UN Women: Executive Associate

Contract

This is a GS-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 GS-6 contracts.

Background

The duration of the assignment is until 1 September 2023. Whereas an external candidate will be offered a temporary appointment, subject to release agreements, staff members in UN Women may be administered as a temporary assignment and staff members in the UN Common system may be administered under a loan arrangement.

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 integrated Executive Office (EO) brings together the Executive Director, her Deputies and their teams. The EO supports the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) in the delivery of their functions, especially that of providing overall executive direction and leadership to UN Women. The EO supports the ELT in providing vision, establishing priorities, fostering coherence amongst the senior management team, leading advocacy, ensuring overall management, oversight and accountability.

Under the overall guidance of the Executive Director and the supervision of the Special Assistant, the Executive Associate is responsible for providing a variety of executive administrative support to the ED and, in close coordination with the Administrative Analyst for Correspondence and Scheduling, in managing the efficient flow of information and communication to ensure expeditious dissemination of information and timely action.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide executive and administrative support to the Executive Director (ED)

• Manage the ED's calendar of activities, events and travels, with extreme attention to detail and the ability to accommodate last minute changes and to diplomatically manage competing demands for the ED’s time;
• Receive and route requests for appointments from UN Women staff and colleagues in the UN system, government officials and other external partners. Follow appropriate protocol procedures in scheduling meetings and events;
• Screen all incoming correspondence and calls. Identify which matters should be brought to the attention of the Executive Director and/or Head of Office, with special emphasis on prioritization and deadlines; ensure concerned parties are consulted and/or briefed;
• Liaise with the offices of the ASGs and UN Women Divisions on representation of the Executive Director at high level meetings;
• Coordinate the scheduling of meetings, including through interacting with high-level officials and/or their offices, with due attention to confidentiality and protocol;
• Coordinate the smooth functioning of meetings, including setting up calls and videoconferences, preparing and reserving meeting rooms, overview logistical details and ensuring the participation of relevant internal colleagues;
• Arrange travel/ hotel accommodations and other logistics for the ED in the absence of the focal point for travel;
• Use electronic office management systems for effective administration of the Executive Director's office ensuring archiving of data and electronic back-up for the business continuity;
• Maintain an updated list of the ED's contacts for easy access and reference;
• Organize events and arrange refreshments, meals and other aspects involved in hosting visitors, including ensuring that all official meeting rooms are kept to standard.

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• Ensure that EO staff is well informed of the ED’s commitments and schedule in order that all the background logistical and substantive support is provided;
• Respond directly to queries directed to the Executive Director ensuring that information shared is appropriate, timely and correct. When needed, direct queries to the appropriate UN Women Unit for timely action and response;
• Facilitate the communication between ED and other Units within and outside UN Women;
• Follow up on deadlines, commitments made, actions taken and coordinate the collection and submission of reports to ED;
• Maintain and organize up to date hard and electronic files for easy access and retrieval. Ensure safekeeping of confidential materials;
• Periodically review the efficiency of administrative procedures and make proposals to eliminate communication bottlenecks or streamline office procedures.

Provide administrative support to the Executive Office

• Develop effective systems and procedures to improve and streamline work and communication flow within the team, to meet high paced job demands and business requirements; in close coordination with the Special Assistant to the ED;
• Train new or temporary support personnel on office methods, systems and procedures;
• Provide sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice;
• Provide support to organizing events lead by the Executive Director and staff meetings and events;
• Perform other job-related duties as assigned, including providing back up administrative and secretarial support to the Directorate team as required.

Key Performance Indicators

• Effective and efficient management of the ED’s front office
• Timely and accurate management of ED calendar
• Timely and effective communication and dissemination of information
• Timely and effective coordination of external relations activities

Competencies

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 perform a broad range of specialized activities aimed at effective and efficient functioning of the ED's office, including data/schedule management, maintenance of protocol and information flow
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and discretion
• Ability to provide input to business process re-engineering, elaboration and implementation of new data management systems
• Creates, edits and presents information in clear and presentable formats, using appropriate IT functionality
• Ability to organize and complete multiple tasks by establishing priorities
• Ability to handle a large volume of work possibly under time constraints
• Establishes, builds and sustains effective relationships with clients, demonstrating understanding of client's perspective; anticipates client needs and addresses them promptly.
• Commitment to team work and a collaborative approach in a fast-paced environment.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Completion of secondary education is required.
• University Bachelor’s Degree is an advantage but not required.
• Candidates who do not have a university degree or an accredited certification in related field will be required to take the Global General Service Test (GGST) or UN Administrative Support Assessment Test (ASAT) – formerly known as the UN Clerical Test

Experience:

• A minimum of 6 years of administrative experience preferably in a large or international corporation or organization.
• Experience with government senior officials or senior level officials in the UN with a thorough knowledge of UN operations, structure and administrative procedures is required.
• Experience in the use of computers applications and software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) as well as web-based management systems is required.
• Experience with the ATLAS system is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required
• Knowledge of the other UN official language is an asset.

Application:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc 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.

GS fixed-term appointment (FTA) and temporary appointment (TA) positions located in New York are open to candidates who are either US Permanent Residents, US Citizens or holders of a valid G4 visa at the time of their application and whose G4 visa has been acquired on account of their employment in the UN Systems based in New York.

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.)