Project Management Support - Associate

WEC Background

UNOPS Water and Energy Cluster (WEC) supports the design and management of multi-stakeholder initiatives by providing services in financial and grant management, procurement, human resources, and project management. The cluster has supported projects in the areas of water resource management, climate change adaptation, mitigation and transparency, energy access and distribution, and environmental conservation under the Paris Agreement. The WEC has also supported operations and financial management services, in Vienna, the rest of the ECR region, and beyond. The main partners include UN agencies, bilateral agreements (with the Nordics, Germany, and Italy), the Green Climate Fund, and several NGOs (such as CIFF and CWF).

NDC Partnerships Project background

The NDC Partnership advances the goals of the Paris Agreement by bringing together countries and institutions in new ways to accelerate NDC implementation and enhance ambition over time. Through a country-driven approach, the NDC Partnership drives climate action and sustainable development while supporting countries in reducing social and economic inequalities. The Partnership responds flexibly to country needs as they evolve, keeping the momentum for strong climate action even in the challenging economic circumstances countries face today.

Since its inception in 2016, the NDC Partnership has grown into a global coalition with more than 190 members made up of developed and developing countries, international institutions, and non-state actors.

The Partnership is designed as a multi-partner initiative where members collaborate to accelerate climate action. Membership is voluntary, and by joining the NDC Partnership members gain access to a global network of knowledge and resources to support their work in climate action.

To date, almost 80 developing countries engage through the Partnership to identify needs and requests to implement and enhance their NDCs while advancing sustainable development. Over 120 development partners, bi- and multilateral agencies as well as big CSOs align to support those requests in a coordinated and coherent manner. 

The Partnership is governed by a Steering Committee that is co-chaired by two country representatives. The Support Unit (SU) serves as the Secretariat of the NDC Partnership.

1. Administrative and general support

• Establishes and maintains efficient working relationship with stakeholders (e.g. UNOPS WEC support units, WEC management, Implementing Partners, UNFCCC secretariat, WRI);

• Assists with the drafting of correspondence to partners and high level officials as well as other responses to external requests;

• Provides accurate and timely information on processes and pending issues to the supervisor;

• Maintains the records on administrative, financial and logistical activities of the Bonn personnel/office;

• Provides administrative and logistical support for missions, events and travel including organization of tickets, hotel bookings, transfers, visa facilitation, DSA payments, etc. 

• Maintenance and update of procurement monitoring system and provision of feedback on purchase orders to the requesting office.

• Helps PM Support Specialist in the preparation of a procurement plan.

• Define the best way of providing goods, works and services, including procurement deadlines for each stage.

• Review of requisitions for completeness and adequacy of technical specifications.

• Preparation of proper and complete specification for equipment and materials, Terms Of Reference and Statement of Works for the preparation of RFP, RFQ and ITB, ensuring clearance/approval by respective units of the requests.

• Drafting of letters, memoranda, email, etc.; monitoring of progress and liaison with vendors during the entire procurement cycle; investigation and resolution of post-order problems and of progress reports on procurement matters.

• Oral/written responses to queries from projects, clients, companies, etc. regarding procurement related matters.

• Follow-up on receipt of goods and services in view of obtaining proper delivery report, RIR, or relevant certificates and that proper inventory is taken.

• Preparation of monthly reports on procurement matters.

• Conduct of market research to determine sources of supplies by using United Nations Global Market Place, and other sources;

• Preparation of waivers for competitive bidding, waivers for provision of grants, ensuring that full and proper justification and documentation is provided for review and approval by the Local Contracts and Property Committee (LCPC) / Engagement Acceptance Committee (for grants).

• Preparation and issuance of EOI, RFQ, ITB, RFP through the e-sourcing system as may be required, ensuring their conformity with UNOPS approved templates or seeking clearance in case of required adjustments.

• Review and evaluation of bids or proposals received and preparation of analysis for contract awards and for submission to the LCPC/HQCPC.

• Preparation of contracts and necessary amendments ensuring conformity with template UNOPS documents for review by the requesting unit.

• Follow-up signing of contracts by vendors.

• Obligation of funds in oneUNOPS and obtaining of appropriate signatures for approval.

• Maintenance of a vendor database and usage of system to record the listing, updating, evaluation and monitoring of performance of service providers and vendors.

      3.Performs efficient operations portfolio planning and administration, focusing on achievement of the following results:

• Advise on administrative, financial and logistical activities of the projects.

• Provide administrative support for missions, events and travel involving UNOPS personnel and partners, including organization of tickets, hotel bookings, transfers, visa facilitation, DSA payments, etc.

• Help organize workshops, conferences and retreatsas required, based on agreed timing and quality indicators.

• Coordination with HQ Admin on common services requests including those relating to office space, cleaning, provision of office supplies, travel arrangements, etc.

• Support timely preparation and submission of periodic inventory reports; coordination of physical verification of inventory items.

• Support in the management of project assets, making sure they are properly recorded in oneUNOPS as well as disposed in accordance with UNOPS procedures upon project closure

      4. Facilitates the delivery of grant arrangements, required to effectively deliver projects, focusing on achievement of the following results:

• Help ensure that requests to engage with grantees and implementing partners are initiated and processed in a timely and high-quality manner.

• Provide support to the facilitation of the f calls for proposals, grant awards and relevant contracts, f creation of the respective arrangements between UNOPS and its partners, and management of respective contracts to 

• Support administration of calls for proposals in line with UNOPS policies and procedures, collection of proposals, review of proposals through a selection committee, preparation and finalization of evaluation reports, as relevant and required.

• Help liaise with implementing partners to monitor performance of grants, highlight issues and risks involving grantees, and ensure timely delivery.

• Facilitate creation of grant agreements, and disbursements of funds, in a timely manner, and in accordance with project requirements.

• Manage day to day administration of the grant management activities, track reports, process grantee registrations, and payments, as required.

• Help to review financial information with the concerned team, identify bottlenecks and corrective actions.

• Support work of the UNOPS finance team to prepare financial reports on grants, quarterly accrual reports and the annual financial report as per project schedules. Ensure that performance of grants are captured in relevant progress/narrative reports.

• Drafting of contract documents and letters of agreement with Governments, institutions and UN agencies; administration of contracts and agreements and processing amendments, if required, for approval within the Cluster.

Education:

• Secondary education required. OR
• University Degree in Business Administration, Public Administration, Human Resources Management or equivalent desirable. OR
• Masters degree in Business Administration, Public Administration, Human Resources Management or equivalent desirable. 
• Procurement certification, particularly the UNOPS POT certification, would be considered a significant asset.

Experience

• Holders of secondary education degree: 6 years of progressively responsible administration, procurement or grants management experience is required at the national or international level. 
• Holders of bachelor’s degree or higher: 2 years of progressively responsible administration, procurement or grants management experience is required at the national or international level. 
• Holders of Master's degree with few years of experience is desirable.
• At least 1 year of UNOPS working experience out of the total relevant experience is required.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Office 2003 and/or newer versions) and experience in handling of web-based systems required. 
• Experience using the UNOPS corporate ERP system (oneUNOPS) is an advantage.

Language

English is required and French/Spanish an asset

Contract type: Local Individucal Contract Agreement (LICA Support)

• 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.