Communication Specialist

UNOPS supports partners to build a better future by providing services that increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of peace building, humanitarian and development projects.  Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations. 

New York Service Cluster (NYSC) supports the United Nations Secretariat, as well as other New York-based United Nations organizations, bilateral and multilateral partners in the delivery of UNOPS mandate in project management, infrastructure management, and procurement management

Sustainable Development Cluster (SDC) supports diverse partners with their peacebuilding, humanitarian and development operations. It was formed by combining the following portfolios: Grants Management Services (GMS), UN Technology Support Services (UNTSS), Development and Special Initiatives Portfolio (DSIP) It provides Services to partners' programmes that are designed, structured, and managed with a global perspective and primarily serving partners that are headquartered in New York.  The SDC has a footprint of approximately 125 countries.

The United Nations Office of Counter Terrorism (UNOCT) was established by the General Assembly in June 2017. The Office has five main functions: (a) provide leadership on the General Assembly counter-terrorism mandate across the United Nations System; (b) enhance coordination and coherence across the 38 Counter- Terrorism Implementation Task Force entities to ensure the balanced implementation of the four pillars of the Strategy; (c) strengthen the delivery of United Nations counter-terrorism capacity-building assistance to Member States; (d) improve visibility, advocacy and resource mobilization for United Nations counter- terrorism efforts; and ensure that due priority is given to counter-terrorism across the United Nations System and that the important work on preventing violent extremism is firmly rooted in the Strategy. The United Nations Counter-Terrorism Centre (UNCCT) is part of UNOCT and promotes the delivery of United Nations capacity building assistance to Member States. 

This is a position in UNOPS for supporting projects carried out for or in the United Nations Office of Counter Terrorism (UNOCT). The position supports the work of the UNOCT/UNCCT Global Programme on Prosecution, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (PRR) and the UNOCT/UNCCT Global Programme on Preventing/Countering Violent Extremism (PCVE). The incumbent of this position will be a personnel of UNOPS under its full responsibility.

The Communications Advisor will provide technical guidance as follows: 

• Support the development of a public relations strategy related to UNOCT/UNCCT PRR and PCVE capacity building and programmatic delivery;
• Support the design and delivery of a strategic communications plan for the Global Programmes on PRR and PCVE;
• Provide support on media relations for both Global Programmes —respond to enquiries, develop media outreach plans as required, and ensure that material for the media can be readily used by the media and understood by the public;
• Develop a common brand for presentations and training material to promote the Global Programmes on PRR and PCVE at meetings, workshops, and conferences;
• Support the development and publishing of content on the UN website for both Global Programmes;
• Issue regular statements through Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the UNOCT/UN Website on recent PRR and PCVE projects and developments;
• Support the planning and implementation of an annual PRR roundtable, annual CT Week PRR event and annual General Assembly Event on PRR;
• Organize events, conferences and panel discussions to raise the profile of UNOCT/UNCCT coordination mandate, capacity building and programmatic delivery, and knowledge products;
• Support internal communication and communication amongst UN agencies.

Monitoring and Progress Controls

The specialist will:

• Ensure clear, coherent and consistent communications about the UNOCT/UNCCT Global Programmes on PRR and PCVE.
• Support the management of media relations on behalf of the two Global Programmes.
• Support internal UN communication among agencies, by preparing regular updates on events and activities.

*FEMALE CANDIDATES ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY"

Education 

• Advanced university degree preferably in communications, marketing, social science, economics, or related area.
• Bachelor’s degree with two (2) years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced degree.    

Work Experience 

Required Experience

• A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in communications is required.
• Experience on preventing violent extremism, counterterrorism, peace and security or other related topics is required.
• Experience in conceptualizing and managing the production of communication and public relations materials, including social media and audio-visual content, brand development and detailed reports and presentations is required. 
• Experience with managing websites and media/social media is required.

Desired Experience: The following experience is optional. Candidates who do not have it are welcome to apply

• Experience designing, implementing and managing strategic communication and media plans for highly sensitive and global issues would be an asset. 
• Experience in overseeing translations work would be an asset.

• Competent with office software packages, including PowerPoint, excel, basic design software.

Language

• Fluency in oral and written English is required 

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA) 
Contract level: International Individual Contractor Agreement (I-ICA 2) 
Contract duration: Open-ended (renewable subject to funds availability and satisfactory performance)

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link: https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.