Human Resources Project Specialist, P-3, TA (364 days) # 127555, Copenhagen, Denmark

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, a fair chance.

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Strategic office context:

Supply Division currently has an approved structure for the 2022-2025 OMP with 562 FT posts, 287 being in General Services category, GS4 to GS7.

Supply Division (SD) has expanded its structure within the last three years by 26%. This growth is to support the Supply Function and Division’s 2022 – 2025 strategic plan and also a result of the increased role and scope of work in the COVID pandemic response and the multiple emergencies.

These changes have further affected the scope and complexity of the GS level posts. The staffing structure and design has been reviewed periodically during this period and, whilst some SD centres have conducted a functional analysis and review of the posts at GS levels, it has not been done systematically and holistically for all centers.

We have also seen many recruitment and retention challenges in this period due to the lack of a competitive proposition for these posts. Internally, staff have raised a perceived inequity in work, responsibilities and the level of posts and, of course, the discrepancies among different Centres grading of GS position, outlining similar work for different levels.

Our Global Staff Survey Results for 2022, emphasise the need to look at engagement and development of the GS Workforce and provide a more meaningful and enriching work experience and career advancement opportunities.

A number of initiatives and projects have been initiated at SD in the last few years, including review and harmonisation of JDs for GS posts, workload analysis, job simplification as well as specific GS workgroups creations ( like the Admin Assistant forum) where there has been regular engagement with the colleagues to better understand and support the nuances of their roles and scope of work.

SD would like to consolidate these efforts in consonance with the GSS Results for 2022 to further unpack and strengthen our efforts in enhancing GS Workforce Experience as well as Development.

This exercise aims to:

1. Review and harmonize job descriptions based on the roles and responsibilities for specific functional areas, maintaining consistency and parity among all Centres. Provide an objective job analysis of the GS posts in the Supply Division and guide the classification of the posts appropriately.

2. Enhance staff experience & morale by addressing perceptions of inequitable distribution of tasks and lack of recognition of contributions made. Increase opportunities for career growth and development.

3. Position SD as an employer of choice in a labor market that is currently very competitive in Denmark compared to similar positions of general services category in private sector and other UN agencies. 

By embracing this change, SD aims to be even more agile, efficient and responsive to the needs of children in a rapidly changing world and would continue making an organizational improvement focused on building a fair and a values-based workforce.

How can you make a difference?

As a key part of the Supply Division GS Workforce Review Project Team, the Project specialist will provide coordination and implementation lead role in design, development and implementation of the project.

You will be accountable for: 

Project Development and Planning:

• Development and socialisation for the Project Charter with key stakeholders
• Needs Analysis and development of Key focus areas. This will include review of previous projects/initiatives, consolidation of feedback provided through the Global Staff Survey and other Pulse Check Mechanisms. Where relevant, conduct focus interviews/ group discussions to further strengthen the scoping of the project.
• Convening the key stakeholder groups with Project core Team and Governance Board to finalise the Project Charter and Implementation Plan.

Project Management and Delivery of Results:

• Conduct Job Analysis and provide holistic review and recommendations for harmonisation and standardisation of Job Levels, titles and structures for GS Positions in Supply Division.
• Develop framework for structured Career Conversations and Career Development Pathways for GS Workforce.
• Conduct learning Needs assessments/Skills Mapping to guide the L&D Plan for the group
• Provide regular updates and track Key milestones in the project implementation to the Core Project Team, SDMT and All Staff
• Align with the DHR Global GS Function Review to ensure complementarity of work in both projects

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Education

• Advanced University degree (Master’s or higher) in social sciences, Business Administration, Finance, International Relations, Public Administration or other related field of study.

Work Experience

• A minimum of five years of relevant experience at the national and/or international levels in project management, planning and monitoring, in a related field. 
• Previous work with an international organization is an advantage.

Languages

Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: https://uni.cf/UNICEFValues

 The core competencies required for this post are:

• Nurtures, Leads and Manages People (1)
• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)
• Works Collaboratively with others (1)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)
• Drives to achieve impactful results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

Functional Competencies:

• Planning and Organizing (2) 
• Applying Technical Expertise (2)
• Analyzing (2)
• Persuading and Influencing (2)

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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.  

Remarks:

UNICEF only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at: http://www.whed.net/

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.