Information and Project Management Support - Consultant

Admin

Overview

Provide project management support and assist in asset disposal processes

You have:

• University degree in Business Management or similar
• 5 years minimum of work experience in Business Management, Project Management
• Direct experience with WFP is desirable
• Ability to produce high-quality written materials
• Proven experience in end-to-end management of a project
• Demonstrates high level analytical skills
• Strong team leadership to oversee actions to be taken by all team members
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work with people at all levels
• Proven networking skills
• Very strong organizational and planning skills
• Excellent communication skills adjusted for internal and external audiences
• Ability to travel up to 40% of the time
• Spoken and written English is essential
• Other UN language is an asset

JOB TITLE:

Information & Project Management Support

TYPE OF CONTRACT:

Consultancy

UNIT/DIVISION:

MSDA

DUTY STATION (City, Country):

Remote

DURATION:

6 months

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles.

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

ABOUT WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes. Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need. WFP has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2020 for its efforts to combat hunger, for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The Asset Management Unit (AMU) is part of the Management Service Division Administration (MSDA) of WFP. The AMU is responsible to provide all WFP offices with the necessary policies, guidance, tools, to managed assets globally. Asset (including light and heavy vehicles, generators and pre-fabs but also ITC equipment, etc.) are essential to deliver our mandate to serve our beneficiaries. AMU is taking great strides on its new approach to responsible asset management through improved tracking, accounting, policy and guidance.

The Global Asset Service (GAS) team, part of the AMU has also been created recently and is aimed at supporting WFP Country Offices with actual disposal of assets they have in excess or that are obsolete through public auctions conducted jointly with UNHCR. Since its inception, the GAS team managed to dispose assets and generate cashable savings of circa $10M, which were reinvested in Country Office operations. Considering the huge number of old and surplus assets with Country Offices, which occupies significant space in WFP warehouses and requires unnecessary efforts to manage them, it is crucial to arrange facilitated auctions. Fostering inter-agency cooperation, WFP has established a partnership with UNHCR who is providing auction sales services to other UN agencies, furthering One-UN principles and creating economies of scale by leveraging strengths of WFP, UNHCR, and other UN agencies.

One of the objectives for the GAS team in the coming year is also to systematically integrate environmental considerations into our processes and work to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and end hunger.

Additionally, the GAS team is also undertaking new initiatives to digitize and automate its processes to further improve internal controls and realize efficiency gains.

The ideal profile is for this position is someone who has the capacity to assist the head of GAS with the day-to-day management of the various workstream, possibly take ownership of some project activities but who would also be ready to take on a more operational role and, when requested, act as a disposal officer, coordinating the preparation activities related to the disposal of asset through a public auction and even going out in the field to supervise the operations and provide on-site support to the country office.

This position is home-based with the expectation that the candidate can easily travel. The incumbent will be under the supervision of to the Head of Global Asset Service Team and ultimately to the Chief of Administration & Travel Branch (MSDA) in Rome.

ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:

The main part of the assignment (minimum 50% of the time) will be to provide day-to-day support and assistance to the head of GAS and proactively take actions on the following workstreams.

• Guidance material & template standardizations

• Update templates and guidance material to uniformize disposal processes, report and documents and simplify the work within GAS but also for CO;

• Ensure consistency and uniformity across documents and templates;

• Producing inputs for specific training material.

• Environmental Sustainability

• Bring GAS collaboration with the Environmental sustainability group to a new level and develop the ideas, making them actionable;

• Gradually take the lead on GAS side for the various workshop that will take place.

• Digitization of the auction process

• Helping in documenting the business requirements, participating to business the testing of new solutions and in producing inputs for specific training material related to disposal activities;

• Process review & continuous improvements.

• Identify inefficiencies and proactively contribute ideas for developing solutions and improvement of systems, techniques, tools, processes and procedures for project management activities.

• Writing of necessary SOP with internal and external partners

• Day-to-day assistance:

• Organize and document meetings (NFR);

• UNHCR joint planning exercise – consolidation of input collected for all CO;

• Assist with communication;
• Produce consolidate reports on GAS activities
• Organization and maintenance of SharePoint;

• Be a force for positive change and support the Asset Management Digital Transformation.

• Contribute to the creation of an information-sharing environment, collaborate and cooperate with all team members even when located remotely

• Carry-out any other duties assigned by the supervisor.

Based on operational needs, the candidate might also be requested to punctually take the role of a disposal officer. That is why another part of this assignment (up to 50%) relates to the physical disposal of Assets and LVs in WFPs Country Offices through a sale by the auction process. The incumbent will be expected to coordinate the disposal of unused and obsolete assets in the Country Office, where and when required. The incumbent will be required to work in close collaboration with the GAS Team, Country Offices, Regional Bureau, and UNHCR auction managers. in particular he/she will be responsible for the following:

• Participate to the overall WFP/UNHCR joint planning exercise by conducting detailed analyses discuss with the assigned CO their operational needs in terms of assets disposal

• Organise, conduct and document the auctions assigned as per plan.

• When supporting the CO with the disposal activities, further build capacity at the CO level. Proactively promote, support and contribute to the mainstreaming of other initiatives led by HQ (i.e. GEMS mobile, Asset Management Decentralization, System Integration, etc.)

DELIVERABLES AT THE END OF THE CONTRACT:

• Auction planning

Global updated consolidated report allowing HQ to conduct further analyses and forecasting on potential revenues for futures auctions

• Updated templates and guidance material to uniformize disposal processes, report and documents and simplify the work for CO
• Necessary input for business requirement around disposal digitization and testing results of new system
• Necessary input for training material
• Structured knowledge management repository and document sharing platform

• Project logs and charter are constantly maintained; corresponding action plans are promptly identified and followed up, outcomes documented.

• Auctions management (for assigned CO):

• Necessary admin documents produced and approved by relevant bodies (e.g. missions TOR approved by CD);

• Auction report (1 per auction) detailing Gross Revenues, UNHCR and Auctioneer Fees, FC and GAS Fees by lots and by categories properly documenting auction results for the CO/RB;
• Corporate systems updated (GEMS and FMS) after each auction;
• Financial transactions executed by all relevant stakeholders (UNHCR and Auctioneer, Fleet Center and GAS Service).

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Education:

• University degree in Business Management or similar

  Experience:

• 5 years minimum of work experience in Business Management, Project Management,

  • Direct experience with WFP is desirable (within Supply Chain, Admin or related)

  Required knowledge & Skills:

• Ability to produce high-quality, clear and thorough written materials (including infographics) and to adjust communication style to different internal and external audiences and purposes

  • Proven experience in end-to-end management of a project.
  • Demonstrates high level analytical skills
  • Strong team leadership to oversee actions to be taken by all team members
  • Communicates sensitively and effectively at all levels;
  • Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work with people at all levels;
  • Proven experience with effective cross-cultural communication.
  • Vendor relationship management and negotiation skills;
  • Proven networking skills
  • Proven ability to work effectively both independently and in a remote team-based environment.
  • Excellent communication skills and ability to adjust communication style to different internal and external audiences and purposes
  • Has in-depth knowledge of budgeting;
  • Extensive proficiency Microsoft Office 365 (Excel / Word / Outlook / TEAMS / SharePoint)

  Desired knowledge & skills

• Understanding of asset and fleet management;

  • Knowledge in WINGS / SAP with particular emphasis in FI and Pl/M modules.
  • Knowledge of GEMS and FMS

  Other requirements

• Ability to travel up to 40% of the time;

  • Very strong organizational and planning skills - ability to organise work, respect deadlines and report results; risks and problems are anticipated, and mitigation efforts are put in place to ensure overall delivery of all deliverables
  • Ability to organise own work, take initiative and seek clarification when required
  • Demonstrated willingness to be flexible and adaptable to changing priorities

  Languages:

• Spoken and written English is essential.

  • Other UN language is an Asset

  Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply.

Deadline for applications: 16 April 2021

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.

Apply now

Potential interview questions

Added 5 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: wfp.org