Project Manager (Gender Parity)

The New York Service Cluster (NYSC), a major department in UNOPS, houses the operations of the Peace and Security Cluster (PSC) and the Sustainable Development Cluster (SDC). Despite concerted efforts, NYSC has not yet achieved gender parity in its overall workforce - women remain under-represented and constitute 43%.

PSC and SDC are saddled with two structural barriers that have made it difficult to recruit more women into their ranks. This first is the nature of the operations. PSC’s main line of work revolves around the identification, removal, and destruction of explosive threats (e.g. land mines, unexploded ordnance, etc) while SDC’s revolves around information technology. The labor market for both of these fields is heavily dominated by men, especially explosive hazard management. The second is the preponderance of hardship duty stations (e.g. Somalia, Iraq, Syria, etc.). Duty stations in post-conflict zones are classified as non-family, and job opportunities in these places tend to draw fewer applications from women. 

To redress the gender parity issue, NYSC is recruiting a Project Management Specialist. The activities of the Project Manager will be oriented around the achievement of two key outcomes: 

1) increasing the hiring rate of female personnel

2) decreasing the separation (i.e. resignation) rate of female personnel 

Funding has been allocated for one year, with the possibility for extension, and it is expected that gender parity will be achieved in this timeframe.

Reporting to the Head of Support Services, the Project Management Specialist will be responsible for carrying out the following tasks:

Outreach Activities

• In consultation with with local HR field counterparts, develop local outreach plans for different units within NYSC

• Perform extensive outreach for all international positions on a variety of platforms, including job websites, social media groups, and professional associations

• Create lists of potential female candidates in select occupational sectors via Devex and Linked-In Platforms

• Create and deliver presentations about the benefits of working with UNOPS to local and international female audiences

• Devise long term outreach mechanisms, such as partnerships with universities and professional associations

• Oversee the work of an external contractor, who will develop strategic communications tools, like videos and webpages

Recruitment Activities

• Carry out the replenishment of four rosters, including outreach, shortlisting, development and grading of written assessments, interviews, and submission to review body

• Deliver quarterly presentations to hiring managers on recruitment, with a special focus on the cluster’s goal of closing the gender gap and unconscious bias

• Deliver pre-interview briefings to interview panels prior to interviews, with an emphasis on unconscious bias

Retention Activities

• Conduct ‘stay’ interviews with mid-level female personnel and above

• Conduct exit interviews with all separating female personnel 

• Conduct bi-annual retention analysis to identify common reasons and trends in female separations

• Develop and deliver quarterly awareness-raising sessions to managers on enabling and inclusive work environments

• Create and issue Diversity and Inclusion Survey to identify challenges in work environment

Other Activities

• Serve as secretary of the Gender and Diversity Task force, ensuring that its work plan is updated and aligned to broader strategic goals and that its work is on track

• Advanced University Degree (master degree or equivalent) with five years of relevant experience

• University degree (bachelor degree or equivalent) with seven years of relevant experience 

• Relevant experience is defined as experience in project management, in either public or private sector organizations
• Experience in implementing gender-responsive initiatives is required
• Experience implementing outreach strategies, which must include the use of social media platforms, is required

• Fluency in English is required (read, write, speak)
• Fluency in French is desired

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA) 
Contract level: ICS-10 (P3 equivalent; IICA-2 equivalent; LICA-10 equivalent)
Contract duration: One year, with possibility of extension, subject to organizational requirements and funding availability 

• 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
• 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.