Senior Project Manager

Senior Leadership Environment

Overview

Manage project to improve water quality and ecosystems

You have:

• Master’s degree in marine biology, ecology, coastal habitats and marine fisheries, resource management or relevant field is required.
• A Bachelor’s degree combined with two additional years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the master’s degree.
• A minimum of 7 years of progressive working experience in a relevant project setting is required.
• Experience in environmental management in the Mexican context is required.
• Demonstrated competence in managing environmental related projects is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated experience in regional and intergovernmental negotiations and the management of environmental project activities is preferred.
• Fluency in written and spoken English and Spanish is required.
• Working knowledge of other United Nations languages and/or regional languages is an asset.

Contract

This is a IICA-3 contract. This kind of contract is known as International Individual Contractor Agreements. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's an external contract. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education. More about IICA-3 contracts.

Background Information - Job-specific

Water Energy and Climate Portfolio (WEC)

UNOPS WECsupports the design and management of multi-stakeholder initiatives by providing services in financial and grant management, procurement, human resources, and project management. The Portfolio has supported projects in the areas of water resource management, climate change adaptation, mitigation and transparency, energy access and distribution and environmental conservation under the Paris Agreement. The WEC has also supported operations and financial management services, in Vienna, the rest of the ECR region and beyond. The main partners include UN agencies, bilateral donors (Nordic countries, Germany and Italy), or the Green Climate Fund.

The Gulf of Mexico (GoM) is the ninth largest body of water in the world and the largest semi-enclosed coastal sea in the Western Atlantic. Its eastern, northern, and north-western shores span 2,700 km and touch on five U.S. states (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas); south-western and southern shores span 2,243 km and lie along five Mexican states (Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatan, and the northernmost tip of Quintana Roo). On its southeast quadrant the Gulf is bordered by Cuba. The distinctive geographic and biophysical characteristics of the Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem (GoM-LME) makes it an important global reservoir of biodiversity and one of the most productive of the 66 LMEs in the world. The GoM-LME provides economic wealth, products, food, services, cultural heritage, and energy directly to the countries that share it and contributes to the oceanic biodiversity as a whole. The GoM currently supports approximately 55 million people, 40 in U.S. coastal states and 15 in Mexican ones. Of the numerous rivers draining into the GoM, the Mississippi and Rio Grande rivers in the northern GoM, the Grijalva and Usumacinta rivers in the southern Gulf are the most notable. The GoM-LME is a major asset to its coastal countries in terms of fisheries and seafood processing, tourism, agriculture, oil infrastructure, trade, and shipping.

The UNEP/GEF Project “Implementation of the Strategic Action Program of the Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem” (GEF ID 6952 – GoM SAP Implementation Project) is a multi-year project specifically aimed at facilitating the implementation of the Mexico/U.S. endorsed Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA – 2011) and Strategic Action Plan (SAP – 2013) for the integrated management of the GoM-LME.

Goal: The goal of the project is to address the three main challenges identified by the SAP, i.e., controlling and reducing pollution; recovering living marine resources; and rehabilitating marine and coastal ecosystems. This will result in improved water quality, rehabilitation of the coastal and marine ecosystems, and avoid depletion of marine resources in the Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem (GoM-LME).

Objective: The project is specifically aimed at facilitating the implementation of the Mexico/U.S. endorsed Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA – 2011) and Strategic Action Plan (SAP – 2013) for the integrated management of the GoM-LME. The Project will achieve this by prioritizing the implementation of coordinated and integrated sustainable ecosystem-based management approaches (EBM) to address the transboundary concerns of countries bordering the GoM. It involves actions around the following four components:

• Component 1: Improve water quality
• Component 2: Avoid depletion and recover living marine resources (LMR - Fish and shellfish)
• Component 3: Conserve and restore the quality of coastal and marine ecosystems through community involvement and enhanced bilateral cooperation
• Component 4: Monitoring, Evaluation and, Knowledge Management

The Project Manager will be responsible for managing the project following the CEO Endorsement package including the Project Document and UNEP-UNOPS Legal Agreement, in line with UNOPS project management standards and UNEP’s technical requirements.

Therefore, under the direct supervision of UNOPS, and technical guidance of UNEP, the incumbent will be responsible for ensuring that the project delivers the required outputs in a timely manner and on budget, in close coordination with the relevant stakeholders and partners. The incumbent is expected to review and update the work plan for effective implementation of the project, work with stakeholders and partners to ensure efficient project execution, conduct monitoring and evaluation of project activities, and facilitate quarterly reviews and reporting until project closure.

Functional Responsibilities

Summary of functions:

1. Management of Substantive Activities
2. Regional Cooperation & Collaboration
3. Management of the SAP Implementation Unit
4. Liaison with Project Stakeholders
5. Knowledge management and innovation

As per the above functions, the Project Manager will perform the following duties and responsibilities:

1. Management of Substantive Activities: - Facilitates implementation and delivery of outputs and activities in line with national priorities of the participating countries, and leads the establishment of project support agreements and other contracts with implementation partners, in collaboration with the relevant UNOPS and UNEP officials, and as per the approved project plan(s). - Provides oversight and guidance to the execution of project activities through monitoring missions, and based on the established agreements, as required. - Provides technical advice and support, directly (within the individual’s sphere of competence) and indirectly (through other staff of the unit and consultants) to implementation partners, to ensure implementation of their respective contracts. - Closely coordinates with SEMARNAT and NOAA regarding their inputs and implementation of components and activities. - Provides oversight and guidance to the preparation of the relevant technical training materials. - Provides oversight and monitoring of progress in all components and activities of the project to ensure effective implementation, while also coordinating with and monitoring progress of other relevant project partners. - Manages organization and convening of regional and sub-regional meetings each year, as per project work plan(s). - Ensures monitoring of overall project implementation, facilitating conduct of the mid-term review, as well as terminal independent evaluation. - Ensures links with the appropriate SDGs.

2. Regional Cooperation & Collaboration: - Acts as Secretary to the Steering Committee, including convening of meetings; preparation and distribution of the relevant background documents in advance; and dissemination of official meeting reports. - Liaises on a regular basis with designated government officials, National Focal Points and other relevant bodies and stakeholders in the two participating countries regarding project execution and progress. - Develops and supports networks of participating individuals and institutions involved in SAP implementation activities at all levels. - Initiates collaborative arrangements with relevant projects in the region, as per UNOPS standards, and as agreed by the Steering Committee. - Oversees publications and distribution of all substantive and technical reports resulting from project activities following UNEP and GEF publication protocols. - Organizes and supervises peer reviews of project outputs - Facilitates identification of opportunities to expand project outcomes and outputs through new partnerships and additional contributions.

3. Management of the SAP Implementation Unit: - Supervises and guides PCU personnel in the execution of their duties, as per UNOPS’ HR requirements. - Managing learning, development and performance of project personnel assigned by UNOPS. - Monitoring and evaluation of the performance of personnel assigned to the PCU by UNOPS in line with UNOPS HR requirements, and in coordination with UNEP on technical and substantive elements.

4. Liaison with Project Stakeholders: - Liaises regularly with project partners, including UNEP as the implementing agency, SEMARNAT and NOAA as government counterparts, to ensure the effective implementation of the project, in line with the project agreement between UNOPS and UNEP, and as per UNOPS project management standards. - Liaises with project partners for soliciting inputs in the preparation of project monitoring documents such as annual workplan, progress reports, reports on risks and challenges in line with UNOPS, UNEP and GEF requirements.

5. Knowledge Management and Innovation: - Encourages routine and effective capacity building activities for long-term and sustainable capacity of staff. - Actively interacts with other Project Managers and the wider PM community to share case studies, lessons learned and best practices - Contributes to the oversight of lessons learned procedures, ensuring that lessons learnt are shared in a timely and appropriate manner. Participate in the relevant Communities of Practice - Performs research and logging of lessons learned throughout the project life span. - Provides feedback to UNOPS internal Practice Groups on policy and supporting guidance with an aim towards continuous improvement of UNOPS policies.

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education - Master’s degree in marine biology, ecology, coastal habitats and marine fisheries, resource management or relevant field is required. - A Bachelor’s degree combined with two (depending on the contract) additional years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the master’s degree.

Experience - A minimum of 7 years of progressive working experience in a relevant project setting is required. - Experience in environmental management in the Mexican context and in working with institutions of the Federal Government, Academia and Civil Society, as well as international cooperation organizations is required. - Demonstrated competence in managing environmental related projects is highly desirable. Having knowledge of comprehensive management of water resources and marine-coastal ecosystems is desirable. - Demonstrated competence in the management of large multi-country and multi-disciplinary projects, such as GEF-funded projects, is highly desirable. - Demonstrated experience in regional and intergovernmental negotiations, networking, and the management of environmental project activities is preferred. - Demonstrated experience in the region, and familiarity with its geopolitical, cultural, social and economic setting, including international treaties and environmental agreements, highly preferred. - Expertise in managing multiple and high-level stakeholders and government partners, including production and dissemination of public awareness materials would be considered an asset. - Knowledge of the United Nations system and/or Global Environment Facility, including their administrative processes, is an asset.

Language Requirements - Fluency in written and spoken English and Spanish is required; - Working knowledge of other United Nations languages and/or regional languages is an asset.

Contract type, level and duration

• Contract type: International Individual Contract Agreement (IICA)

• Contract level: ICS-11/IICA-3

• Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – ‘Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link: https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

Competencies

Develops and implements sustainable business strategies, thinks long term and externally in order to positively shape the organization. Anticipates and perceives the impact and implications of future decisions and activities on other parts of the organization. Treats all individuals with respect; responds sensitively to differences and encourages others to do the same. Upholds organizational and ethical norms. Maintains high standards of trustworthiness. Role model for diversity and inclusion.

Acts as a positive role model contributing to the team spirit. Collaborates and supports the development of others. For people managers only: Acts as positive leadership role model, motivates, directs and inspires others to succeed, utilizing appropriate leadership styles. Demonstrates understanding of the impact of own role on all partners and always puts the end beneficiary first. Builds and maintains strong external relationships and is a competent partner for others (if relevant to the role). Efficiently establishes an appropriate course of action for self and/or others to accomplish a goal. Actions lead to total task accomplishment through concern for quality in all areas. Sees opportunities and takes the initiative to act on them. Understands that responsible use of resources maximizes our impact on our beneficiaries. Open to change and flexible in a fast paced environment. Effectively adapts own approach to suit changing circumstances or requirements. Reflects on experiences and modifies own behavior. Performance is consistent, even under pressure. Always pursues continuous improvements. Evaluates data and courses of action to reach logical, pragmatic decisions. Takes an unbiased, rational approach with calculated risks. Applies innovation and creativity to problem-solving. Expresses ideas or facts in a clear, concise and open manner. Communication indicates a consideration for the feelings and needs of others. Actively listens and proactively shares knowledge. Handles conflict effectively, by overcoming differences of opinion and finding common ground.

Additional Information

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce.
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post.
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. For more information on a retainer contract here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

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Potential interview questions

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