Chief of Service, Security Resilience and Emergencies

Contract

This is a D-1 contract. This kind of contract is known as Professional and Director staff. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 15 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 242,484 USD and 305,990 USD.

Please keep in mind that the salary displayed here is an estimation by UN Talent based on the location and the type of contract. It may vary depending on the organization. The recruiter should be able to inform you about the exact salary range. In case the job description contains another salary information, please refer to this one.

Org. Setting and Reporting

The Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) is responsible for providing leadership, operational support and oversight of the United Nations security management system (UNSMS) globally. As a global leader in security risk management principles, UNDSS enables the safe and effective delivery of United Nations programmes and activities in the most complex and challenging environments, while maximizing precious resources. To this end, the work of the Department is aligned under a clear mission, to enable United Nations system programme activities through trusted security leadership and solutions.

This position is currently located in the Office of the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS), based in New York. The incumbent will head two newly established teams – the Operational Resilience Service (ORS) and the Emergency Response Unit (ERU) and will report directly to the Under-Secretary-General until such time when the abovementioned units as well as this position become fully embedded in the Division of Field Operations as a deputy Director, reporting to the Director of Field Operations.

This is a unique opportunity to join a diverse, dynamic and exciting organization gaining unique and valuable experience where security provides great value. Besides the opportunity to gain new skills and further advance security expertise, this position offers a fulfilling environment that gives you satisfaction by contributing directly or indirectly to peace and security, human rights, and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

For more information on the Department, and how we make an impact on the world in enabling the achievement of SDGs, visit: https://www.un.org/undss/

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Chief of Service - Security Resilience and Emergencies will lead, coordinate, supervise, and contribute to the results of the Operational Resilience Section and Emergency Response Unit. S/He will support the strategic management of security preparedness and response in support of the field in the face of instability or during escalating or sudden onset emergencies. The incumbent will also be responsible for ensuring agile, effective, evidence-based and flexible problem-solving and coordinated and coherent security response and planning capacity in times of crisis. The incumbent will be required to extensively travel, possibly for extended periods of time, to the field and support the UN security response to emergencies. The incumbent will be responsible for to following:

1. Lead and manage the Operational Resilience Section (ORS) and Emergency Response Unit (ERU):

   • Co-ordinates and oversees ORS and ERU in accordance with developed strategies and project plans;
   • Manages the performance, and provides strategic guidance to the Chiefs of ORS and ERU
   • Prepares reports on the units’ goals and implementation of their operational plans;
   • Oversees the evaluation of country planning and security responses to instability and emergencies in order to identify emerging problems in a timely fashion; apprises the USG and recommends measures to improve the Department’s results-based planning, preparedness, resilience and response; develops and monitors the implementation of the units’ performance indicators;
   • Ensures strategic alignment of the ORS and ERU with other UNDSS units, sections and divisions
   • Oversees the development and update, as required, of the units’ Terms of Reference, Standard Operating Procedures, work plans, relevant guidelines (on resilience, preparedness, foresight planning, emergency response) and monitors and reviews their implementation and alignment within DFO, including through identifying lessons learned and best practices;
   • Ensures that units operate in a timely, coordinated and consistent manner and that their outputs are of high quality;
   • Ensures that relevant provisions of UN security policies are fully implemented by the units;
   • Represents UNDSS in UN system and external platforms and events related to operation resilience and emergency response, as required and appropriate

2. Lead UNDSS expertise on country programme planning, preparedness and resilience at Headquarters in support of the field:

   • Establishes then oversees the foresight mechanism to ensure UNDSS remains aligned with the crisis risk perceptions of programme partners and anticipates significant changes to security environments;
   • Oversees ORS’s support to quality improvement in Security Risk Management and security planning;
   • Facilitates UNDSS alignment with the UN programming cycle and the development of UNDSS planning documents, in coordination with the Strategic Planning Service;
   • Facilitates UNDSS and Integrated Security Workforce adoption of the Results Chain framework, including annual workplans and resource plans to inform global allocation mechanisms for operational and human resources.
   • Oversees the management and development of a capability and capacity to enable the Department to monitor for imminent emergency response needs, providing recommendations to USG and DRO on the triggers for ERU support/deployment and prepositioning of resources;
   • Where required, supports the deployment of cross-functional teams to respond to escalating or sudden onset emergencies, providing interim security leadership in the affected country/area of operations;
   • Ensures effective linkages with other UN Departments and with the Agencies, Funds and Programmes, as well as with the emergency response structures across UN entities to enhance coordination, coherence and joint deployments, where required, as well as to inform development of emergency response strategies and action plans;

3. Oversee and provides strategic guidance to UNDSS operations centre responsible for situational reporting, information management and support to the HQ coordination of crisis management and response.

4. Support and liaison:

   • Serves as an effective interlocutor and establishes collaboration and partnerships with key officials and stakeholders at all levels inside and outside the organization.

5. Perform other functions as required.

Competencies

Professionalism: Provides an environment in which others can talk and act without fear of repercussion; places confidence in and builds trust with colleagues, staff members and stakeholders; exhibits superior ability to oversee, evaluate, organize, and coordinate operational support, crisis response and security analysis; ability to expeditiously master and implement a wide range of United Nations security management policies and procedures while providing proposals for further enhancement of the United Nations Security Management System; ability to provide effective strategic guidance and advice, both written and oral, to the Director of Regional Operations and the senior leadership of the Department of Safety and Security. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter and possesses strong communication skills; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations.

Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; Tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience; Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Planning and Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; Identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; Allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; Monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; Uses time efficiently.

Leadership: Serves as a role model that other people want to follow; Empowers others to translate vision into results; Is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives; Establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; Anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; Drives for change and improvement; does not accept the status quo; Shows the courage to take unpopular stands. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.

Managing Performance: Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority; Makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member; Accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches task to skills; Monitors progress against milestones and deadlines; Regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff; Encourages risk-taking and supports creativity and initiative; Actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff; Appraises performance fairly.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in risk, disaster or emergency management, social/political science, military science, public administration, law enforcement, law or related area. A first-level university degree in the aforementioned areas, in combination with two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

Job - Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of fifteen years of progressively responsible experience in international relations, international security, diplomacy, development, conflict resolution, law, humanitarian affairs, or related field is required.

At least five years of demonstrated experience in leadership and management of security risk management programmes and approaches in the UN system or comparable international organization at the international level is required, including effective and inclusive management in a multi-cultural setting and of cross-functional teams.

Experience in leading contingency planning and crisis management, as well as participating in the UN’s, or a comparable international organization’s response to crisis or emergency situations is required.

Experience in developing tools, approaches, and systems for results-based security management, including their implementation and monitoring, to enable programming in contexts of high insecurity and/or high humanitarian need is required.

A minimum of five years of field experience in the past ten years working within the UN Common System or comparable international organization or nongovernmental organization in a complex conflict, post-conflict or natural disaster setting in which progammes are impacted by insecurity is required.

Experience in foresight analysis is desirable.

Experience in development and/or implementation of organizational strategic and change management initiatives in a large international organization is desirable.

Experience in data analytics or related area is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in English (oral and written) is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is desirable.

NOTE: ''Fluency'' equals a rating of ''fluent'' in all four areas (read, write, speak, understand) and ''Knowledge of'' equals a rating of ''confident'' in two of the four areas.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

• This job opening is advertised to fill an extra-budgetary funded position. The position is temporarily available for six (6) months, with possibility for extension, subject to funding availability. Further extension of the appointment is subject to extension of mandate and funding availability. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment.

• While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post.

• A current staff member who holds a fixed-term, permanent or continuing appointment may apply for temporary positions no more than one level above his or her current grade.

• An impeccable record for integrity and professional ethical standards is essential.

• Staff members selected for this extra-budgetary temporary position may be required to submit a financial disclosure statement upon assignment.

• Due to the temporary nature of the position and subject to the funding source, the eligibility for this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station.

• This temporary job opening may be limited to "internal candidates," who have been recruited through a competitive examination administered according to staff rule 4.16 or staff selection process including the review of a central review body established according to staff rule 4.15.

• A staff member holding a temporary appointment shall be regarded as an external candidate when applying for other positions and may apply for other temporary positions at any level, subject to section 5.7 below and staff rule 4.16 (b) (ii). Therefore, a staff member holding a temporary appointment in the General Service or related categories may only apply to positions within those categories. For full information on eligibility requirements, please refer to section 5 of ST/AI/2010/4Rev.1 on Temporary Appointments.

• Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply. Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation.

• Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as "retirement." Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

• Upon separation from service, including, but not limited to, expiration or termination of, or resignation from, a fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointment, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment on the basis of a temporary appointment for a period of 31 days following the separation. In the case of separation from service on retirement, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment for a period of three months following the separation. This equally applies, mutatis mutandis, with respect to a former or current staff member who has held or holds an appointment in another entity applying the United Nations Staff Regulations and Rules and who applies for a temporary position with the Secretariat.

• An external candidate selected for this position is bound by the prevailing condition of the staff selection system under ST/AI/2010/3, as amended, and ST/AI/2010/4/Rev.1. A staff member holding a temporary appointment who is recruited in the Professional and above categories on a temporary appointment, and placed on a position authorized for one year or longer may not apply for or be reappointed to his/her current position within six months of the end of his/her current service. This provision does not apply to staff members holding temporary appointments and placed on positions authorized for one year or more in duty stations authorized for peacekeeping operations or special political missions.

• The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. The United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) is taking efforts to improve gender parity, including full implementation of the UN-wide, and Departmental Gender Strategies. We are committed to providing an inclusive culture and exciting opportunities for women in the security and operations field.

• At the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. The United Nations is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application.

• The Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and administrative issuances governing staff appointments can be viewed at: http://www.un.org/hr_handbook.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions.

Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.