Programme Specialist - Programme Support

Contract

This is a NO-C contract. This kind of contract is known as National Professional Officers. It is normally only for nationals. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 5 years of experience, depending on education. More about NO-C contracts.

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

The UN Women Regional Office Programme Support and Management Unit (PSMU) is established to provide advisory services and direct support for project and programme development and implementation across the region. PSMU guides the region in following best practices to ensure that all projects and programmes maintain a level of standardization, planning, share knowledge, and work collectively towards UN Women' s strategic goals.

PSMU offers a range of services, training and toolkits to the region that increase operational capacity to deliver programmes on time, on scope and on budget.

Under the direct supervision of the Regional Operations Manager and matrix reporting to the Deputy Regional Director and overall guidance of the Chief of PSMU in HQ, the Programme Specialist - Programme Support will play a proactive role in the promotion of programmatic oversight and programme and project implementation and monitoring the implementation of programmes or projects.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide technical support and guidance on programme management to ensure alignment with corporate requirements

• Promote quality assurance for management of programme implementation to ensure smooth workflow and processes for results-based management;
• Analyze and monitor Programme and project implementation to ensure adherence to implementation rates and utilization of resources to meet agreed-upon targets and results, and keep supervisor informed;
• Monitor programme and project implementation exception reports for unusual activities, and transactions, and investigate anomalies or unusual transactions Analyze and align programme budgets with logical framework matrices and work plans in support of results-based budgeting and appropriate cost recovery;
• Support in following up on programme and project audit recommendations and ensure a tracking system is set up to monitor the status of actions taken to improve management and business practices in overall delivery (implementation).
• Coordinate the regional project appraisal committee.

Strengthen capacities of programme teams across the region

• Regularly assess learning needs on programme management procedures;
• Prepare yearly learning plans on programme management corporate procedures and deliver training to RO and CO teams;

• Develop tailored training based on offices’ needs to enhance regional capacities.

  Provide management and operational and Programme Implementation Oversight Mechanisms support:

• Provide support to the Regional Quarterly Business Review (QBR) mechanism data, information, and analysis on Programmatic areas;

• Provide support to the oversight and monitoring of Programme key performance indicators, leading analysis, and preparing reports for management reporting;
• Provide targeted support and services in support of the programmatic QBR areas;
• Systemic monitoring and quarterly programme and project implementation analysis to support the oversight of specific key donor portfolios;
• Provide programme and project implementation advisory services when required;
• Ensure effective information flow, communication and coordination across the office, between programmes, projects and operations, and with other UN Women offices and units;
• Quality assurance for all Project Documents and Donor Agreements.

Provide knowledge management support:

• Manage the process of identifying and synthesizing best practices and lessons learned that are directly linked to the implementation of the selected programme and contribute to their regional dissemination;
• Support capacity-building efforts on programme and project implementation, including partner management.

Key Performance Indicators

• Quality creation of effective implementation of programmes/ projects which capture the strategic priorities of UN Women;
• Timely sharing of pertinent information, inputs and analysis with the ROAS Management;
• Effective coordination of stakeholders to ensure priorities are achieved;
• Timely and quality training sessions on programme management;
• Timely and quality development of speeches and presentation materials;
• Timely and quality input to meetings and strategic discussions.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity;
• Integrity;
• Professionalism.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies

• Ability to lead strategic planning, results-based management, and reporting;
• Ability to lead business processes re-engineering, implementation of new systems (business side), and affect staff behavioral/attitudinal change;
• Ability to build strong relationships with clients; focuses on the impact on results for the clients and responds positively to feedback;
• Ability to manage complexities.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Business Administration, Social Sciences, International Relations, Political/Development Studies, or other relevant discipline is required;
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;
• PRINCE2® Practitioner and/or Project Management Professional (PMP®), and Managing Successful Programmes (MSP®) Practitioner certification is an asset.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in project and programme development, strategic planning, coordination support, or change management is required;
• Proven track record of drafting and advising on high-quality proposals, reports, strategic notes, and related documents for senior officials;
• International development experience preferably focused on, or strongly involved in project management and gender equality at national, regional, and/or international levels;
• Technical expertise in all aspects of project management including; planning, financial management, budget management, risk management, communications, and stakeholder engagement;
• Experience in an international organization is required;
• Experience with dealing with bilateral and multilateral funding sources is desired;
• Prior experience in the UN System is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset.

Application Information:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment;
• Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment;
• UN Women will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest.

very important note:

In accordance with the UN Staff Regulation 4.5 (c) A fixed-term appointment does not carry any expectancy, legal or otherwise, of renewal or conversion, irrespective of the length of service. This fixed-term appointment is budgeted for a term of 1 year.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality, and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW, and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity, and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel 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).