Chief Social and Behavior Change (SBC), P-4, Fixed Term, Kathmandu, Nepal

Contract

This is a P-4 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 7 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 123,537 USD and 159,276 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.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, a future

The Chief, SBC reports to the Deputy Representative for general guidance and direction. The Chief, SBC is responsible for developing a systematic, planned, and evidence-based strategy and process for SBC as an integral part of programme development, planning, and implementation. Through the use of appropriate social and behavioral science, as well as the empowerment and participation of stakeholders, communities, children, civil society partners, and government counterparts, s/he promotes measurable behavioral and social change/mobilization. This subsequently contributes to the achievement of sustainable and concrete results in improving children’s rights, survival, and well-being in the country.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

1. Generate and utilize research, data, and evidence to inform the design, measurement, and monitoring of SBC programs and outcomes in both development and emergency contexts and to build the evidence base for SBC.

• Establish a clear SBC results framework and oversee data collection, tracking, monitoring and reporting, and disseminating SBC results. Contribute to relevant UNICEF monitoring systems such as RAM.
• Lead and/or manage situation analysis for SBC situation analyses that identify social and behavioral drivers.
• Synthesize and stay current with data, evidence, and trends for social and behavioral issues and provide leadership on programme directions informed by this information
• Guide staff in commissioning, managing, and utilizing qualitative and quantitative research on social and behavioral drivers, including behavioral analysis, human-centered design, social listening, behavioral insights, participatory research, and RCTs. Ensure integration of results of research in SBC strategies.
• Ensure that SBC activities and products are informed by formative research and pretesting and are culturally and contextually relevant. Provide leadership on the quality control of SBC activities and products as needed.
• Remain current on the latest innovative approaches and technology in SBC and the latest developments in social and behavioral sciences and ensure their integration into programme approaches. Advocate for their adoption among internal and external stakeholders.
• Provide leadership in promoting and disseminating best practices and innovative approaches and technology in SBC and advocating for their uptake in sectoral programmes (internal and external).
• Oversee the establishment of community feedback mechanisms and use of feedback to inform community engagement and SBC actions for disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and resilience.
• Provide leadership for the generation and use of SBC evidence, data, and assessments for disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and resilience.

2. Design, plan, and implement SBC activities that are backed by social and behavioral evidence and strong engagement and participation mechanisms in both development and humanitarian contexts.

• Lead teams in the application of evidence, insights, innovations, and new technologies to SBC strategies and activities.
• Set policy direction and provide leadership in the development, implementation, and monitoring of SBC strategies, in line with global standards and UNICEF priorities and approaches.
• Confirm/approve the technical quality, consistency, and relevance of SBC activities and platforms for engagement, ensuring quality and integration of the latest evidence and UNICEF's programmatic approaches.
• Approve and use resources as planned, manage and monitor programme funds and verify compliance with organizational guidelines, rules, regulations, and standards of ethics and transparency.
• Oversee the design, planning, implementation, and monitoring of community engagement and SBC interventions in the context of humanitarian emergencies
• Manage the development and coordination of preparedness and response SBC and RCCE strategies and implementation plans with stakeholders and partners.
• Provide SBC inputs to the development and implementation of Accountability to Affected Populations frameworks, in collaboration with other sections and partners.

3. Support the operationalization of SBC by advocating for SBC, mobilizing resources, coordinating across stakeholders, sectors, and teams, and partnership building.

• Establish and provide strategic leadership for partnerships and resource mobilization opportunities to support SBC. Advocate for UNICEF priorities within these mechanisms.
• Lead collaboration with national, regional, and/or global partners to link and coordinate SBC approaches.
• Mobilize financial resources for SBC within CPDs and other financial mechanisms.
• Provide strategic leadership and vision for the SBC teams/staff and mobilize workforce and flexible external expertise to achieve SBC goals and objectives.
• Oversee financial planning, budgeting, tracking, and management of funds for SBC.
• Oversee the identification, vetting, and recruitment of consultants, vendors, and other technical expertise to support the delivery of SBC activities. Manage and oversee their activities and deliverables.
• Make viable recommendations to senior managers (internal and external) on the inclusion of social and behavioral drivers in sectoral work plans and strategies.
• Advocate among senior decision makers (internal and external) for the inclusion of social and behavioral approaches in sectoral work plans, strategies, and funding plans.
• Contribute to the policy and agenda setting for SBC advocacy and investments within the UNICEF office and among partners.
• Lead and represent UNICEF interests among stakeholders and partners for the implementation of community engagement and SBC in humanitarian actions.
• Represent UNICEF’s national SBC interests among partners and in national and international level fora.
• Advocate internally and externally for integration of SBC in national systems, in the country programme, and in sectoral plans.

• Initiate and provide strategic guidance for relationships with external partners, vendors, and consultants for research and evidence generation.

  4. Promote continuous learning, strengthening, and scaling up in SBC for both development and humanitarian contexts through capacity building for UNICEF staff and partners.

• Lead on the development and/or use of tools, guidelines, and training materials to build SBC capacity among country staff, implementing partners, and other relevant government and non-government partners.

• Identify capacity development needs of country offices and partners and oversee the design and organization of SBC capacity development initiatives, including new approaches such as behavioral analysis, behavioral insights, human-centered design, social listening, and social accountability mechanisms.
• Promote and advocate for best practices and uptake of new SBC methods and knowledge internally and externally.
• Oversee SBC capacity assessments.
• Advocate with government counterparts for the uptake of SBC capacity building in national systems and plans.
• Provide strategic leadership for partnership development with academia and learning institutions for the delivery of SBC capacity development activities.
• Advocate for, establish, and oversee mechanisms to strengthen systems for community engagement and SBC in humanitarian contexts.
• Initiate and oversee capacity development activities for humanitarian programming with a focus on preparedness, response, and recovery.
• Secure resources for SBC capacity development activities.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: social and behavioral science, sociology, anthropology, psychology, education, communication, public relations, or another relevant technical field.
• A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in a relevant field combined with additional three years of relevant and strong professional experience may be accepted in lieu of a Master’s Degree.
• A minimum of eight years of professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: social development programme planning, communication for development, public advocacy, or another related area.
• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.
• Experience working in a developing country is considered an asset.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships (2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (3) Drive to achieve results for impact (4) Innovates and embraces change (5) Manages ambiguity and complexity (6) Thinks and acts strategically (7) Works collaboratively with others (8) Nurtures, leads and manages people.

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks:

This position has been assessed as an elevated risk role for Child Safeguarding purposes as it is:a role with direct contact with children, works directly with children, is a safeguarding response role. Additional vetting and assessment for elevated risk roles in child safeguarding (potentially including additional criminal background checks) apply.

UNICEF’s active commitment towards diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female candidates are encouraged to apply.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.