Programme Specialist for Europe and the CIS - IPSA 11 - Office-Based

Senior

Contract

This is a IPSA-11 contract. This kind of contract is known as International Personnel Services Agreement. It is normally internationally recruited only. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education. More about IPSA-11 contracts.

Background

Instructions to Applicants:

Click on the "Apply now" button. Input your information in the appropriate Sections: personal information, language proficiency, education, resume and motivation. Upon completion of the first page, please hit "submit application" tab at the end of the page. Please ensure that CV or P11 and the Cover letter are combined in one file.

The following documents shall be required from the applicants:

Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.

A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) indicating why the candidate considers him-/herself to be suitable for the position.

Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns or other materials.

Office/Unit/Project Description

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels, forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan. Working in support of the Regional Bureaus, the GPN also aims to provide rapid and integrated support to UNDP country offices, combining policy advice, technical expertise, financial resources, agile tools and procedures, and partnerships. Within the GPN, the Crisis Bureau guides UNDP’s corporate crisis and fragility- related strategies and vision for crisis prevention, response and recovery and lead corporate support in response to crisis.

Support to country operations is coordinated by the Country Support Management Team (CSMT), working closely within the GPN, with the GPN Crisis and Fragility Policy and Engagement Team, the GPN SDG Integrator Team and GPN technical teams. The overall goal of the CSMT is to ensure strong, coherent and coordinated support to country offices (COs), as it relates to crisis and fragility, within the full spectrum of the GPN’s service offer. The CSMT steers the effective interaction of GPN Teams, Regional Bureau/Regional Hub and CO counterparts for integrated country support. It ensures that UNDP corporate support is provided before, during and after crises (in line with UNDP Standard Operating Procedures during the response phase). The CSMT aims to provide regular analytical updates in consultation with Regional Bureaus to support early warning and early action. It also supports and coordinates the GPN crisis response capacity and takes the lead in a UNDP-wide approach to strengthen UNDP capacity in preventing, preparing for, responding to and recovering from crisis.

Institutional Arrangement

Under the supervision of the Team Leader for Europe and the CIS, the Programme Specialist coordinates the Crisis Bureau interventions in these regions in close collaboration with GPN Teams and the Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS (RBEC). S/he allocates resources in line with the GPN vision and agreed priorities and to provide strong, coherent and coordinated support to COs. in the Europe and the CIS Region.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work

1) Strategic country support coordination and timely delivery of technical assistance, programme and operational support

• Ensure timely application of agreed business processes to guarantee predictable country support for COs on crisis prevention, response and recovery issues.

• Stay abreast of developing crisis in regions in Europe and the CIS regions and identify/understand the regional and country support needs as it relates to crisis and fragility.

• Support prioritisation exercise with RBEC to determine region priorities, taking into account local needs, capacities and resources, as well as corporate and partnership crisis related commitments.

• Contribute to the roll out of the New Way of Working at country level.
• Coordinate CB’s review of Country Programme Documents in priority countries in consultation with all GPN Teams, ensuring that programmes are crisis/conflict sensitive and reflect crisis-related priorities in fragile contexts.
• Support effective coordination across the GPN to ensure the provision of crisis and fragility-related synchronized, consistent, coherent and comprehensive support and advisory services.
• Working with the GPN Teams, contribute to ensuring quality assurance and relevance of crisis prevention, response, stabilisation and recovery programmes and ensuring alignment with corporate strategies and policies, through the review of substantive inputs to established country programming processes (e.g. CCA, UNDAF, CPD, Integrated Strategic Framework and other joint analysis and programming tools).
• Ensure continuous liaison with RBEC, Regional Hubs and GPN focal points at the technical level to ensure alignment with regional priorities, integration of the Regional Bureaus’ inputs into GPN/CB country support and coherence with related development practices.
• Ensure that the country information databases are up to date on crisis and fragility related matters and informed by steady observation and monitoring of events, regular communications RBEC, internal analysis and outside specialized source.
• Support initiatives to strengthen the capacity of COs for crisis preparedness, response and recovery through organizational learning activities in collaboration with GPN Teams (e.g. training packages and modules, workshops, web-based materials, webinars etc.).
• Support the continuous collation of lessons learnt and best practices in crisis preparedness, response and recovery.

2) Timely management and coordination of crisis response

• Support recovery programming in times of crisis, the implementation of timely, sequenced and appropriate UNDP response and recovery activities, safe and sustainable response actions and timely and commensurate funding allocations.
• Ensure the secretariat function of temporary support structures, timely organization of coordination meetings, information sharing and proper record of decisions.
• Support the determination of Level Declaration, composition of the SURGE Planning Team, deployment of First Responders, selection of SURGE Advisors, etc.
• Coordinate the preparation of all background material submitted to the Crisis Board, including the Exigency Memo, the SURGE Plan, Business Cases and After-Action Reviews.
• Support crisis response allocations and track timely delivery of the funds.
• Support the establishment of the Crisis Management Support Team when L2 or L3 crisis have been declared.
• Follow UNDP rules and procedures and agreed internal business processes for the sourcing, selection, deployment, management and exit of advisor deployed in response to crisis.
• Support country level post-crisis assessment processes (e.g. recovery and peacebuilding assessments/post disaster needs assessments) from a process design and coordination perspective, working closely with GPN technical teams, RBEC.
• Support the development of recovery plans, recovery frameworks, strategic response plans, etc.

3) Planning for the Europe and the CIS region and deployment for immediate crisis response

• Broker prioritization / organizational focus on high-impact crisis support vis-à-vis the broader GPN and Regional Bureau and aligns the use of resources behind these priorities.

• Support the establishment of work plans for Europe and the CIS and internal collaboration practices, role modeling how integrated work approaches are translated in UNDP’s crisis support.

• Support the programme support function for Europe and the CIS, ensuring that robust systems are in place to monitor the status of Crisis Bureau support together with financial and risk management obligations (i.e. associated budgets and expenditure reports in ATLAS, etc.).
• Support the contracting and supervision of consultants to support programme development in the Europe and the CIS Team.
• Deploy as first responder – within 48 hours after a crisis - to support Country Offices in initial assessment, the setup of appropriate temporary crisis response structures, draft early recovery projects proposals and prepare for the SURGE Planning mission.
• Participate in UNDP multidisciplinary teams to contribute to the formulation of national and regional strategies in post-conflict settings.
• Support post-crisis assessment processes (e.g. RPBA / PDNA) from a process design and coordination perspective, working closely with GPN teams.
• Participate in inter-agency mission and coordinate inputs from various GPN teams.
• Support country level preparedness planning and programme criticality.
• Represent CB as part of the SURGE planning team.
• Ensure that critical cross cutting issues such as gender and conflict sensitivity are mainstreamed in assessments and plans.

4) Knowledge Development and Management

• Actively contribute to community of practices to ensure wide dissemination of best practices and lessons learned from the implementation of programmes related to crisis and fragility in Europe and the CIS;
• Influence and promote the advance of policy dialogue in thematic relevant to the Europe and the CIS regions such as disaster risk reduction and recovery through synthesis of knowledge emerging from the implementation of programmes in-country;
• Support the knowledge extraction, analysis, documentation, codification of results/lessons learned in the implementation of programmed in priority countries, in line with guidelines and corporate tools, including After Action Reviews.;
• Support the capacity development of UNDP staff in the Europe and the CIS regions in application of tools and practices related to crisis and fragility.

5)CSMT and CB Projects Management (donor funded i.e. Government of Japan)

• Ensure the appropriate financial closure of Japan Supplementary Budget project USD 64 million for 29 countries in consultation with the operation teams of CSMT.
• Initiate the project on Human Security and complete with the planned results.
• Prepare relevant narrative and finance reports for both projects in consultation with the operations team of CSMT.

Competencies

Competencies

Core

Achieve Results:

LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact

Think Innovatively:

LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems

Learn Continuously:

LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences

Adapt with Agility:

LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands

Act with Determination:

LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to

achieve greater results

Engage and Partner:

LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter- agency collaboration

Enable Diversity and Inclusion:

LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Thematic Area

Name

Definition

Business Direction & Strategy

Negotiation and Influence

Ability to reach an understanding, persuade others, resolve points of difference, gain advantage in the outcome of dialogue, negotiates mutually acceptable solutions through compromise and creates win-win situations

Partnership management

Relationship management

Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain and/or strengthen working relations, trust and mutual understanding

2030 Agenda: SDG Partnerships

SDG Finance

Public Sector Finance (Tax and domestic resource mobilization, public financial management and public expenditure)

2030 Agenda: SDG Partnerships

SDG Finance

Mobilization and coordination of support for post-crisis recovery and reconstruction processes

2030 Agenda: Peace

Conflict Prevention, Peacebuilding and Responsive Institutions

National and sub-national capacities for planning, financing, coordination and crisis management

Required Skills and Experience

Education requirements

• A Master's degree, preferably in international development, law, international affairs, business administration, development economics, or other relevant fields.

Min. years of relevant work experience

• 7 years of professional work experience providing policy and programming advice and pioneering approaches in results-based management, knowledge generation and dissemination to advance sustainable agenda at international level.
• First hand expertise of crisis response, including managing rapid response in crisis settings and complex emergencies;

Required skills

• Knowledge and understanding of crisis prevention, preparedness, response and recovery (both disasters and conflicts); resilience; stabilisation; transition; etc.); international crisis response architecture (including humanitarian system; peacekeeping operations; special political missions; etc.); gender equality in the context of programming in humanitarian and early recovery settings).
• Proven ability to coordinate crisis response with UN entities, including knowledge of UN policies and procedures on crisis response and complex emergencies, as well as related management of information.

Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section

• Experience working in a crisis context as part of UN Management highly desirable.
• Knowledge of UNDP’s crisis response, prevention and recovery mandate, policy and tools

Required Language(s)

Fluent in English. Knowledge of other UN languages particularly Spanish and Russian is an asset.

Apply now

Added 2 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: jobs.undp.org