The Senior Protocol Officer reports to the Director of the Office of the Secretary General and the Secretary General acts as the second-level supervisor. The Senior Protocol Officer supervises general service staff and/or interns that may be assigned to the function, distributing workload, managing performance and guiding development.

Under the overall supervision of the Director of the Office of the Secretary General, the successful candidate will be tasked with the following duties:

1. Providing protocol and liaison services in relation to high-level visits to the OSCE Secretariat, presentation of credentials and signing ceremonies; ensuring advance liaison and co-ordination with delegations and/or representatives of participating States and VIPs; ensuring meeting room setup (including providing flags, protocol advice on top table and seating arrangements); receiving and accompanying visitors in line with the protocol; liaising with Security Management, Executive Management, Communications Unit, as well as the Conference and Language Services at the OSCE premises in Hofburg, when required; making arrangements for the exchange of appropriate gifts (e.g. for bilateral meetings and special occasions);
2. Planning, co-ordinating and organizing the process of official correspondence of a protocol nature;
3. Maintaining an overview of all protocol tasks, fostering co-operation between different Secretariat units, identifying opportunities for further efficiencies and making effective use of relevant technologies and tools and assisting the protocol function in development, acquisition and promotion of their utilization;
4. Drafting policies, manuals and standard operating procedures across a full range of protocol functions, in consultation as appropriate with other Secretariat units and external stakeholders, and, in relation to other OSCE executive structures, with OSCE Institutions and field operations;
5. Promoting the role of the protocol functions across the OSCE, in collaboration with the OSCE Institutions and field operations, ensuring knowledge management and organizational learning and development in this area; mobilizing and guiding cross-organizational teams; and providing protocol advice and training to staff of the OSCE Secretariat, Institutions and field operations;
6. Supervising the work of any assigned general services staff and/or interns;
7. Performing other relevant duties as assigned.

Requirements: 

• Second-level university degree in international relations, political science, public administration, law or a related field;
• A protocol function certification or formal training would be an asset;
• A minimum of eight years of progressively responsible experience in protocol, external relations or a related area is required;
• Experience in planning and organizing meetings, conferences or events;
• Experience in an international organization and/or the United Nations system is desirable;
• Work experience in the area of protocol or event management in a multilateral and bilateral protocol setting is desirable;
• Professional fluency in English and German with excellent communication (both oral and written) skills;
• Demonstrated gender awareness and sensitivity, and an ability to integrate a gender perspective into tasks and activities;
• Ability and willingness to work as a member of team, with people of different cultural, and religious backgrounds, different gender, and diverse political views, while maintaining impartiality and objectivity;
• Computer literate with practical experience using Microsoft applications.