Fertilizer Procurement Associate
One Acre Fund
Quick Take
Lead end-to-end fertilizer sourcing and procurement operations for smallholder farmers across Africa, managing suppliers, quality control, inventory, and a small team to achieve cost and delivery targets.
Proven procurement and supply chain experience in agriculture/commodities, advanced data analysis skills (Excel, Google Suite), and ability to negotiate with international suppliers and manage complex logistics.
Competitive salary (KES 150–280k/month), meaningful social impact in food security, leadership opportunity, and growth within a respected global NGO's supply chain function.
Job Description
One Acre Fund is seeking an exceptional Supply Chain professional to join its global procurement team as a Fertilizer Procurement Associate. In this role, you will lead end-to-end fertilizer sourcing operations, ensuring cost-efficient purchasing, reliable on-time delivery, and uncompromising quality standards that ultimately serve smallholder farmers across Africa. This is a high-impact position at the intersection of data-driven decision-making, strategic supplier partnerships, and operational excellence.
You will work closely with country operations teams and external market actors to build a resilient, farmer-centric supply chain. If you thrive in fast-paced environments, enjoy solving complex logistics challenges, and are motivated by measurable social impact, this role offers a compelling opportunity to grow your career while contributing to food security across the continent.
- Support the design and execution of seasonal fertilizer procurement strategies targeting +90% OTIF (On-Time, In-Full) delivery performance and 5% year-on-year cost savings.
- Enforce rigorous quality control measures to ensure zero quality incidents reach the farmer, and maintain an +80% on-time supplier payment rate.
- Proactively identify and address future supply gaps by benchmarking farmer demand against global market trends, supplier capacity, and current inventory positions.
- Drive lead-time improvements through process streamlining, delivery optimization, and automation of key operations including goods receipt and loading quality control.
- Maintain accurate and up-to-date landing cost benefit analysis tools to support data-backed purchasing decisions.
- Build and sustain strategic relationships with fertilizer suppliers and industry organizations beyond routine seasonal procurement cycles.
- Act as a key business partner for country operations teams, identifying opportunities to enhance the product and service offering to farmers.
- Represent One Acre Fund externally with suppliers and market actors to drive long-term, systemic supply chain improvements.
- Manage and mentor a small procurement team, setting clear performance goals, delivering timely feedback, and conducting quality career coaching and performance reviews.
- Own staffing, recruitment, and succession planning to build and sustain a high-performing procurement unit.
- Demonstrate solid foundational knowledge of global procurement processes, international shipping terms (e.g. Incoterms), and end-to-end supply chain operations within agricultural or commodity sectors.
- Analyse complex procurement data, track budgets, and manage inventory using advanced Microsoft Excel and Google Suite tools to generate actionable insights.
- Negotiate effectively with international suppliers and influence senior internal stakeholders to align on procurement strategy and delivery timelines.
- Manage multiple concurrent projects in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment while maintaining accuracy and attention to detail.
- Apply a solutions-oriented mindset to procurement challenges, making confident data-driven decisions under medium-risk conditions.
- Communicate clearly and professionally in written and spoken English across cross-functional and cross-cultural teams.
- Lead, coach, and develop direct reports through structured goal-setting, performance management, and professional development support.
One Acre Fund offers a competitive compensation package benchmarked to NGO sector standards. The estimated monthly salary range for this role is KES 150,000 – KES 280,000 depending on experience and qualifications. Additional benefits include health insurance, opportunities for international travel, and a structured career development framework within a mission-driven organization.
This role is ideal for a mid-to-senior supply chain professional with hands-on experience in agricultural commodity procurement or international sourcing, who is equally comfortable with spreadsheets and supplier negotiations. You are a natural relationship-builder who leads teams with empathy and holds yourself to high execution standards. You are motivated by social impact and want your work to directly improve the lives of smallholder farmers.
Please do not apply if you have no prior experience in procurement or supply chain management, if you are uncomfortable working with data and analytics tools, or if you are seeking a purely administrative purchasing role with limited strategic scope.
- Visit the One Acre Fund careers page at oneacrefund.org/jobs and search for the Fertilizer Procurement Associate position.
- Prepare an updated CV and a tailored cover letter highlighting your procurement experience, data skills, and any relevant agricultural or commodity supply chain background.
- Submit your application through the official portal before the advertised closing date.
- Shortlisted candidates will be contacted for an initial screening call followed by technical and panel interviews.
- Only shortlisted applicants will receive a response. We encourage early applications as screening may begin on a rolling basis.
Requirements Breakdown
Must Have
- Solid foundational knowledge of global procurement processes and Incoterms (international shipping terms)
- End-to-end supply chain operations experience in agricultural or commodity sectors
- Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Google Suite for data analysis and budget tracking
- Proven ability to negotiate with international suppliers and influence senior stakeholders
- Experience managing multiple concurrent projects in fast-paced, deadline-driven environments
Nice to Have
- Prior experience managing and mentoring procurement or supply chain teams
- Demonstrated track record of achieving OTIF (On-Time, In-Full) delivery performance >90%
- Experience with inventory management systems and goods receipt automation
- Knowledge of African agricultural markets or smallholder farmer supply chains
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Salary Context
Competitive mid-market salary for a supply chain leadership role in Nairobi
The KES 150–280k range reflects a mid-to-senior procurement position with team management responsibilities. Salary variation will depend on prior experience, team size managed, and supplier portfolio complexity. NGO roles typically offer slightly lower base pay than private sector but compensate with mission-driven work and benefits.
About One Acre Fund
One Acre Fund is a global agricultural NGO that works directly with smallholder farmers across East Africa to improve food security and income through improved farming practices and access to quality inputs like fertilizer. With operations spanning multiple African countries, the organization combines on-ground farmer engagement with sophisticated supply chain operations to deliver cost-effective, reliable agricultural solutions. Working at One Acre Fund offers the rare combination of social impact at scale and professional supply chain complexity.
Likely Interview Questions
- 1
Can you walk us through a time you designed or optimized a seasonal procurement strategy? What metrics did you track, and what was your target—cost savings, delivery performance, or quality?
- 2
Tell us about a supplier relationship you built or repaired. How did you handle a disagreement or performance issue, and what was the outcome?
- 3
How have you used data (Excel, dashboards, forecasting) to identify supply gaps or inefficiencies? Give us a specific example and the business decision it drove.
- 4
Describe your experience with on-time, in-full (OTIF) delivery targets. What processes or systems have you implemented to achieve them, and what challenges did you face?
- 5
One Acre Fund's supply chain serves smallholder farmers across Africa. How would you approach understanding farmer demand and translating that into procurement decisions?
Application Tips
Quantify your procurement wins: highlight specific OTIF%, cost-savings %, or delivery improvements you've achieved (e.g., 'improved on-time delivery from 78% to 94% by renegotiating lead times with three key suppliers').
Emphasize agricultural or commodity sector experience if you have it—One Acre Fund will value familiarity with farmer-centric supply chains, seasonal demand, and input quality standards over generic procurement background.
Showcase your data analytics capability: include examples of Excel models, dashboards, or analysis you've built to track supplier performance, cost, or inventory—this is a core expectation of the role.
Career Path
Roles that lead here
Where this leads
Skills & Keywords
Honest Assessment
Green Flags
- Clear, measurable performance targets (90% OTIF, 5% annual cost savings, zero quality incidents) show a results-driven, professionally managed supply chain function.
- Explicit mention of mentoring, team management, and succession planning signals genuine leadership development opportunity, not just execution work.
- The role is positioned as a strategic business partner to country operations and external stakeholders, indicating influence beyond procurement and potential for broader organizational impact.
- One Acre Fund's global scale and focus on smallholder farmers provides compelling mission-driven work aligned with food security and poverty reduction in Africa.
Watch Out
- The job description is incomplete—it cuts off mid-sentence in the 'Required Skills & Experience' section, which may indicate the full role scope or expectations are not clearly defined in the posting.
- No mention of salary bands linked to experience or performance metrics; the wide range (KES 150–280k) is substantial and it's unclear what drives placement within it.
- Limited detail on team size, budget responsibility, and scope of geographic operations the role will cover, which are critical for a leadership-track procurement position.
A Day in the Life
Your week typically opens with a supplier performance review meeting, where you analyze on-time delivery, quality metrics, and cost trends for your top three fertilizer vendors using live dashboards you've built. Mid-week, you're conducting a lead-time optimization workshop with country operations teams in Kenya and Uganda via Zoom, identifying demand forecasts and translating them into updated purchase orders and safety stock levels. You spend a day benchmarking global fertilizer prices and negotiating with an international supplier on payment terms and volume discounts for next season. You also conduct a one-on-one performance coaching session with a junior procurement officer and review a quality incident report from a farmer feedback channel. Throughout, you're toggling between Excel models, supplier emails, and internal Slack discussions about inventory shortfalls and process automation opportunities.
Frequently Asked Questions
What qualifications do I need to be a Fertilizer Procurement Associate at One Acre Fund?
You need solid foundational knowledge of global procurement processes and Incoterms, proven experience in agricultural or commodity supply chain operations, advanced Excel and Google Suite skills, and the ability to negotiate with international suppliers. Prior team management and OTIF delivery experience are strongly preferred.
Is the Fertilizer Procurement Associate role at One Acre Fund remote?
The posting lists the location as Nairobi, suggesting the role is office-based in Nairobi, though you will collaborate remotely with country operations teams across Africa as part of your responsibilities.
How much does a Fertilizer Procurement Associate earn at One Acre Fund?
One Acre Fund offers a salary range of KES 150,000–280,000 per month, depending on experience, team scope, and prior procurement achievements. This is competitive for mid-level supply chain leadership roles in Nairobi's NGO sector.
What are the career growth opportunities for this role?
The role includes explicit team management and succession planning responsibilities, positioning you for advancement to Senior Procurement Manager or Head of Procurement. You'll also gain exposure to global supply chain strategy and African agricultural markets, opening doors to leadership roles across impact-driven organizations or agricultural input companies.
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