Project Management Support Senior Officer (Grants)

• Infrastructure
• Procurement 
• Project Management (full service, back on track)
• HR and Transactional Services
• Grants Management 
• Technical and Advisory Services

The Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) portfolio under the UNOPS Austria Multi-Country Office has built strong partnerships and has effectively been managing a portfolio of 490 million USD over the last 15 years to support key initiatives with fund management, project implementation and administrative support. 

WEC effectively operationalizes partners' agendas with global approaches, as well as regional and country specific activities focused on climate action, protection and conservation of the environment. Partners profit from WEC’s ability to operationalize and/or scale up their important substantive agendas, including in support of key multilateral environmental and climate agreements,  such as the Paris Agreement, the Cartagena Convention as well as the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Background Information: Project Management Support Senior Officer

The Project Management Support Senior Officer will be embedded in a dynamic team, providing grant management services to a geographic portfolio of Readiness grants. The Project Management Support Senior Officer will work closely with project delivery partners and stakeholders relating to grant management services and general financial management.  

The Project Management Support Senior Officer will also support the Project Manager, who is managing the GCF Team, in ensuring full compliance with all relevant guidelines and regulations and is responsible for ensuring that administration of grants by UNOPS are in accordance with the applicable UNOPS Regulations and Rules and Administration Instruction(s). 

Functional Responsibilities 

Setup of grants

• Coordinate initial communication with Delivery Partners, ensuring that onboarding of new partners is adapted to the partners’ needs and is aligned with GCF guidelines.  

• Collect, analyze and review all documents relevant to grant setup from Delivery Partners and relevant units in the Green Climate Fund. 

• Manage preparation and submission of UNOPS internal request for grant approval. 

• Prepare, review and finalize Grant Agreements ensuring compliance with UNOPS Grant Management Rules and Regulations and Project Management Manual. 

• Coordinate negotiations and communication with the Delivery Partner on the Grant Agreements and project planning.

• Manage the process for setting up  supplier profiles including banking information of the Delivery Partners in the UNOPS Enterprise Resource Planning system. 

Management of grants

• Support administration of grants including, tracking reports, and processing payments to Delivery Partners. 

• Review, analyze and process Requests for Change submitted by the Delivery Partners and seek approval from the supervisor.

• Coordinate the application of M&E tools with Delivery Partners such as narrative and financial reporting templates. 

• Assess  Interim Progress Reports, Project Completion Reports, and Financial (Audit) Reports using a project tailor made Performance Assessment Tool.

• Collect  information on  individual grants’ performance and support the drafting of various reports  on the substantive and financial performance.

• Manage UNOPS Internal Tracking Database for GCF Projects. 

Grant closure

• Manage and coordinate  the grant closure process in liaison with relevant stakeholders, verifying that all grant obligations are fulfilled by the Delivery Partner.

• Analyze and review the final financial report submitted by the Delivery Partner and process the final payment if applicable. 

• Coordinate with the UNOPS Finance Team to ensure that financial statements are prepared and shared with the funding source as required. 

• Support the overall planning, coordination and governance of the GCF project, including liaison with stakeholders, preparation of background documents and presentations on management, financial and operational matters.

• Support the facilitation of regular meetings with the GCF, such as board meetings, bi-weekly coordination meetings, and ad-hoc meetings, ensuring efficient facilitation and follow up on actions.

• Analyze and identify operational and financial issues, risks and challenges, and draft appropriate mitigation actions for Senior Management.

• Support financial management by drafting work plans, budgets, financial reports and ad-hoc updates on cash-flow status. 

• Set up project/grant agreements and budgets in the ERP system and monitor project budgets, support the preparation of due budget revisions in consultation with the supervisor and Finance Unit, as well as the relevant project counterparts.

• Monitor implementation of grants and proactively highlight activities that are at risk of getting delayed for internal UNOPS discussion and decision on further action.  

• Support the development and facilitation of annual Delivery Partner surveys measuring satisfaction levels on grant management services provided by UNOPS. 

Knowledge Management and Communication

• Undertake training opportunities to be able to provide contributions on the relevant tools, approaches and procedures, and ensure effective project implementation.

• Compile lessons learned and best practices, and share knowledge and best practices within the project team and other relevant fora.

• Develop internal and external communication protocols. 

Procurement and HR

• Support  procurement processes related to procurement of services and goods.

• Support HR processes such as recruitment of new staff members. 

• Support the administration of reporting requirements within UNOPS as well as to the Green Climate Fund. 

• Coordinate with relevant colleagues in the ECR and WEC teams to seek guidance on operational processes and procedures.

• Perform other related duties and tasks as needed.

• Advanced university degree (master's degree or equivalent) preferably in public administration, business, economics, international affairs, development studies, environmental science, political science, or related areas.
• First level university degree combined with 2 years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of the education requirements outlined above.

**The position is based in Vienna. At a later stage and contingent upon approval, similar position(s) may be created at GCF Head Quarters in Incheon, South Korea. Candidates are required to indicate their preferred assignment location (Vienna, Incheon or both) in a cover letter.**


Contract type: ICA
Contract level: I-ICA 1
Contract duration: Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 

• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions 

• 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 (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. For more information on a retainer contract here.

• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.

• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.