The UNDP Ethics Office cultivates and nurtures a culture of ethics, integrity and accountability at UNDP, thereby enhancing the trust in, and the credibility of, the United Nations, both internally and externally. The Office assists the UNDP Administrator in ensuring that all personnel perform their functions consistent with the highest standards of integrity as required by the Charter of the United Nations. The Office is a confidential resource where personnel may consult on ethics issues and seek protection against retaliation for reporting misconduct.

The Ethics Specialist reports to the Director of the Ethics Office and works in collaboration with other personnel in the UNDP Ethics Office.

Position Purpose

The Ethics Specialist would support the work of the Ethics Office in its mandated activities, including but not limited to administration of UNDP’s Protection against Retaliation Policy (PaR) and the Financial Disclosure Program, as well as in delivering advice and guidance on ethical standards and in delivering training and other ethics awareness raising.

The Ethics Specialist may also be called upon to represent the Ethics Office in internal committees and initiatives relating to the promotion of a respectful workplace, risk management, and organizational culture. In addition, the Ethics Specialist may support the Director of the Ethics Office in external engagements and inter-agency fora, including with the Ethics Panel of the United Nations.

UNDP adopts a portfolio approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages across interventions to achieve its strategic goals. Therefore, UNDP personnel are expected to work across units, functions, teams, and projects in multidisciplinary teams to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration.

Duties and Responsibilities

Ensure effective administration of the Financial Disclosure Program (FDP) and the Protection against Retaliation (PaR) Policy

For FDP:

• Conduct reviews of submitted FDP statements and provide advice to filers on potential and actual conflicts of interest.
• Conduct FDP research and formulate recommendations for the Ethics Director and Ethics Adviser to improve programme effectiveness.

For PaR Policy:

• Advise UNDP Personnel on the UNDP’s PaR policy and internal UNDP grievance mechanisms.
• Conduct preliminary reviews of UNDP PaR requests, and draft prima facie case findings in consultation with the Ethics Advisor and Ethics Director.
• Develop management recommendations, where appropriate.
• Engage with UNDP Office of Audit and Investigations (OAI), Office of the Ombudsman, Office of Human Resources (OHR), Office of Legal Support (OLS) and other relevant offices, if required, on retaliation cases.
• Review retaliation investigations and draft final retaliation determinations for review by the Ethics Advisor and Ethics Director.
• Employ creative solutions to prevent retaliation and reduce instances of formal complaints.
• Conduct protection against retaliation research and develop education materials.

Provision of Ethics advice

• Monitor the Ethics inbox and provide timely and confidential ethics advice and guidance to UNDP Personnel.
• Assist in the management of the Ethics Office case database and case information, including data entry.
• Monitor Ethics case trends and conduct analysis into the root causes of ethical dilemmas for UNDP personnel.
• Guide and support in the development of ethics guidance bulletins, and the Ethics Office’s annual report.
• Conduct Ethics research where required.

Ensure coherence, training and ethics awareness programmes

• Develop and implement Ethics Office awareness-raising and training initiatives, partnering with relevant stakeholders to ensure effective implementation.
• Engage in research, drafting, and advising as necessary on ethics-related considerations arising from possible revisions to internal frameworks.
• Engage in communications and advocacy aimed at highlighting UNDP’s commitment to an ethical culture.
• Update and develop Ethics Office documents and social media.
• Facilitate in coordinating and representing the Ethics Office in internal working groups/partnerships.
• Periodically deliver ethics training to UNDP Offices (including on mission and in-person at HQ and Country Offices);
• Assist the Director in activities related to Ethics Panel of the United Nations, Ethics Network of Multilateral Organizations, and other inter-agency fora.
• Perform other tasks as directed by the Director.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: As required, supervision of short-term relevant personnel.

Competencies

Core:
Achieve Results:

• Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact.

Think Innovatively:

• Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems.

Learn Continuously:

• Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences.

Adapt with Agility:

• Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands.

Act with Determination:

• Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results.

Engage and Partner:

• Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration.

Enable Diversity and Inclusion:

• Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity.

People Management:

UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site.

Cross-Functional & Technical:
Ethics: Ethics Education and Training

• Ability to provide education and training on ethics, values, and standards and promote staff awareness of ethical behaviour and ethical decision making.

Ethics: Ethics Advice and Guidance

• Ability to quickly analyse complex fact patterns and provide comprehensive, sensitive, and confidential ethics advice and guidance.

Ethics: UN Policy knowledge – ethics      

• Knowledge and understanding of the UN Staff Regulations and Rules and other policies relating to ethics and integrity.

Ethics: Ethical Implications of Policy Development

• Consult on the ethical implications within all policy development and standard setting.

Ethics: Financial Disclosure and Conflict of Interest

• Analyse and eliminate or mitigate potential and actual conflicts of interest disclosed in the annual financial disclosure programme.

Business Development: Customer Satisfaction/Client Management

• Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers’ needs.
• Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy. Look forward to adding value beyond clients’ immediate requests. Ability to anticipate client’s upcoming needs and concerns.

Business Management: Communication

• Ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience.
• Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced university degree (master’s degree, or equivalent) in Law, Ethics, International Relations/Affairs, Corporate Compliance, Human Resources Management, or related subject is required. OR
• A first-level university degree in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

 Experience:

• A minimum of five (5) years (with master’s degree) or seven (7) years (with bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible experience in organizational ethics, law, investigations, or other related fields is required.
• Prior experience in an Ethics function in the United Nations system is highly desirable.
• Experience in providing written ethics advice and/or delivering ethics training is desirable.

Language:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Fluency in another working language is desirable.