Coordination Specialist Consultant – UNTF Procedure and Guidance revision and development

Contract

This is a International Consultant contract. More about International Consultant contracts.

Background

The UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women (UN Trust Fund) is a global multi-lateral grant making mechanism supporting national efforts to prevent and end violence against women and girls. The UN Trust Fund was established through the UN General Assembly Resolution 50/166 in 1996 with UN Women as its Administrator on behalf of the UN system. The UN Trust Fund provides grants to advance the development of innovative models and strategic interventions in the area of ending violence against women and girls. Grantees have engaged diverse actors, such as women’s, men’s, adolescents and youth groups, indigenous communities, religious and traditional leaders, human rights organizations, and the media. To date, the UN Trust Fund has awarded US $198 million to 609 initiatives in 140 countries and territories.

In its 2021-2025 Strategic Plan, the UN Trust Fund commits to “continuous learning that feeds back into and informs its own policies and procedures” and to “continue to appraise basic standards to ensure they comply with UN Women policies and procedures”.

In this context and under the on-going Business Model Review process, the UN Trust Fund requires specific consultancy support to:

1. Carry out a mapping of the internal policies, procedures and guidance (hereinafter referred to as PPGs), at the Unit and Grantee levels, that may require revisions or updates, based on the UN Women Policy, Procedure and Guidance Framework. This process shall include a determination of organizational needs, risks and business processes for Trust Fund management and should address internal and external obligations and recommendations.
2. Develop a stakeholder engagement and consultation plan that will facilitate the engagement and consultation process among working groups, the outputs of which will seek to provide cross- functional input in the revision and/or development of the PPGs. This process will be undertaken in line with the guidance provided by the UN Women PPG function.
3. Conduct adequate consultation with all stakeholders e.g., UNTF Managers, Portfolio Managers, and with other units, to ensure the full policy and operational implications of the planned Procedure or Guidance have been taken into account.
4. Analyze the outputs of the mapping process and the stakeholder engagement process, that will inform the drafting of the PPGs, also leveraging on the mutual recognition principle as signed by UN System organizations, that seeks to ensure that consistency in the application of PPGs.
5. Support the Chief and UNTF Managers with determining the level of the document required (e.g.: whether it is Policy, Procedure, Guidance) and whether the document is mandatory or non-mandatory when making this determination.
6. Review, revise and update the internal mapped procedures and guidelines (including material or non-material revisions) against UN Women Corporate Policies to avoid duplication, redundancy, conflict, and inconsistency and with the aim of improving efficiency and effectiveness.
7. Working with the UNTF Chief and Managers, coordinate the finalization of the Procedure and Guidance documents, and comply with the quality assurance process as required by the PPG procedural framework, leading up to the final promulgation of the documents.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the UNTF Capacity Development and Operations Manager the Consultant will lead on implementation of activities related to revision of the existing and development of new UNTF Procedure and Guidance documents, in accordance with the new UNTF Strategic Plan and in alignment with UN Women Policies and Procedures.

UNTF is responsible for providing substantive content and guidance for the consultant to proceed with his/her work, such as existing policies, procedures and guidance documents and related materials, indicating what content is intended to be mandatory and not mandatory.

This consultancy will be implemented in following steps:

Phase 1

Mapping of the internal Procedures and Guidance documents:

• Collate and familiarize self with existing UNTF procedures, guidance documents and related materials, including but not limited to the UNTF Strategic Plan and Strategic Plan Results Framework, Operations Guidelines, Operations Manual, Grant-Giving Procedure, Small Grants Evaluation Process, Liquidation and Advance Process, Call for Proposals, etc. as well as documentation created in 2021 as part of the Business Review Process and audit recommendations.
• Familiarize self with UN Women Policies, Procedures and Guidance (PPGs), as well with PPGs from key UN agencies.
• As part of the mapping and analysis process, identify concrete synergies or gaps between existing UN Trust Fund internal processes and UN Women’s PPG structure (i.e. map in writing the extent to which each UNTF process/guidance currently aligns with UNW’s PPG).
• Identify existing procedures, process notes, and other related documents for a review, revision and/or update as well as identification of any gaps in current internal processes/documentation.

Phase 2

Consultation and documentation revision process:

• Develop a stakeholder mapping and consultation Plan: include information on the purpose/objective of each identified procedure or guidance, recommended amendments and the desired outcomes, as well as determination of the consultation methodology (in consultation with the UN Women function) and associated timeline.
• Coordinate and conduct adequate consultation in accordance with the consultation plan and considering the comments, input or feedback received to prepared drafts in the consultation process with all stakeholders e.g., UNTF Managers, Portfolio Managers, and with other units, to ensure the full policy and operational implications of the planned procedure or guidance have been taken into account, gathering relevant expertise from various stakeholders to identify issues and options.
• Lead the documentation revision process, by proactively anticipating updates and revisions to each identified document based on the mapping process, ensuring compliance with the corporate PPGs to avoid duplication, redundancy, conflict, and inconsistency and with the aim of improving efficiency and effectiveness.
• Make informed recommendations to UNTF Managers on whether to review, revise and/or update each internal mapped procedures and guidelines (including material or non-material revisions) and propose in writing identified recommendations/changes.
• Share draft documents for input, consolidate comments and record keeping of all feedback received from the consultation process and share this with the stakeholders as well as the UNTF Managers. In the spirit of efficiency, convert internal documents into proposed corporate formats prior to the consultation process to avoid additional layers of reviews/consultation and to facilitate better identification of gaps.
• Based on an understanding of business processes, make recommendations on the classification level of each document (e.g.: whether it is Policy, Procedure, Guidance) and whether the document is mandatory or non-mandatory when making this determination and obtain clearance from the Chief and UNTF Managers
• Lead the documentation review and drafting process to ensure that at the end of the consultation process, sufficient evidence is maintained that includes comments/input/feedback received and the decisions taken on the adoption of the input received, along with reasons why some of the input was not adopted.

Phase 3

Documentation finalization and sign-off process:

• Finalize documentation and ensure quality assurance and adherance to the appropriate official corporate templates for further review and promulgation.
• Conduct further consultations on the finalized documents with the stakeholders, if needed.

Phase 4

Submission to PPG for final promulgations:

• Coordinate approval for the final Procedure and Guidance documents with the UN Women PPG function to ensure that these are approved in line with the PPG Policy and Procedure.

The consultant will undertake other tasks assigned by the Manager.

The timely completion, submission and approval of the deliverables, in full compliance with the duties and responsibilities specified, are the conditions for payment to the consultant.

Competencies

Core Values/Guiding Principles:

Integrity:

• Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct

Professionalism:

• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work

Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:

• Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff
• Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity

Ethics and Values:

• Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity

Organizational Awareness:

• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment

Work in teams:

• Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds

Development and Innovation:

• Take charge of self-development and take initiative

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

• Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others

Conflict Management:

• Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution

Functional Competencies:

• Demonstrated ability to produce clear reports/documents with in-depth analysis and strategic recommendations in English in the relevant fields
• Ability in strategic planning, results-based management and reporting;
• Good communication and interpersonal skills, ability to foster networks and partnerships
• Experience and knowledge of business process, procedure and guidance development
• Demonstrates openness to change, flexibility, and ability to manage complexities

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Advanced university degree (Master’s level) in one of the following disciplines: business or public administration, law, political science, international relations, programme/project management, or another relevant field.

Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of experience in coordination, project/programmes management, operations, administration and/or other related fields is required;
• Demonstrable experience in analyzing the complex business processes, drafting analysis, policies and/or procedures and/or guidance notes is required;
• Working knowledge of mission-driven organizations and the UN system (experience working with UN Women or other UN organizations would be considered an advantage);
• Knowledge of UN or similar organization regulations, rules, policies, procedures and practices are required; knowledge of UN Women-specific policies and procedures would be an asset;
• Experience in co-creation of business processes for strategic planning and/or results-based monitoring/reporting would be considered an advantage;
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software package (MS Word, Excel etc.);
• Excellent communication and interpersonal relation skills;

• Client-oriented.

  Language:

• Proficient in written and oral English