CSIR Vacancies
Project Administrator
Location
Scientia, Pretoria (On-site)
Full/Part Time
Full-Time
Regular/Temporary
Permanent
The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is a leading scientific and technology research organisation that researches, develops, localises and diffuses technologies to accelerate socio-economic prosperity in South Africa. The organisation’s work contributes to industrial development and supports a capable state.
Project Administrator
About the job:
The CSIR has a vacancy for Project Administrator in the Mining Technical Solutions (MTS) Impact Area within the Mining Cluster. The purpose of the role is to provide project coordination, project controls, and administrative support across the project lifecycle, including initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, reporting, quality assurance, and close-out, to enable effective, compliant, and efficient delivery of projects within the Mining Cluster. The position is based in Pretoria.
This position reports to the Research Group Leader.
For more information about the cluster please visit: https://www.csir.co.za/future-production-mining.
Key responsibilities:
- Support proposal development and contract administration.
- Provide support into proposals.
- Route contracts for review to MTS management, Legal, and BD&C.
- Ensure compliance with applicable governance requirements, including PFMA and PPPFA requirements.
- Experience using Microsoft Project or similar software
- Prepare and ensure that all project initiation documentation is complete and of good quality.
- Prepare project and contract registration forms and the project plan in collaboration with project managers.
- Create a project start-up file and update it until project close-out.
- Support the establishment, implementation, and maintenance of project controls.
- Ensure compliance with project control standards and procedures.
- Support the team with risk identification and response planning.
- Support the facilitation of project scoping and planning.
- Assist with project financial monitoring by reviewing dashboard information, supporting income declaration calculations, and escalating deviations to the project lead and Finance where required.
- Highlight red flags, such as incorrect booking, and inform the project lead and relevant stakeholders.
- Register Parliamentary Grant projects on the Strategic Investment Management System (SIMS) and follow the standard income declaration process.
- Perform continuous quality checks and report anomalies to the project manager.
- Support the project leader, quality manager, and configuration manager to capture project configuration data and documentation in the appropriate configuration or document management system.
- Facilitate the collation of project documentation and ensure compliance with project management, business frameworks, and CSIR quality standards.
- Organise meetings and events such as workshops, strategy sessions, and ad-hoc visits when needed
- Facilitate the procurement of technical and office supplies
Qualifications, skills and experience:
- National Diploma or equivalent qualification in Project Management, Business Administration, or a related field, with formal project management training with at least two years project administration experience within a Project or Programme Management environment, assisting in the coordination of multiple projects of experience.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Project or similar project planning software
- Numerical reasoning and budget monitoring skills
- Good written and verbal communication skills
- Working knowledge of project controls, including schedules, registers, risks, dependencies, resources, and budget monitoring
- Knowledge of project documentation, document control, and configuration management processes
- Understanding of governance, compliance, procurement, and contract administration processes applicable to project environments
- Ability to coordinate inputs from multiple stakeholders and follow up on actions, approvals, and outstanding information
- Ability to prepare, update, and interpret project status reports, dashboards, registers, and other project control information.
- All international qualifications require an evaluation report / certificate issued by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).
What’s in it for you?
The CSIR offers:
- Learning and development opportunities.
- Competitive and market-related remuneration packages.
- Total guaranteed salary packages which encompass contributions to the pension fund, risk insurance and medical scheme.
- We openly acknowledge and reward our employees’ contributions and accomplishments through our esteemed CSIR Excellence Awards.
Closing date: 28 September 2026
PLEASE NOTE THAT FEEDBACK WILL BE GIVEN TO SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES ONLY.
For more info, please contact the CSIR Recruitment Centre on 012 841 4774 or email us at Recruitmentinfo@csir.co.za
The CSIR is an equal opportunity employer. As such, it is committed to the Employment Equity Act and will through the filling of this vacancy, give preference to candidates from Designated Groups in terms of the Employment Equity Act. By applying for this position at the CSIR, the applicant understands, and agrees that the CSIR may solicit a credit and criminal report from registered credit bureau and/or South African Police Services (in relation to positions that requires trust and honesty and/or entail the handling of cash or finances),and may also verify the applicant’s educational qualification and employment history. The CSIR reserves the right to remove the advertisement at any time before the stated closing date and it further reserves the right not to appoint if a suitable candidate is not identified.
The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is a leading scientific and technology research organisation that researches, develops, localises and diffuses technologies to accelerate socio-economic prosperity in South Africa. The organisation’s work contributes to industrial development and supports a capable state.
Procurement Administrator
About the job:
The CSIR has a vacancy for a Procurement Administrator in the Supply Chain Management Unit. The successful incumbent will be responsible to manage all administrative organisational activities related to the operations and transactions of the procurement services team. This position is based in Pretoria.
Key responsibilities:
Tickets and Inquiries
- Manage procurement tickets as well as monitor, allocate, assign, re-assign, follow up, report, resolve and close tickets of all procurement services on the CSIR service hub.
- Respond to the tender inquiry line and distribute inquiries appropriately.
Activities/registers
- Manage SPP/PP activities and follow up on all actions to be taken (update, record, follow up) – including management of tender spreadsheets, submission of published tenders’ bidders list etc.
- Manage, update and publish the CSIR contract register including allocation of supplier contract number for the CSIR.
- Manage deviations registers (update, submissions, record-keeping) – including sole supplier, emergency, variation and expansions, National Treasury approval registers.
- Update and maintain the CSIR Procurement plan in line with legislation and National Treasury requirements to ensure that information submitted annually is updated as changes on the Procurement Plan occur in preparation for the quarterly submission to National Treasury.
Reports
- Generate and provide reports to management on operational team activities, tenders, tickets and mailboxes.
- Collect and provide information for auditing purposes.
Tenders
- Tender administration – inclusive of all RFQs/RFPs that are published on behalf of the CSIR on either CSIR, CIDB or National Treasury website. See bottom for more information on tender management – Inclusive of this responsibility:
- Recording, follow-up, publishing, collecting, distribution, awarding, cancellations, withdrawals.
- Manage the CSIR tender mailbox – including distribution of all incoming queries, communications and responses with specific emphasis on communication to external entities.
- Manage the CSIR procurement mailbox- including distribution of all incoming e-mails, with specific emphasis on follow-ups with Procurement Practitioners regarding outstanding actions.
Administration
- Record keeping of original and signed operational SCM documents, including publication of documents to Intraweb or designated location.
- Provide general administrative assistance to SCM group – might also include standing in for other administrators including minute/ note taking of all operational meetings and managing the flow of documents/ approvals/ issues between the Executive, SCM management and Procurement Practitioners.
Credit card purchases
- Process all credit card purchases received via either workflow or e-procurement system.
Non-compliance incidents
- Administer all non-compliance incidents and ensure that the complete process has been followed correctly by all involved parties.
Procurement catalogues
- Update and maintain all procurement catalogues in line with supplier agreements.
Qualifications, skills and experience:
- A National Diploma in Supply Chain Management or equivalent qualification with at least three years` experience in Supply Chain environment
- Experience in office administration and management will be advantageous
- Administrative skills
- Detailed, focused and meticulous
- Computer literacy
- Organizational skills
- Typing skills
- Numerical skills
- E-procurement knowledge
- Ability to deal with a diverse team of procurement practitioners
- Ability to deal with a large volume of work at times
- All international qualifications require an evaluation report/certificate issued by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).
What’s in it for you?
The CSIR offers:
- Learning and development opportunities.
- Competitive and market-related remuneration packages.
- Total guaranteed salary packages which encompass contributions to the pension fund, risk insurance and medical scheme.
- We openly acknowledge and reward our employees’ contributions and accomplishments through our esteemed CSIR Excellence Awards.
Closing date: 23 September 2026
Programme Administrator : Critical Minerals Programme
Three-year contract, subject to yearly renewal
About the job:
The CSIR has a vacancy for Programme Administrator in the Mining Cluster. The Mining cluster is seeking a Programme Administrator to join its mining cluster team, the successful incumbent will provide core operational, administrative, and financial-tracking support to the R60 Million, 3-year TIA Critical Minerals Programme Management Office (PMO). Reporting to the Programme Manager, the incumbent manages daily PMO workflows, coordinates multi-tiered governance meetings (Steering Committee, Advisory Board, and Judging Panels), compiles PFMA financial drawdown packs, tracks SMME grant records, maintains project data repositories, and serves as the primary administrative liaison for programme stakeholders. The position is based in Pretoria.
This position reports to Programme Manager: Critical Minerals Programme.
For more info about the cluster, please visit https://www.csir.co.za/future-production-mining.
Key responsibilities:
Multi-tier governance & secretariat administration:
- Schedule and coordinate meetings for the Steering Committee, Advisory Board, Technical Teams, and SMME Judging Panels;
- Compile and distribute meeting packs, agendas, and technical presentation decks at least 5 business days prior to meetings;
- Accurately record and distribute minutes, decision registers, and action tracking logs within 5 business days of meetings.
Financial tracking:
- Assist the Programme Manager with tracking monthly budget and expenses against approved budget line items under PFMA rules.
- Collate verified timesheets, expense receipts, vendor invoices, and milestone/progress reports.
- Track invoice routing through CSIR finance systems to ensure vendor and SMME payments are disbursed within agreed turnaround times.
Document control & digital platform maintenance:
- Establish, organise, and maintain secure digital document repositories (SharePoint Portal) for all technical, administrative and governance files;
- Support the population and regular updating of data inputs for the Live Stakeholder Reporting Dashboard;
- Maintain up-to-date registries of signed Master Collaboration Agreements (MCAs), non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and SMME grant contracts.
SMME competition & event logistics management:
- Provide administrative coordination for CAMP events: stakeholder engagements, SMME open calls, hackathons, pitch days, and demo days;
- Manage application intake, assist with the redacting/anonymising of proposal submissions for the competition’s double-blind review protocol, and maintain applicant logs;
- Coordinate venue bookings, catering, travel, accommodation, and logistics for national events and stakeholder workshops.
Stakeholder communication & general PMO support:
- Act as the primary administrative helpdesk for programme inquiries from government, mining houses, universities, and SMME applicants.
- Screen, log, and route project queries to the Programme Manager or BD Practitioner, following up through to full resolution.
- Perform general office administration, travel bookings, stationery procurement, and asset management for PMO personnel.
Qualifications, skills and experience:
- A National Diploma (NQF Level 6) or bachelor’s degree (NQF Level 7) in Business Administration, Project Management, Public Administration, Office Management, or a related field.
- Certified associate in project management (CAPM) or equivalent Project Management Certification will be advantageous.
- At least 3 to 5 years’ progressive experience in project/programme management administration and operational coordination.
- Previous experience working within a CSIR, TIA, or national science council project environment.
- Experience working in the mining industry/with mining stakeholders or technology-related firms.
- Proven experience supporting multi-project portfolios, public-sector programmes, or R&D initiatives.
- Demonstrated experience servicing formal committee structures (preparing agendas, minutes, and action logs).
- Experience in financial administrative support, budget monitoring, and invoice tracking under PFMA or public accounting guidelines.
- Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint) and project management software (MS Project or similar)..
- All international qualifications require an evaluation report / certificate issued by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).
What’s in it for you?
The CSIR offers:
- Learning and development opportunities.
- Competitive and market-related remuneration packages.
- Total guaranteed salary packages which encompass contributions to the pension fund, risk insurance and medical scheme.
- We openly acknowledge and reward our employees’ contributions and accomplishments through our esteemed CSIR Excellence Awards.
Closing date: 23 September 2026
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