Referent/in für nachhaltige Beschaffung

The core mission is to make Fördern & Wohnen's purchasing more sustainable in a way that holds up in day-to-day practice. That means developing and running sustainable procurement processes, embedding climate and social criteria into tenders and contracts, and making sure the criteria are specific enough to be evaluated. You also collect, prepare and document procurement-related data that feeds the greenhouse gas balance and sustainability reporting, working closely with finance and climate management colleagues. A second strand is supplier-facing. You gather information on suppliers' sustainability, climate and human rights performance, refine the requirements you place on them, and aim for increasingly product-based emissions data rather than rough estimates. You advise internal departments on market research, service descriptions, award criteria and bid evaluations, and you train colleagues on sustainable procurement and the legal framework behind it. Longer term, the role involves tracking regulatory and procurement law developments and translating them into practice, plus coordinating cross-departmental projects and representing procurement interests in working groups.

You would build practical expertise in public procurement law applied to sustainability, which is a skill set in short supply. Writing award criteria, running market dialogues and evaluating bids under German procurement rules gives you experience that translates to any public buyer. Working alongside climate management and finance on the greenhouse gas balance would also deepen your understanding of how procurement data flows into reporting. The supplier data work, moving toward product-based emissions, offers exposure to methods that many organisations are still figuring out. You would likely learn how to structure supplier questionnaires, judge data quality and connect spend categories to emission factors. Fördern & Wohnen advertises varied training and qualification offers, so formal courses in procurement law or climate accounting could be part of the picture. The cross-departmental project work also builds a network across a large public organisation.

The posting asks for a completed university degree in sustainability management, business administration, industrial engineering or a comparable field, plus professional experience in sustainability. Experience in public procurement is welcome but not required, so a sustainability generalist with an interest in buying could fit. Familiarity with SAP and standard MS Office tools is expected, alongside solid knowledge of sustainability management and some first experience in carbon accounting. On the personal side, the role calls for independent, decisive and reliable working, since you will be advising departments and making judgements on tender criteria. A confident manner with different business levels and contract partners matters, as does teamwork. The note about a valid work permit and sufficient German language skills reflects a role working with German procurement texts and internal departments, so strong written and spoken German is likely essential even though it is not listed in the profile.

Because this is a public-law institution, make your application concrete about process ownership: describe a procurement or supplier project you shaped, the criteria you set and the results. If you have written tender documents, supplier questionnaires or evaluation grids, say so. Sustainability experience is a stated requirement, so name the standards you have worked with, such as GHG protocol methods or human rights due diligence frameworks. Fördern & Wohnen's mission is housing and support for people who face barriers on the housing market. A short, specific motivation paragraph connecting sustainable purchasing to the organisation's social purpose will read better than general climate language. Mention any exposure to German public procurement rules (VOB, VOL, UVgO) or the Hamburg context, even if brief. Given the language requirement, write in clear German or provide a German version. Prepare for interview questions on how you would handle a department that resists sustainability criteria in a tender, since that tension is central to the job.

The role sits on the purchasing side of the organisation's climate and reporting work. Expect a strong focus on integrating climate criteria into tenders and contracts and on supplying procurement data for the greenhouse gas balance, coordinating with the climate management function. Product-level emissions data is named as a development goal, so the sustainability focus skews toward scope 3 and supply chain accounting. Supplier information on human rights and environmental conduct is another explicit strand, pointing to due diligence expectations for supply chains. For a housing and social services provider, procurement categories such as energy, construction and maintenance services, food and facility management would likely be where criteria matter most. The role also carries an internal enablement angle: training staff and advising on procurement law so sustainability requirements are legally sound. Governance and compliance with regulatory developments form the third leg.

The hardest part is likely the tension between sustainability criteria and procurement law. Criteria must be measurable, proportionate and defensible in an award procedure, so ideas that look good on paper can fail legal review. You would need to push departments toward ambitious requests while keeping tenders challengeable only on solid ground. Data quality is a second obstacle. Supplier information on emissions and human rights is often incomplete, and moving toward product-based emissions means persuading suppliers to share detail they may not track. Aligning finance and climate management definitions adds another layer. Third, changing behaviour in a large, decentralised organisation with many sites and departments takes patience. Colleagues may see sustainability criteria as extra bureaucracy, so training and advice need to be practical and well argued.

A day could start with reviewing tender documents from a department, checking that sustainability criteria are worded clearly and can be evaluated, then drafting comments or a revised text. You might join a market research call with a supplier or sit with climate management colleagues to align how procurement data maps to the emissions calculation. Much of the week involves advising internal buyers: answering questions on award criteria, joining a working group on a cross-departmental project, or preparing a training session for staff on sustainable procurement. Documentation and data work, cleaning supplier tables or updating questionnaires, tends to fill the quieter hours. Variation comes from deadlines in live tenders, new regulatory guidance and the reporting calendar, which would shorten or reshape the normal rhythm.

The role sits at the junction of procurement, climate accounting and reporting, which gives several directions for growth. Deepening procurement law expertise could lead toward a senior procurement or contract management position, while the reporting and emissions data work points toward sustainability reporting roles in larger public organisations. Experience with product-based emissions could open climate accounting specialisms. Because Fördern & Wohnen is a public-law institution under the Hamburg city structure, there is likely a structured career path with pay grades, employee reviews and access to further training. Cross-departmental projects give visibility to finance, climate management and operational leadership. Gaining responsibility for the sustainable procurement strategy, rather than supporting it, would be the natural next step.

The most frequent contacts would be internal buyers and specialist departments who need guidance on tenders, market research and bid evaluation. You would work closely with climate management and finance colleagues on the emissions data and with other purchasing units to align practice. Suppliers and contract partners are the external counterpart, through market dialogues, data requests and contract negotiations. You would also represent procurement interests in working groups, which means engaging with management and possibly legal colleagues on procurement law questions. Training sessions put you in front of staff from across the organisation, so communication with non-specialists is a regular part of the role.