Personal dimension

All talents united in the profession

The first heroine of our new column is Head of the Group of the Procurement & Logistics Service (PLS) Aurika VOITISHINA. She talks about her interests, university, profession and what role these factors played in her employment at JINR. In this story, you can read not only about the fate of Aurika, but also invisible processes that recently have been held in PLS, the structure of the service, the responsibilities of personnel, procurement procedures and... a wonderful new project.

At the time of entering the Dubna University, I already had experience of studying in the USA and France, 12 years of study at a Romanian school and the realization that I was just as good at the humanities as at the exact sciences. But there was no understanding of what exactly I would like to do in life. The choice of faculty and field of study in my family was approached in the best traditions of the patriarchal system - the choice was made by my elder brother that decided to unite all my talents.

After successfully having passed the entrance exams, I entered the Department of Project Management (specialty: Economics and Management in Science and Scientific Service Enterprises). When I was a fifth-year student, at one of the seminars, the teacher enthusiastically spoke not only about databases, but also that a new Procurement & Logistics Service had been established at JINR and its head was ready to take several students for pre-diploma internship followed by support of the thesis.

To be honest, I had no plans to unite my destiny with Dubna and JINR, but succumbing to the persuasion of a friend, in January, 2015, I began my internship at PLS and literally from the first days, I realized that it was for me. At the end of the internship, I had in my hands not only a diploma and an offer to continue my career at JINR, but also a clear inner feeling that I had found my calling and my team, since the people I met at the Institute are another precious gift fate.

The first years of work were very active; we built in practice a completely new procurement system at JINR. Initially, the processing of purchase requests, as well as the approval of contracts was carried out on paper. My immediate responsibilities included processing applications, including searching for possible counterparties; organization of competitive procedures (preparation of notices, collection of applications for participation, verification of the reliability of participants); participation in procurement commissions as a speaker; preparation and further coordination of draft contracts with selected suppliers. At that time, PLS was responsible for the entire procurement process - from the application to the fulfillment of all obligations under the contract. In addition to the core activities, purchases of personal computer equipment and components were centralized that allowed to increase the efficiency of spending funds and to ensure transparency and information openness.

Over time, using the accumulated knowledge and experience of other scientific organizations, we found out that the established procurement system needs to be specified and refined. This process coincided with a period of change in the structure of the Institute's Management. PLS was included in the Department for the Development of Digital Services and carrying out contractual activities and control for the implementation of contractual obligations was no longer part of the responsibilities of our service. After the reorganization of the structure of the Institute, PLS retained the divisions that existed at that time. The marketing and organization of purchasing procedures group looks for who, how and under what conditions to purchase equipment and goods; these are professional buyers and organizers of competitive procedures. The customs clearance group is responsible for the import and export of goods, ensuring logistics for deliveries from abroad and declaring imported goods and equipment. The storage and logistics group is essentially a central warehouse where purchased equipment and materials are stored until they are required.

In 2021, I was appointed to the position of head of the marketing and procurement procedures group. One of the first tasks I faced was updating and building a hierarchy of local regulations, in particular, the Regulations on procurement activities and relevant regulations governing individual stages of JINR's procurement activities. It was quite a voluminous collective work, but we successfully completed it.

When working with purchase requests, our team members have to, if necessary, select a potential supplier or check the reliability of the counterparty proposed by the purchase initiator. For all purchases exceeding the threshold of five thousand US dollars, it is also necessary to confirm that the proposed price corresponds to the market by studying the request for an alternative proposal or carrying out a retrospective analysis of purchases of these items or works. For purchases above the threshold value of thirty thousand dollars, the organization and implementation of competitive procedures is provided, unless the purchase initiator has provided a reasonable conclusion about placing an order with a single supplier. After determining the counterparty that depending on the technique of placing the order, is chosen by the procurement initiator or the procurement commission, PLS brings all the essential conditions for the implementation of the procurement into compliance with the regulatory procurement acts of the Institute and transfers this information to the contract department for further work.

Today, my responsibilities include preparing for meetings of procurement commissions at various levels, checking the correctness and sufficiency of documents for transferring the drafting of a contract and other activities related to the performance of group employees' duties. However, the main project that I supervise is the development and operation of the JINR Marketplace. The goal of this project is to create a corporate online store in which any employee of the Institute will be able to purchase office supplies, furnitur and household goods for their work from trusted suppliers, at the best price and most importantly, with the shortest delivery time. This service is currently used only by PLS employees, but during 2024, we are going to launch it into mass operation.

I can say with confidence that we make every possible effort to help JINR scientists to achieve the most ambitious goals and their successes are a powerful motivation for us. I wish you all a wonderful productive year!