Inputs Manager

Supervisor: CFO 
Location: El Salvador 
Start Date: ASAP 
Contract: Full-Time Employee 
Travel: up to 20% 

About Acceso: 
Acceso (www.acceso.org) is a social enterprise that is revolutionizing food systems in Latin America and the Caribbean to put smallholder farmers first. Acceso’s mission is to create fundamental and lasting positive economic change in the lives of rural smallholder farming families. Our entrepreneurial model provides smallholder farmers with a sustainable way to participate in formalized markets, enabling them to work themselves out of poverty with dignity and to prosper. Acceso currently operates a portfolio of four social businesses in Colombia, Haiti, Guatemala, and El Salvador and an agtech tool (Extensio) founded in Mexico. Across our agribusinesses, we have impacted more than 35,000 smallholder farmers and farm workers, generating more than $80m in farmer income to date. 

About this role: 
Acceso sources agricultural inputs to provide smallholder farmers with the tools they need to improve crop yields and overall productivity. Inputs are distributed directly to farmers based on crop cycles (one campaign per crop), with agronomists determining both the types of inputs and required quantities for each campaign. Acceso applies a small markup to inputs sold to farmers and offers highly favorable credit terms to support farmers’ financial stability.  

The Inputs Manager will be responsible for the design, planning, budgeting, and implementation of a standardized framework for cross-market agro-inputs operations to enhance efficiency and consistency. The Inputs Manager will also be responsible for securing the best terms for input purchases across all Acceso markets (Colombia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Haiti), ensuring compliance with Acceso’s strict procurement policies, and fostering strong partnerships with suppliers. This role will oversee the credit program operations associated with the inputs sales channel and will ensure credit recovery and impact metrics are achieved. 

This role is critical to managing the inputs program cash flow and the grant and working capital financing related to the inputs program. In addition, the Inputs Manager will support the creation of economies of scale for the inputs program, negotiate favorable payment terms for Acceso, and explore distribution agreements that benefit our network of farmers.  

Key responsibilities: 

• Financial Planning, Budgeting, and Cash Flow Management for the Input Credit Program 
  • Prepare the annual budget for the input credit program sales and costs ensuring alignment with farmer needs, ability to execute, Acceso purchasing plans from farmers, along with available financing sources for the input credit program such as grant funding or working capital financing. 
  • Ensure recovery of accounts receivables related to the input credit program 
  • Review budget vs actual reports for the input credit program for each country and use this information to guide improvements to execution in each country or to make reforecasted financial plans when necessary 
  • Monitor the cash flow for the input credit program to ensure adherence to financial plans and ensure repayment of working capital facilities 
  • Ensure compliance with grant funding metrics for the input credit program as it relates to repayment rates and other key metrics 
• Procurement of Agricultural Inputs & Supplier Performance 
  • Input Procurement Strategy: Develop procurement plans for short, medium, and long-term periods that align with Acceso’s scaling strategy and the evolving regulatory and market landscapes.  
  • Supplier Partnerships: Build and maintain strong relationships with suppliers to secure high-quality inputs (e.g., seeds, fertilizers, pesticides) for farmers at the best prices.  
  • Economies of Scale: Leverage Acceso’s purchasing power to create economies of scale, reducing input costs for farmers while maintaining quality.  
  • Favorable Payment Terms: Negotiate payment terms that are favorable to Acceso, ensuring financial flexibility while maintaining long-term relationships with suppliers.  
  • Distribution Agreements: Explore and establish distribution agreements with suppliers to streamline delivery, either to Acceso’s collection centers or through the suppliers’ own local distribution networks.  
  • Continuous Improvement: Ensure dynamic sourcing strategies are developed and adapted based on ongoing insights and impact assessments. 
  • Build a solid understanding of regenerative agriculture practices, climate-smart principles, and GAPs to inform sourcing decisions and recommendations. 
  • Supplier Performance Monitoring: Regularly assess supplier performance, including input quality, delivery times, and pricing competitiveness, to ensure reliability and alignment with Acceso’s objectives.  
  • Contract Negotiation: Negotiate and manage supplier contracts, ensuring compliance with procurement policies and favorable terms for both pricing and delivery.  
• Campaign-Based Input Management  
  • Input Quantities & Types: Collaborate closely with Acceso agronomists to ensure the procurement of the specific types and quantities of inputs needed for each crop cycle (one campaign per crop).  
  • Credit Terms for Farmers: Ensure that inputs are purchased in alignment with the favorable credit terms offered to farmers, supporting Acceso’s mission of empowering smallholder farmers without financial strain.  
• Inventory & Supply Chain Management  
  • Inventory Monitoring: Manage inventory levels of inputs to ensure timely delivery to farmers before each campaign, avoiding both shortages and overstock.  
  • Procurement Policy Compliance: Ensure that all input purchases adhere strictly to Acceso’s procurement policies, ensuring transparency, accountability, and ethical sourcing practices.  
  • Risk Management: Identify and mitigate risks in the supply chain, ensuring consistent access to critical inputs even in times of market volatility.  
• Cross-Functional Collaboration  
  • Agronomist Coordination: Work closely with the agronomist team to understand their input requirements and timelines, ensuring that procurement aligns with field needs.  
  • Finance Collaboration: Collaborate with the finance team to track input costs, manage budgets, and align with Acceso’s financial strategies, including maintaining the 5% markup for sales to farmers.  
  • Engage with programs/operations (and agro-innovation), M&E, and agriculture teams to align procurement strategies with measurable impact (e.g., as tracked through FP&L metrics). 

Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree or MBA in Supply Chain Management, Agribusiness, Business Administration, or a related field.   
• Minimum 5 years of experience in general business management, procurement, micro-finance, supply chain, or purchasing, preferably in agriculture or agribusiness.  
• Proven experience in financial management of a business unit, supplier relationship management, contract negotiation, and inventory optimization.  
• Strong understanding of agricultural inputs, market dynamics, and credit terms in agriculture.  Familiarity with strict procurement policies and ethical sourcing practices.    
• Financial Planning, Budgeting and Cash Flow Management: Ability to manage the financial performance of a business unit in various countries. 
• Strategic Procurement: Ability to negotiate favorable terms with suppliers while creating economies of scale and securing cost-efficient inputs for farmers.  
• Compliance: Strong understanding of and commitment to strict procurement policies, ensuring ethical and transparent purchasing practices.  
• Inventory & Supply Chain Optimization: Expertise in managing inventory levels and ensuring timely procurement and distribution to meet campaign needs.  
• Collaborative Approach: Ability to work closely with agronomists and the finance team to align input purchases with crop cycles and credit terms for farmers.  
• Risk Management: Ability to identify and mitigate supply chain risks to ensure consistent input availability.   
• Fluency in English and Spanish, French or Haitian Créole a plus. 
• Ability to travel up to 20% of the time to Acceso’s markets in LATAM and the Caribbean. 

Application Instructions: 
To apply, please submit your CV/Resume and Cover Letter (all in English) via the application form below. 

For more information about Acceso and careers with us, please visit Acceso.org/careers. 

Acceso is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, HIV/AIDS status, protected veteran status, disability and all other protected classes.