Org. Setting and Reporting

This position is located in the Strategic Management Unit of the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA). OSAA is mandated with the provision of advisory, advocacy, coordination and monitoring services in support for Africa’s development. More information about the Office can be found at www.un.org/osaa The Senior Programme Management Officer reports to the Under-Secretary-General. The focus of this job is to lead the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Office’s product delivery operations through the development and implementation of a communications strategy and delivery model as the main tools for ensuring effective and impactful distribution of OSAA’s products, the coordination of the Under-Secretary-General’s strategic communication, the supervision of the product publication and distribution workflows and the review, monitoring and evaluation of product distribution and communication plans.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Senior Programme Management Officer will be responsible for the following duties: • Takes the lead to develop, implement and evaluate assigned programmes/projects, etc. in particular related to the development and implementation of the Office’s communication strategy; directs subordinates in programme/project development, implementation, monitoring and assessment; directs review of relevant documents and reports; identifies priorities, problems and issues to be addressed and proposes corrective actions; liaises with relevant parties; identifies and initiates follow-up actions. • Ensures implementation of gender mainstreaming guidelines by assessing the implications for men and women of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels. • Directs data-based research and programme evaluation and presents information gathered from diverse sources to assess the impact of the Office’s products on target audiences. • Coordinates policy development regarding product publication, dissemination, and communication; reviews the assessments of issues and trends, preparation of evaluations or research activities and studies, • Undertakes survey initiatives to assess the impact of the Office’s products; guides design of data collection instruments to optimize the efficiency and quality of the communication function and the interaction with the Office’s stakeholders and target audiences; reviews, analyzes and interprets responses, identifies problems/issues and prepares conclusions. • Supervises preparation and publication of various written and digital multimedia outputs, e.g. background papers, analysis, substantive sections of reports and studies, inputs to publications, press releases, blogs, flyers, etc., and ensures that communication products effectively visualize data and knowledge. • Directs substantive support to consultative and other meetings, conferences, etc., including proposing agenda topics, identifying participants, preparation of documents and presentations, supervising the development and implementation of event communication and advocacy plans, etc. • Manages outreach activities; liaises with stakeholders; leads the promotion of product publication and distribution solutions; designs and conducts training workshops, seminars, etc., makes presentations on assigned topics/activities. • Leads field missions, including provision of guidance to external consultants, government officials and other parties and drafting mission summaries, etc. • Coordinates activities related to budget and funding within the areas of responsibility (programme/project preparation and submissions, progress reports, financial statements, etc.) and ensures preparation of related documents/reports (pledging, work programme, programme budget, etc.). • Serves as an effective spokesperson, advises the Under-Secretary-General in the development of the Office’s strategic communications resources and activities, and establishes collaboration and partnerships with key officials at all levels inside and outside the organization. • Ensures effective utilization, supervision and development of staff; Guides, evaluates and mentors staff • May perform other duties as required.

Competencies

Professionalism: Ability to identify key strategic issues, opportunities and risks. Ability to generate and communicate broad and compelling organizational direction. Ability to communicate clearly links between the Organization’s strategy and the work unit’s goals. Demonstrated ability to provide innovative technical leadership by performing and/or overseeing the planning, development, and management of operation. Demonstrated ability to negotiate and apply good judgment. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing. Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable. Technological Awareness: Keeps abreast of available technology; understands applicability and limitation of technology to the work of the office; actively seeks to apply technology to appropriate tasks; shows willingness to learn new technology. Vision: Identifies strategic issues, opportunities and risks; clearly communicates links between the Organization’s strategy and the work unit’s goals; generates and communicates broad and compelling organizational direction, inspiring others to pursue that same direction; conveys enthusiasm about future possibilities. Judgement/Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent degree) in business administration, management, economics or a related field is required. A first-level university degree in combination with additional two years of qualifying work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Job – Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of ten years of progressively responsible experience in project or programme management, administration or related area is required. Experience in supervising teams is required. Experience advising a head of entity or equivalent in using data and data-backed evidence for underpinning multilingual strategic communications at the global, regional and local level to advance Africa’s development, including through social media campaigns is required. Experience in the use of ICT for the management, visualization and dissemination of data, including desktop publishing and the development of complex data portals and interactive electronic reports is required. Experience preparing multilingual and data-driven audiovisual products for traditional and social media channels as part of multilingual advocacy and communication campaigns to advance development goals is desirable. Experience managing procurement processes related to product finalization and dissemination, including preparation of terms of reference, evaluation of proposals, provision of guidance to vendors and assessment of vendor performance is desirable. Experience designing and implementing multilingual surveys and monitoring systems to evaluate the impact of products on target audiences is desirable. Experience coordinating with field offices for the dissemination of products and the collection of programme results data is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of French is desirable. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is an advantage.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

Staff members of the United Nations Secretariat must fulfil the lateral move requirements to be eligible to apply for this vacancy. Staff members are requested to indicate all qualifying lateral moves in their Personal History Profile (PHP) and cover letter. The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance and geographical diversity in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position. For this position, applicants from the following Member States, which are unrepresented or underrepresented in the UN Secretariat as of 31st August 2024, are strongly encouraged to apply: Angola, Belize, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Grenada, Guinea-Bissau, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Liechtenstein, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Sao Tome and Principe, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, Vanuatu, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahrain, Brunei Darussalam,China,Cuba,Germany,Hungary,Indonesia,Israel,Japan,Kuwait,Libya,Malta,Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Republic of Korea, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Turkmenistan, United States of America.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions. Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile of the inspira account-holder homepage. The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application. Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.