Planning, Reporting and Knowledge Management Specialist Consultancy, LACRO PANAMA (3months)

Contract

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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 champion

The UNICEF Latin America and Caribbean Regional Office is based in in Panama, operating in 36 territories, including 24 country offices.

UNICEF works to put the rights and well-being of the most disadvantaged children at the heart of the social, political, and economic agenda, in line with our equity focus, working across our organization and with our partners in government, civil society and the private sector to support shifts in public policy, fuel social engagement, and increase investment for children.

For more information about UNICEF and its work. (www.unicef.org/lac)..)

How can you make a difference?

UNICEF is seeking to hire a consultant who will assist the LAC RO to capture the main discussions during the MTR process and write them out in the draft ROMP MTR report, along with the structured relevant information that guides the decision making and the lessons learned throughout the process. Under the direct supervision of the Regional Chief of Planning, the consultant is expected to manage inputs and coordinate with respective LACRO Sections in the development of the LACRO MTR report and related annexes. The consultant will be required to fulfil roles of both a writer and editor and serve as a core member of the team contributing to the development of MTR and producing high quality reports and materials.

Furthermore, in support of the October RMT 2023 and in line with the ROMP MTR methodology, the consultant will work together with the RPP section to do a consistency analysis of selected country offices (3-5), to determine the correlation between key challenges children are facing, identified bottlenecks and relevant actions taken by CO to address these in accordance with their programmatic prioritization (and related budget and HR dimensions).

Finally, the consultant is expected to strengthen best practices in knowledge management during these processes (and beyond) through the use of SharePoint and will be asked to provide technical support for Enterprise Content Management through a KM lens and capacitate the staff members of the RO and the region (through two virtual webinars) for long lasting better practices in information management and sharing. This will include a mapping of the information needs of the RO, the current gaps in meeting those needs and developing a rehauled Sharepoint base structure for the RO. A more dedicated support is expected for the Planning and Monitoring Sharepoint site to showcase these best practices through the consultant’s support and technical expertise.

Scope of the work:

This consultancy looks for an experienced Planning, Reporting and KM specialist, with advanced understanding of UNICEF planning processes, with the ability to write high level reports and ensure proper knowledge management practices for the regional office as a whole and in support of the Mid-term Review of the Regional Office Management plan and the October RMT.

Support to the ROMP MTR: The Regional Office is currently engaged in a Mid Term Review of the Regional Office Management Plan (ROMP) 2022-2025, which entails an in-depth analysis of the main Child Right deprivations in the region, the available evidence and data, the main bottlenecks as perceived by the Country Offices and the capacity of the Regional Office to support the Country offices along our main accountabilities. The ROMP document hopes to capture all these elements and outline them in a logical planning and monitoring framework that can provide us with guidance for our work. The Regional Programme Planning (RPP) section is responsible for designing the methodological approach, ensuring adherence to the guidance and making sure the ROMP MTR Deliverables meet the required standard that allow the RO to implement recommendations going forward.

The main responsibilities and tasks in support of the MTR are outlined below:

• Review the original ROMP and related documentation.

• Review all the newly produced deliverables related to the ROMP MTR, including the Evaluability assessment, the regional trends analysis, the data and evidence dashboard and the bottleneck analysis.

• Participate in and produce high quality summary conclusions of key management team retreats feeding into the development of the MTR.

• Produce the MTR report and all accompanying sectoral annexes (estimated to be main report, executive summary and 10 thematic annexes) in dialogue with the relevant sections.

• Develop communication materials and assets related to the MTR, such as ppt presentations (to feed into the RMT) and SharePoint updates.

Support to the October 2023 RMT: In support of the RMT and in line with the analysis being done under the ROMP MTR exercise, an analysis is requested for a number of selected Country Offices (3-5 to be determined), to assess the level of coherence between the child right deprivations and bottlenecks (as described in the SITAN, Programme Rationale/Programme Strategic Note and through LACRO data dashboards) and the resulting output statements and indicators (as seen in RAM), eventually leading into the country office prioritization through the Annual Work Plans, Annual Management Plans, budget expenditure, staffing structure and reported results (country office annual reports (COAR) and results statements/indicators). The consultant is expected to review the full planning logic and assess whether the eventual programming of the country office has been in line with the original design and reflections made during the onset of the country programme cycle.

The main responsibilities and tasks in support of the MTR are outlined below:

• For the selected countries, review key bottlenecks and child right deprivations, based on Country Office Situation Analyses (SITAN & CCA) as documented for the Country Programme Document (CPD) development.

• Assess the level of alignment between bottlenecks and output statements/indicators in CPD/CPMP.

• Assess the level of alignment between bottlenecks and Annual Work Plans, Annual Management Plans and RAM reporting.

• Assess the budget expenditure and availability of human resources per programmatic actions grouped to address specific bottlenecks.

Support to information and knowledge management: The LACRO RO identified the need to strengthen the overall information management and sharing practices, with a focus on the use of SharePoint and related Office tools. The consultant will be asked to conduct an assessment of the regional office existing information management practices, SOPs and systems and map out the information needs and gaps in the current use of available UNICEF ECM tools and platforms. In coordination with sections, the consultant will provide a redesigned baseline SharePoint structure and provide capacity building to UNICEF staff members on the best use of SharePoint and associated Office tools. Together with the RPP section, the planning and monitoring SharePoint (including the ROMP Sharepoint page) will be prioritized to showcase the best practices.

The main responsibilities and tasks in support of the MTR are outlined below:

• Conduct a thorough assessment of the regional office existing information management practices, SOPs and systems. Map out the information needs of the Regional Office.

• Identify gaps and develop a comprehensive information management framework using the available UNICEF ECM Tools and Platforms.

• Analyze the organization's information requirements and create a plan and structure for the RO SharePoint website (and associated tools), whereby the work processes should guide the platform. This includes assisting teams with the choice between Collaboration and Communication sites as the RO has the role to both provide information to the CO as well as have internal Sharepoint pages on which collaboration is facilitated. The consultant will be expected to, as a minimum, set up a baseline functional Sharepoint structure for the RO, where then the section Focal points can further customize their pages and ensure proper upload and storage of information.

• Customize the SharePoint platform to align with the organization's branding, structure, and functionality needs with simplicity in mind for optimal usage and maintenance. Ensure the website is user-friendly, intuitive, and accessible on different devices.

• Support the Regional Programme and Planning section with their customized Sharepoint page for Planning and Monitoring Processes (including appealing visuals that can improve collaboration and information sharing with the Country Offices and RO sections).

• Develop or provide training materials and conduct two workshops (one for LACRO and one for LACR) for staff members on ECM best practices (across different tools, including Sharepoint), with regards to information sharing practices, collaboration, and search functionalities.

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

• An advanced university degree (Master's) or higher level in Communication, Public Relations, Journalism, Social sciences or Political Sciences.
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional and demonstrated experience in producing quality reports, summary analysis and writing. Familiarity with UNICEF Strategic Plan and writing of flagship reports or equivalent in other international organization is an asset. Experience in developing a Sharepoint site for an international organization.
• Required: Excellent command of the English language and an eye for detail, should be able to make text succinct and persuasive and have high standards for effective written communication. Ability to write and speak English fluently is required.
• Must be an expert with the following tools: -Microsoft SharePoint -Microsoft Office -Microsoft Teams -Microsoft Yammer
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural environment and establish harmonious and effective relationships with UNICEF country offices.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

Administrative details

Supervision: The consultant will work under the overall supervision and guidance of the UNICEF LACRO Chief of Planning.

Workplace: The consultancy is home-based and Office based (mix of remote and in-person arrangements, estimated one week in person)

Duration: Estimated start date is Sept 18, 2023 until December 15, 2023.

How to Apply: Application should be submitted online and should include: TMS application form duly completed, Cover Letter, Study certificates and Financial proposal. Qualified candidates are requested to indicate an all-inclusive (lump sum) fees for the services to be including all associated administrative and travel costs.

Consultants must have their own equipment, tools and materials needed to perform their services. They will use their own laptops/computers, any application or system needed to complete the assignment. They need to provide the full service without using UNICEF resources.

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

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract.

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. UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

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 also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. 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.