Head of Programme Management Office

Contract

This is a IICA-3 contract. This kind of contract is known as International Individual Contractor Agreements. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's an external contract. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education. More about IICA-3 contracts.

Background Information - UNOPS

UNOPS supports the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to serve people in need by expanding the ability of the United Nations, governments and other partners to manage projects, infrastructure and procurement in a sustainable and efficient manner.

Working in some of the world’s most challenging environments, our vision is to advance sustainable implementation practices, always satisfying or surpassing our partners’ expectations.

With over 7,000 personnel spread across 80 countries, UNOPS offers its partners the logistical, technical and management knowledge they need, wherever they need it.

A flexible structure and global reach means that we can quickly respond to our partners' needs, while offering the benefits of economies of scale.

Background Information - Job-specific

THOH

Thailand Operations Hub (THOH) is a UNOPS business unit under the UNOPS Asia Regional Office and it was established to better support, develop and oversee the UNOPS portfolio of projects in South East Asia and the Pacific.

The Hub comprises three main portfolios –THOH Thailand, THOH Indonesia and THOH Pacific and provides a wide range of services including Project Management, Transactional HR, Financial, and Procurement to clients that include other UN entities, INGOs and governments/government agencies donors.

BRG Results Enabling Facility (BRG REF)

Seasonal peatland fires are now compromising Indonesia’s economic and social development by creating considerable threats to health, the environment, and the economy. In 2015 peat fires and their related haze resulted in the hospitalization of more than half a million people due to acute respiratory infections. These fires that raged through 2.6 million hectares of forest and peatland areas in the islands of Kalimantan and Sumatra released 1.6 Gts of CO2e, surpassing the annual CO2 emissions of advanced industrialized nations such as Germany, France, and others. Direct and indirect damages cost the Indonesian national economy an estimated USD 16 billion, about 2% of its annual GDP.

In recognition of the importance of peatlands for climate change mitigation, the Government of Indonesia through Presidential Regulation No 1/2016 constituted the Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG). BRG has an important mandate: prevent forest fires, especially in peatland areas, as well as restore 2 million hectares of peatlands devastated by forest and land fires. The Agency identified 7 target provinces for peatland restoration and fire prevention activities in Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan and Papua.

Since the establishment in 2016 of BRG, Norway has supported BRG, as part of a wider partnership between Norway and Indonesia established in 2010, to reduce emissions from deforestation and land degradation of forests and peatlands. Norway intends to provide USD 1 billion as part of an international climate mitigation initiative (UNFCCC) that uses international aid to counter forest degradation in various parts of the world. This is one of the largest ever contribution made to reduce deforestation.

In the framework of this background, Norway and BRG have asked UNOPS to develop a flexible multiyear administrative support mechanism for managing Norway’s financial support to BRG through the establishment of the BRG Results Enabling Facility (BRG REF). The mechanism has within its scope a back-office management component and a service, procurement, grants management and a delivery component.

UNOPS is hiring for the post of Head of Programme Management Office to fill the position that has become vacant. Reporting to the Fund and Country Manager, the incumbent shall be responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund management Office (FMO), ensuring effective grants management, project support including planning, implementation coordination, monitoring, financial management and client donor/client reporting. The incumbent shall collaborate with the Head of Implementation Support Unit on project implementation and THOH Head of Support Services on technical issues related to operations/grants management and management of back-office support to BRG. The incumbent shall also interact with various specialized units with UNOPS at hub, regional and corporate level as well as with BRG and the donor.

Functional Responsibilities

Reporting to the Fund and Country Manager, who provides general supervision and guidance, the incumbent is responsible for the following:

Implementation of operational strategies and procedures

• Full compliance of project financial and grant activities with UNOPS rules, regulations, policies and strategies; implementation of effective internal control, proper design and functioning of the financial resources management system for the BRG-REF grants.
• Ensure full compliance with donor policies and reporting requirements.
• Elaboration/establishment of internal standard operating procedures and control of the workflows in the Fund Management Office for BRG-REF.
• Elaboration and implementation of cost-saving and reduction strategies.
• Up-to-date on policy developments on UNOPS financial management issues.

Project implementation

• Manage the engagement in oneUNOPS / OneUnops Projects on behalf of the Fund and Country Manager.
• Provide technical support to project planning and development of strategies. Lead implementation monitoring and reporting (technical and financial).
• Manage information flows and oversee change controls, risk registers and issue management by establishing document control procedures.

• Manage assigned delivery of work packages and take responsibility for progress.

• Work with the Head of the Implementation Support Unit (ISU) to identify and manage risks.

• Analyze work processes, develop streamlined procedures, and identify possible synergies with other programmes/projects in THOH Indonesia as well as at hub level.
• Act as focal point between the Fund Management Office and THOH Support Services on all technical matters.
• Preparation and maintenance of programme/project files, including internal and external project reports.

• Ensure full compliance with Project Management Standards

• Coordinate and liaise with other managers of other units and work packages on the implementation progress; agree on inputs required for the FMO and identify implementation bottlenecks and offer solutions for consideration

• Coordinate the preparation of Fund Board meetings

Programme Support and Grants Management

• Provide high-quality professional advice to the Fund and Country Manager.
• Manage the FMO team ensuring that appropriate strategies, operational standards and systems are established and maintained.
• Develop Standard Operating procedures (SOPs), manuals, plans, budgets, reporting template and all necessary programme support devices and toolsets as may be required for BRG-REF grants implementation.
• Ensure all operational agreements with implementing partners are managed, including their amendments and legal negotiations ensuring appropriate processing of UNOPS internal processes related to necessary awards and approvals from relevant UNOPS authorities.
• Ensure that activities for ongoing grants are monitored, analyzed and reported on a timely basis, lead the preparation and timely submission of reports to BRG and internally.
• Ensure Proper planning, expenditure tracking and audit of financial resources for the BRG-REF grants, in accordance with UNOPS financial rules and regulations, organizational directives and administrative instructions.
• Monitor the financial exception reports for unusual activities, transactions and investigation of anomalies or unusual transactions. Escalation of issues to the Head of Support Services and the Fund and Country Manager.
• Identification of problems in the programme’s financial and grants areas, suggesting solutions to resolve issues in compliance with broader UNOPS policies, rules and procedures.
• Ensure capacity building of grantees in the area of budgeting, reporting and finance management in general.
• Ensure contracting independent agents to undertake specific tasks including, where appropriate, procurement, studies, audit, evaluations and monitoring.
• Ensure all archives and programme related documentation are maintained.

Budget management and financial reporting.

• Coordinate the preparation of all BRG-REF project budgets, review of budget submissions, regular analysis and reporting on the budget approvals and the delivery situation; monitoring of expenditures against approved budgets and reporting on variances.
• Review, analyse and revise data with respect to the finalization of cost estimates and budget proposals from grantees, BRG and other UNOPS teams within the BRG-REF.
• Coordinate financial reporting to the donor in accordance with UNOPS rules, and in line with the established procedures and agreed donor requirements.

• Implement effective risk management practices in all BRG-REF grants.

• Ensure timely review of cash position for grants to ensure sufficient funds on hand for disbursements, identification and recording of receipts for income application is conducted.

• Ensure that payment requests are submitted in a timely manner in order to ensure payments are being effectuated in due time to suppliers, grantees and other entities.

Stakeholder management, coordination and liaison

• Support the coordination and management of communications.
• Liaise and build relationships with other United Nations (UN) agencies, the donor, BRG, grantees, relevant Government Ministries, departments and agencies, and international non-governmental organizations (I/NGOs) for the purposes of facilitating activities and improving the quality and relevance of information analysis.
• Participate in meetings with BRG, grantees and other stakeholders as required.

Knowledge management and innovation

• Support the compilation of lessons learned as per defined reporting format.
• Ensure that local capacities are built at every level and opportunity for Programme Support.
• Contribute to the dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for planning and knowledge building.

• Contribute to expertise in tools and techniques

• Other duties as may be assigned by the Fund and Country Manager.

Competencies

Develops and implements sustainable business strategies, thinks long term and externally in order to positively shape the organization. Anticipates and perceives the impact and implications of future decisions and activities on other parts of the organization. Treats all individuals with respect; responds sensitively to differences and encourages others to do the same. Upholds organizational and ethical norms. Maintains high standards of trustworthiness. Role model for diversity and inclusion.

Acts as a positive role model contributing to the team spirit. Collaborates and supports the development of others. For people managers only: Acts as positive leadership role model, motivates, directs and inspires others to succeed, utilizing appropriate leadership styles. Demonstrates understanding of the impact of own role on all partners and always puts the end beneficiary first. Builds and maintains strong external relationships and is a competent partner for others (if relevant to the role). Efficiently establishes an appropriate course of action for self and/or others to accomplish a goal. Actions lead to total task accomplishment through concern for quality in all areas. Sees opportunities and takes the initiative to act on them. Understands that responsible use of resources maximizes our impact on our beneficiaries. Open to change and flexible in a fast paced environment. Effectively adapts own approach to suit changing circumstances or requirements. Reflects on experiences and modifies own behavior. Performance is consistent, even under pressure. Always pursues continuous improvements. Evaluates data and courses of action to reach logical, pragmatic decisions. Takes an unbiased, rational approach with calculated risks. Applies innovation and creativity to problem-solving. Expresses ideas or facts in a clear, concise and open manner. Communication indicates a consideration for the feelings and needs of others. Actively listens and proactively shares knowledge. Handles conflict effectively, by overcoming differences of opinion and finding common ground.

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education

• Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting, Project Management or related field is required. Additional two (2) years of relevant experience with a first university degree (Bachelor’s degree or equivalent) is considered as equivalent.
• Certification as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Chartered Accountant (CA) or equivalent highly desirable.

Work Experience

• Minimum seven (7) years of work experience in the areas of operations, administration, finance or program/project implementation is required.
• Minimum three (3) years of experience in managing a team is required.
• Minimum two (2) years experience at international level is required.
• Experience in budgeting and project reporting is required.
• Experience in grants management is required.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Good knowledge of donor organizations and experience in working with NGOs and civil society would be an asset.
• Sound knowledge of UNOPS regulations and rules would be an asset. Prior relevant UNOPS experience is preferred.
• Experience in South East Asia is an asset.

Language

• Fluency in both written and spoken English is required.

Certification:

• PRINCE2 Foundation certification desired.

Contract type, level and duration

Contract type: International ICA

Contract level: IICA-3

Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – Open-ended subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link: https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

This position is based in Jakarta; Jakarta is categorized by the International Civil Service Commission as a family duty station.

Additional Considerations

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

****Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options ****to support personnel in managing the demands of working life.**** This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types.*** ****Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.*****