Business Operations Analyst - Africa- CIMMYT

BUSINESS OPERATIONS ANALYST - AFRICA About the Role The Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry is seeking a Business Operations Analyst to drive operational excellence and data-driven decision-making across our African region. In this strategic role, you'll serve as the backbone of our Business Services Division, translating complex operational data into actionable insights while coordinating critical initiatives that span multiple countries. Your responsibilities will encompass nine core areas of operational management: REGIONAL REPORTING AND BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE You'll develop and maintain comprehensive BSD regional dashboards, scorecards, and management reports that provide leadership with real-time visibility into performance. Working with data from Dynamics 365 and other institutional systems, you'll extract, validate, and synthesize information to produce monthly, quarterly, and annual operational performance reports. You'll create executive presentations and briefing materials while developing specialized reporting tools that highlight operational trends, risks, and opportunities. Your analytical work will directly support budgeting, forecasting, and operational planning exercises. STRATEGIC PROJECT AND ACTION MANAGEMENT You'll coordinate regional BSD projects and strategic initiatives, maintaining detailed project trackers, action logs, milestone reports, and risk registers. Monitoring progress against implementation plans, you'll escalate delays appropriately and facilitate follow-up on management decisions. You'll play a key role in supporting process improvements, system enhancements, and transformation initiatives. PROCUREMENT PERFORMANCE MONITORING Tracking procurement cycle times and sourcing activities, you'll monitor service delivery performance, analyze spend trends, and evaluate supplier performance. You'll oversee Long-Term Agreements and strategic sourcing initiatives while ensuring compliance with procurement procedures and identifying opportunities for efficiency gains and cost optimization. FLEET MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE MONITORING You'll monitor fleet utilization, maintenance costs, fuel consumption, and vehicle performance indicators. Supporting fleet lifecycle planning and replacement reporting, you'll track compliance with fleet procedures and develop performance dashboards that reveal trends and improvement opportunities. TRAVEL MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE MONITORING You'll monitor travel expenditures, service levels, and vendor performance while analyzing travel patterns to identify optimization opportunities and supporting compliance reporting. INVENTORY AND WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT MONITORING Overseeing inventory levels, stock movements, and warehouse utilization across the region, you'll analyze inventory turnover rates and identify slow-moving or obsolete stock. You'll track inventory accuracy, monitor warehouse compliance, and develop performance dashboards that support improved efficiency and reduced operational risk. TRAINING, COMPLIANCE, AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT You'll track BSD training program completion, monitor adoption of new systems and procedures, and coordinate follow-up and compliance reporting. Supporting the development of user guides and operational documentation, you'll monitor implementation of audit recommendations and corrective actions. GOVERNANCE AND OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE Supporting regional governance forums and operational review meetings, you'll prepare comprehensive management reports and meeting materials. You'll maintain departmental risk registers and action trackers while supporting audits and compliance reviews. Leading process mapping and continuous improvement initiatives, you'll recommend operational improvements based on performance analysis. STAKEHOLDER COORDINATION AND LEADERSHIP SUPPORT Acting as a coordination hub between country offices, regional leadership, headquarters teams, and external service providers, you'll facilitate communication across BSD functions. You'll support executive communications and promote standardization of reporting practices across Africa, serving as a trusted analytical advisor to the Regional BSD Manager on operational priorities and risks. Required Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, Data Analytics, Information Systems, Logistics, Finance, or a related field. Minimum five years of professional experience in business operations, supply chain, procurement, inventory management, analytics, project coordination, or operational excellence. Demonstrated experience supporting regional or multi-country operations. Hands-on experience working with ERP systems, with proficiency in Microsoft Dynamics 365. Preferred Qualifications Master's degree in a related discipline. This position offers the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on agricultural research and development across Africa while building expertise in complex, multi-country operational management.