Programme Associate (Innovation), GS06, FTA, Office of Innovation, Stockholm, Sweden (# 00118025)

Contract

This is a G-6 contract. This kind of contract is known as General Service and related categories. It is normally only for nationals. It usually requires 6 years of experience, depending on education. More about G-6 contracts.

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, innovation

The Office of Innovation (OoI) works to catalyse UNICEF's and all its partners’ expertise and resources against key children-outcomes bottlenecks, with a view to continuously ideate and scale the most effective solutions with transformational potential at scale to achieve the child-related SDGs.

The office is doing this by continuously exploring new ways of accelerating results for children, investing across a range of early stage solutions, and harnessing internal and external expertise towards continuously iterating and finetuning the most promising solutions for children through a systematic portfolio management approach, and leveraging all stakeholders’ innovation energy, knowhow and resources from intergovernmental, multilateral, private sector and non-governmental fora (think tank, academia).

How can you make a difference?

The Programme Associate (Innovation) undertakes programme management activities for the Portfolio, Culture and Scale team, which involves coordinating investments and progress towards results based on those investments, across dozens of countries and millions of dollars, to support effective implementation, flagging potential course corrections, and enabling the achievement of results. This role also supports the section and Hubs in fulfilling their internal planning, M&E and reporting responsibilities, in collaboration with the OOI Strategic Planning team.

Under the general guidance and direction of the P4 Innovation Manager (Evidence & Performance, Progr. Mngt.), and in collaboration with Innovation Hub leads and Innovation Portfolio Managers, the programme associate supports the respective teams by carrying out a range of programme support functions to help develop, implement and monitor their OOI programme, ensuring effective and timely delivery that is consistent with UNICEF rules and regulations. Specifically, the incumbent will:

1. Undertake performance management monitoring and reporting for all Portfolio-related KPIs from SP to OMP to Hub and Portfolio-specific indicators.
2. Support effective programme management for PCS resources, including coordinating to completion on annual work planning, monitoring and reporting, and input into timely donor reporting, and major partnerships secured for the innovation portfolios, and other reporting requirements.
3. Undertake programme monitoring for significant cross-portfolio innovation portfolio investments. Monitoring, tracking and reporting to support effective implementation and results for all major funding, which will be in the order of millions of dollars of investments cross dozens of initiatives across dozens of country offices and regional offices. Engage with offices to troubleshoot and identify patterns and insights.
4. Support in building an overall culture of learning & improvement across the Office of Innovation, including sharing of best practices around programme management, and providing technical assistance to key innovation projects around evidence building strategies.
5. Support in facilitating the development of agreements by providing information and drafting selected sections of it using existing templates and guidance for their application.
6. Ensuring the timely and accurate recording and administrative processing of transactions.
7. Carrying out transactions in VISION ensuring programme results, activities and programme coding are as per annual work plans (AWPs), and making amendments and alterations as per section revisions when necessary.
8. Carrying out transactions in VISION pertaining to grants and programme-related items for his/her section including but not limited to registering grant allotments and tracking expiring programme grants.
9. Preparing monitoring and reporting information for supervisor and team on agreed performance indicators to drive more efficient management and accountability for results.
10. Regularly monitoring budgets and financial expenditures of section by employing applicable tools, ensuring compliance with UNICEF rules and regulations, keeping supervisor informed and advised on actions for decision and/or follow up.
11. Helping prepare periodic or ad-hoc financial reports relating to country office and donors to support the office in optimizing use of programme funds.
12. Supports capacity development activities related to programme development by preparing training materials and participating in exercises.

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

Education: Completion of secondary education is required, preferably supplemented by technical or university courses related to the work of the organization.

Experience: A minimum of six years of administrative or clerical work experience is required. Prior experience in programme support functions is an asset. Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of Swedish is highly desirable. Knowledge of another official UN language is considered as an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are...

• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)
• Works Collaboratively with others (1)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)
• Drive to achieve impactful results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Click here to learn more about UNICEF’s values and competencies.

Applicants must be nationals of EU countries or in possession of a valid work permit in Sweden. Please attach a copy of your work permit to your application submission.

General Service (GS) staff are locally recruited staff and therefore, candidates are personally responsible for any travel and accommodation arrangements.

UNICEF does not facilitate accreditation for locally recruited staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

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.

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