Country Supply Chain & Operations Manager

Location: Damascus – Syria Country Office

Travel: 30%

Relief International (RI) is an international non-profit organization that partners with communities impacted by conflict, climate change and disaster to save lives, build greater resilience and promote long-term health and wellbeing.

Our team of more than 4,000 staff and local volunteers work in 14 countries across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, providing Health and Nutrition, WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), Education and Livelihoods programming that creates the foundation for community resilience.

We do this by working with local actors to develop safe and inclusive local programming that is evidence based, conflict sensitive, climate smart, and reaches those in need.

Relief International is an alliance of four organizations with one shared mission, comprised of Relief International, Inc., Relief International-France, Relief International-UK and Relief International-Europe, which operate under a one-team concept under a single senior leadership team.

Job Profile:

The Country Supply Chain & Operations Manager provides strategic leadership, technical oversight, and management of Relief International's country-wide Supply Chain & Operations (SCO) function in Syria. The role ensures that procurement, logistics, commodity management, and operational support systems enable timely, compliant, and cost-effective programme delivery while meeting organizational policies, donor requirements, and security standards. The post holder is responsible for strengthening systems and controls, improving operational efficiency and compliance, managing supply chain and operational risks, and building the capacity of national SCO teams.

The Country SCO Manager has direct leadership responsibility for the Procurement, Logistics & Commodities, and Operations functions. Under the current organizational structure, these functions are managed directly by the Country SCO Manager. As the Syria programme continues to evolve, the role will support the progressive development of a scalable SCO structure with increased functional specialization and delegated leadership where appropriate. The role ensures effective coordination between the Country Office and Field Offices, promotes standardized systems and ways of working across the programme, and contributes to strategic planning, proposal development, operational preparedness, emergency response, and organizational growth.

Key Responsibilities:

Leadership & Management:

Provide strategic leadership and management of the country Supply Chain & Operations (SCO) department, ensuring effective operational support to all programmes across Syria.

Lead, coach and develop country and field SCO staff through effective supervision, performance management, mentoring and capacity building.

Manage the Supply Chain & Operations departmental budget and operational resources, ensuring cost-effective delivery of support services and responsible stewardship of organizational assets.

Establish clear roles, responsibilities and accountability across the Procurement, Logistics & Commodities, and Operations functions.

Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement, compliance and customer service throughout the department.

Conduct regular field visits to strengthen operational performance, provide technical support and ensure consistent implementation of country standards.

Strategic Supply Chain Leadership

Develop and maintain the country Supply Chain Strategy and associated operational plans, ensuring alignment with programme priorities, organizational objectives and donor requirements.

Develop, implement and periodically review country Supply Chain & Operations policies, procedures and standard operating procedures to strengthen compliance, consistency and operational effectiveness.

Oversee the implementation and effective use of organizational supply chain and operational management systems, ensuring data integrity, standardization and continuous improvement.

Lead the design and continuous optimization of the country supply chain network, including procurement planning, warehousing, transport, fleet and distribution systems.

Drive strategic sourcing, market analysis and long-term contracting initiatives to improve value for money, operational resilience and supplier performance.

Lead operational forecasting, contingency planning and business continuity planning to ensure continuity of critical support services during emergencies, programme expansion and changing access conditions.

Establish performance standards and promote data-driven decision-making through KPI monitoring, operational analysis and continuous process improvement.

Promote environmentally responsible and sustainable supply chain practices where operationally feasible.

Procurement

Provide strategic oversight of all procurement activities, ensuring compliance with RI policies, donor regulations and applicable national legislation.

Ensure effective procurement planning across all programmes and monitor procurement performance, lead times and service delivery.

Oversee supplier management, market assessments, prequalification processes and framework agreements to strengthen procurement efficiency and competition.

Review procurement reporting and implement corrective actions to address risks, delays and compliance issues.

Logistics & Commodities

Provide strategic oversight of warehousing, inventory management and commodity movements across all operational locations.

Ensure warehouse and inventory management systems comply with organizational standards and Good Storage and Distribution Practices (GSDP).

Monitor stock management, commodity reporting and distribution performance to minimize losses and ensure accountability for programme assets.

Operations Oversight

Provide strategic oversight of fleet, assets, facilities, IT and staff travel management across the country programme.

Ensure offices, guesthouses and operational facilities are safe, compliant, functional and cost-effective.

Coordinate closely with Security colleagues to ensure operational activities are planned and implemented in accordance with security requirements and access constraints.

Oversee fleet management systems, asset lifecycle management and operational support services to maximize efficiency, utilization and compliance.

Performance, Compliance and Risk Management

Review organizational performance against established KPIs and implement corrective actions to improve operational performance and service delivery.

Identify operational risks and implement appropriate mitigation measures to strengthen business continuity and Programme delivery.

Lead the department's response to internal and external audits, ensuring timely implementation and closure of agreed corrective actions.

Ensure compliance with RI policies, donor requirements and applicable national regulations across all SCO activities.

Programme Development and Operational Support

Contribute to programme design, proposal development and budgeting by providing technical guidance on procurement, logistics, operational support and supply chain costs.

Ensure operational requirements, implementation timelines and resource needs are accurately reflected in programme design and start-up planning.

Representation and Coordination

Represent the Supply Chain & Operations function within the Country Senior Management Team and engage with regional and global technical teams as required.

Maintain effective coordination with programme, finance, HR, security and field management teams to ensure integrated operational support across the country programme.

Build and maintain constructive relationships with suppliers, service providers, donors, partners and relevant external stakeholders.

Behavior and Conduct

Demonstrate the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and ethical c