Human Resources (HR) Associate

South East Asia Multi-Country Office (EAPMCO)

The South East Asia and Pacific Multi Country Office (EAPMCO) supports, develops and oversees the UNOPS portfolio of projects in South East Asia and the Pacific. EAPMCO was established in January 2023 following the merger of the Thailand Multi-Country Office, which covered 20 countries across  North East Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific, and the Cambodia Multi-Country Office, which covered 4 countries South East Asia - 3 countries in the Mekong Sub-region (Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam) and the Philippines.  EAPMCO currently covers 24 countries across North East Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific. With its head office in Bangkok, the Multi-Country Office comprises eight business units: EAPMCO Thailand, EAPMCO Indonesia,  EAPMCO Pacific Operations Cluster, EAPMCO Papua New Guinea, EAPMCO China, EAPMCO Vietnam, EAPMCO Mekong, and EAPMCO Philippines.

In 2022, the UNOPS EAPMCO implemented projects worth more than USD 95.7 million, in the areas of Energy Transition, Digital Transformations, Sustainable Environmental Management, Climate Change, Waste Management, Rule of Law and Access to Justice, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Post Conflict Reintegration, Emergency Relief, Post COVID19 Economic Transformations, and Health, through HR, procurement, construction, contract management, fund and program management services.  

The Multi Country Office head office in Bangkok provides strategic direction, operational support, delivery oversight and assurance of the excellence of business processes and quality standards across all of the entire Multi Country Office locations. It is also responsible for developing, delivering and managing the portfolio of engagements in the country of the MCO location itself. 


Operational Context

Under the direct supervision of the HR Senior Officer, Thailand and the overall direction of the HR Manager, the HR Associate ensures consistent delivery of efficient and effective HR services to the client office(s). S/he interprets and applies HR policies, rules, regulations, and internal procedures to the management of key HR service lines and systems to support hiring managers in the sourcing, recruitment, selection, placement, realignment, and retention of the best available talent from internal and external sources. The incumbent provides solutions to a wide spectrum of complex HR issues, advice to international and national personnel, maintains oversight over the HR management of project personnel, and promotes a collaborative, client-oriented approach, contributing to the maintenance of high personnel morale.

1. Support to policy development and implementation 

2. Advisory Services

3. Talent Acquisition and Administration

4. Team Management (as applicable)

5. Knowledge Building and Knowledge Sharing

• Contribute to HR policy development and corporate HR initiatives by assisting to collect data on trends, risks and opportunities and sharing local HR best practices.

• Assist with projects in support of HR initiatives for attainment of business objectives in line with the corporate HR strategy.  

• Support the communication of HR policy changes and new HR initiatives to management and personnel, providing guidance as needed.

• Provide guidance on HR related systems and processes including but not limited to Recruitment, Contracts, Position Management, Performance Management, Benefits and Entitlements consistent with UNOPS rules and procedures.

• Provide advice and guidance to personnel on administrative procedures, processes and practices.

• Act as liaison between unit and internal and external clients and provides proactive customer service to expedite completion of projects, and provide information. 

• As the first face of HR, ensure that new hires' first impressions are positive and that they have all in-processing information completed.

• Advise hiring management and guide personnel on UNOPS recruitment and performance management processes, and learning and development initiatives, resources, and plans.

• Provide advice to supervisors on good practices, policies and procedures in performance management, including managing of underperformance. 

• Support the implementation of institutional gender and diversity initiatives, providing education and advice on issues related to equity, compliance, inclusion, and diversity.

• Assist in recruitment processes ensuring best practices are used for effective and efficient talent acquisition in line with UNOPS policy.  

• Actively participate in work force planning at the office and project level and guide clients through recruitment and selection processes. Take lead on requisition initiation, longlisting, testing and interviews, formal approvals, selection minutes, reference checking, fee calculation, offers and rejections, and updating recruitment on-line information system.

• Inform and advise UNOPS personnel, consultants, partners and project personnel on their conditions of service and entitlements according to their contract modality, expediting actions to facilitate their efficient, timely, and client-focused onboarding.

• Liaise with UNOPS’ HR related groups such as SSC on personnel administration matters and submit transactional HR service data (normally within the ERP system).

• Research precedents and present recommendations to supervisor, taking into account institutionalized exceptions. Undertake research on a range of HR related issues and assist in the preparation of notes/reports.

• Establish and maintain monitoring systems, advising the supervisor on the status of pending requests and approaching deadlines. Follow up on team work processes to ensure clearance, approvals and timely workflows 

• Answer questions and follow-up with personnel and management to ensure completion of absences requests, performance management cycle, and other HR processes etc. in electronic information systems. 

• Liaise with relevant HQ and UN system units to exchange information and follow up on pending issues.

• Set up and maintain reference files/records. 

• Follow up or process payroll verification.

• Monitor status of HR actions to facilitate timely action by supervisor and line management, including on transactions initiated, expiring appointments/contracts, and pending separation actions. 

• Support efficient planning and management of the HR unit, including drafting annual recruitment plans, implementing designated projects in line with the corporate HR strategy, overseeing personnel file systems as well as provision of related statistical summaries and tracking movements of UNOPS personnel within the relevant business units. 

• Facilitate the engagement and provision of high-quality results and services of the team supervised through effective work planning, performance management, coaching, and promotion of learning and development.

• Provide oversight, ensuring compliance by team members with existing policies and best practices

• Provide support to the organization, facilitation and/or delivery of training and learning initiatives for personnel on HR-related topics.

• Provides sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice by synthesizing of lessons learnt and dissemination of best practices in human resources.

• Collect feedback, ideas, and internal knowledge about processes and best practices and utilize productively. 

• Undertake research on a range of HR related issues and provide content for notes/reports including quarterly and year-end reports for monitoring, statistical and review purposes by management.

• Liaise with relevant HQ and UN system units to exchange information and follow up on pending issues.

Education:

• Completion of Secondary education is required. 

• University degree, preferably in Human Resources Management, Business Administration, Social or Behavioral Sciences, or in related fields, is an advantage and can substitute for some of the required years of experience.

Experience:

• Minimum six (6) years of work experience in an international and/or national organization in providing HR advisory, Recruitment or generalist HR services is required in combination with a high/secondary school diploma. Two (2) years of relevant experience is required in combination with a Bachelor degree and no experience is required in combination with a Master degree.

• Experience in providing HR support in the following processes is a distinctive advantage: recruitment and selection, on-boarding, performance management, learning and development, contract administration, and reporting.

• Some experience in UN system organizations is desirable.

• Experience in use of HR information systems, Enterprise systems including OneUNOPS is desirable.

• Proficiency in the usage of computers and G Suite application as well as web-based management systems is desirable.

• Knowledge of  UN policies, procedures, and practices is highly desirable.

Language:

• Full working knowledge of English is required.

• Contract type: Local ICA
• Contract level: ICS 6 / LICA 6
• Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – ‘Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’
• Duty station: Bangkok, Thailand (Bangkok is a family duty station)

• 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.