategic support.
• The UNDP is looking for a procurement specialist for Afghanistan and a procurement advisor for their HQ.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

• Avocats Sans Frontières (ASF) are looking for an administration, finance and logistics officer for Uganda.
• ACTED are looking for a country logistics manager for Pakistan, a logistics intern for the Central African Republic, and a logistician/security manager for Haiti. They also seem to have extended their deadlines for the vacancies for an HQ logistics support intern and a country logistics manager for Chad, which I posted earlier.
• The American Refugee Committee International (ARC) are looking for a logistics and security manager for South Sudan.
• A vacancy that is a bit out of the ordinary, but which I am very happy to see (for obvious reasons): Oxfam UK is looking for a learning and development manager (logistics and supply).
• Terre des Hommes is looking for a logistician-administrator for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and an administration and logistics coordinator for Afghanistan.
• Merlin is looking for a logistician for Ivory Coast, and for logistics coordinators for ‘Africa’ (I’m not making this up!), Afghanistan, and Congo (DRC).

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

• Crown agents is looking for a Supply Chain Management System (SCMS) project manager, an SCMS country manager for Côte d’Ivoire, an SCMS country director for Namibia, a procurement advisor for Morocco, customs specialists for Angola, and various other logistical professionals. An overview can be found here.
• Concern Worldwide is looking for a logistics coordinator for Afghanistan.
• Goal Ireland is looking for an emergency programme regional logistics manager for Ethiopia.
• The IRC is looking for a procurement coordinator and a logistics manager for the DRC, and a logistics manager for Chad

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

• ACTED is looking for a logistics support intern at their HQ, a logistician/security manager for Afghanistan, and country logistics managers for Chad and Congo (DRC).
• The Population Council is looking for a regional coordinator commodity/logistics for Nigeria (note that this vacancy is not confirmed on the Council’s own web site, and that I am not exactly sure how reliable a site called ‘Confabee’ can be…).
• A similar issue with this vacancy: logistics coordinator for Medair in Kampala (Uganda) — not to be found on Medair’s own website.
• As with this one: Médecins Du Monde is looking for a logistics coordinator for Darfur (Sudan). However, I give ReliefWeb slightly higher points for likely reliability than the previous two.
• Action Against Hunger (AAH or ACF) is looking for a logistics coordinator for Pakistan, and for logistic officers for various locations.
• Tear Fund is looking for an area logistics officer for the North of Afghanistan.
• And one that is a bit out of the ordinary: the rpc Group is looking for an aviation general manager based in Sudan.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

I never thought I would ever feature an article from Marie Claire, but maintaining a blog takes you places. In a recent issue, they interviewed Danielle Aitchison, a pilot for the UN’s Humanitarian Air Services. Anybody who has ever worked in humanitarian hotspots will know how important UNHAS’ services are for logistics operations, and even though I have some reservations about the content and general tone of the interview, it still well worth reading. Enjoy!

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

• CESVI is looking for a logistician/administrator for Herat (Afghanistan) and a logistician for Vavunya (Sri Lanka). Can somebody please explain to them why this picture really should not be used?
• The IRC apparently is looking for a logistics manager for Kenya. ‘Apparently’, because I have not been able to find this vacancy on the IRC’s own website.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Michael Kleinman continues to publish one of the most thoughtful and insightful blogs on aid work on his ‘Humanitarian Relief’ mini-site at change.org. This should be on your required-reading list if you are in any way interested in humanitarian relief.

One of his more humorous postings deals with allegations of corruption towards InterSOS, an Italian NGO that (mis)handled a hospital project in Afghanistan. Whether or not InterSOS mishandled the project itself, one thing is sure: they definitely made a mess of the PR side of things.

So what are some lessons that we can learn?

1. Make sure that you can articulate the added value of your organisation in every project. InterSOS has left the damaging impression (warranted or not) that they have skimmed off a large part of the available funds for the project without being able to demonstrate what they have delivered in return.
2. Make sure that you can communicate the measures that you have taken to minimise fraud and corruption. Make sure that your logistics processes address these issues, and that you are able to tell how they do. InterSOS has never been able to tell us what exactly they did to avoid fraud and corruption.
3. When addressing allegations like this, taking legal action is usually counterproductive. InterSOS mentions that they have started legal proceedings seeking compensation. Whether they will be succesful is an open question to me (I just love that pithy acronym IANAL), but I am pretty certain that the negative effects of their litigation (cost, loss of reputation) will easily outweigh the funds recuperated (if any).
4. Never, never, never require that anything is ‘taken from the internet’. It won’t happen. Yes, The Guardian has removed the video, but copies are archived in many other places (e.g. Michael Kleinman’s blog, as well as YouTube). You will not be able to eradicate whatever is published about you, but you will succeed in giving the impression that you have something to hide. It is much more effective to ask for a rectification on the same page — if The Guardian would have distanced itself from its reporter on the same page as it published the video, things would have looked decidedly different.
5. If you publish a press release in a language in which you are not fluent, make sure it gets copy-edited by somebody who is. InterSOS’ press release is a terrific example of Italish, and as such is rather funny, but it does not leave a very professional image — and that is putting it mildly.

Any additions? Experiences from readers who have been confronted directly with this sort of media scrutiny?

(Photo: Anti-corruption sign by Mike Blyth. Some rights reserved.)

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!