ICT Advisor - Retainer (Homebased), Multiple positions

1. Background Information

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners' peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world.  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.  

Kenya

The UNOPS Kenya office manages more than 60 projects in around 10 countries of eastern and southern Africa. UNOPS in Kenya helps partners achieve their project goals in sectors including: governance, education, health, the environment, grant management and rural development.

The Technical Services Unit (TSU) engages in multidisciplinary design and design review, assessments and advisory work for infrastructure related UNOPS projects.

The Unit is based in Nairobi, but works extensively in other locations, via travel and by using the network of retainer (consultant) personnel based elsewhere in Africa and beyond. The team is developing a portfolio of ICT related projects, owing to the recent onboarding of strong ICT expertise.

The TSU currently has 22 permanent and 60+ retainer (consultant) personnel including architects, civil engineers, structural engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, quantity surveyors, GIS and specialist infrastructure advisors (for dams, ICT, safeguards, biomedical works inter alia) and CAD technicians as well as support personnel.   

Current projects are underway / imminent in Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique and Madagascar, as well as further afield.  These projects comprise a range of types of design, advisory and peer review.

The TSU is a business unit for the Multi-Country office and comes under the direction of the Director for East and Southern Africa office.

2. Summary of Key Functions  

1. Strategic and Technical Leadership

2. Project Planning and Management

3. Results Orientation and Quality Assurance

4. Requirements, Landscape and Options Analysis

5. Contracting and Evaluation

6. Implementation and Contract Management

7. Capacity and Change Management

8. Knowledge Building and Knowledge Sharing

Strategic and Technical Leadership

• Provide advisory services on digitalization strategies and technologies, aligning them with local and international standards.

• Lead the development of technology strategies for new and existing services, outlining technical requirements, standards, and specifications.

• Collaborate with Senior Technical Advisors to adapt strategies based on emerging evidence and industry best practices.

• Establish technical frameworks in compliance with relevant international programs and strategies.

• Identify and assess various risks, including political, institutional, inter-agency, legal, and technology-related risks, and develop risk mitigation plans.

• Contribute to the identification, design, formulation and negotiation of new projects and programs and draft concept notes and project document briefs for discussion with partners.

Project Planning and Management

• Lead the planning, execution, and monitoring of digitalization projects and work packages per UNOPS methodologies.

• Coordinate multiple team assignments, balancing capacity against client requirements.

• Tracking and reporting of resource allocation.

Results Orientation and Quality Assurance

• Offer strategic technical direction and quality assurance to ensure alignment with international standards.

• Advise on work plan development, ensuring they are adaptive and realistic.

• Present findings and preferred option to project governance body for decision making.

• Provide inputs for project reports, capturing progress, challenges, and future activities.

• Escalate potential risks to avoid implementation delays.

Requirements, Landscape, and Options Analysis

• Conduct stakeholder and landscape analysis to document key personas, technical capacities, and business requirements.

• Use a user-centered approach to outline functional and non-functional requirements, including key use cases.

• Conduct options assessments, incorporating considerations like total cost of ownership (TOC), duration, sustainability, and scalability.

• Present findings to project governance bodies for informed decision-making.

Contracting and Evaluation

• Contribute to development of technical specifications (ToR) for the procurement and delivery of IT products and solutions, including cost estimation.

• Supporting vendor evaluation and selection process.

• Design optimal delivery and payment schedule to ensure iterative release of functionality.

• Monitor and evaluate performance of service providers / suppliers.

Implementation and Contract Management

• Monitor and adjust the Action Plan in collaboration with internal teams and external partners.

• Track project progress against plan, requirements, and quality measures.

• Establish a user-focused working group engaged throughout the development and implementation phases.

Capacity and Change Management

• Develop a change management plan from the project's outset, focusing on user adoption and change resistance mitigation.

• Tailor communication, training and change management to suit different groups of users and stakeholders.

• Develop appropriate communication and training material as well as an effective training approach.

Knowledge Building and Knowledge Sharing

• Stay updated on emerging technologies and advocate for their consideration where appropriate.

• Contribute to digitalization standards and strategies within UNOPS and external networks.

• Engage in communities of practice, sharing knowledge and lessons learned.

• Encourage routine and effective capacity building activities are conducted in order to build the long-term and sustainable capacity of staff.

• Contribute to the oversight of lessons learned procedures, ensuring that lessons learnt are shared in a timely and appropriate manner. 

• Participate in the relevant Communities of Practice.

• Coordinate research and logging of lessons learned throughout the project life span.

a. Education

• An advanced university degree (e.g., Masters) in Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related subject is required. 

• A first-level university degree (e.g., Bachelor) in combination with two (2) additional years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

• Certification in ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) Strategic Leader is a strong asset.

• Certification in Google Cloud technologies is an asset.

• Certification in Prince2, PMP, or similar project management certifications is an asset.

b. Work experience 

• A minimum of seven (7) years of IT, software development lifecycle, or related experience is required.

• Experience with leading ICT and digital innovation projects in UNOPS or other UN organizations is an asset.

• A minimum of 2 years of relevant experience (out of 7 years) working in field contexts and dealing with local Government stakeholders is required.

• A minimum of 2 years of relevant experience (out of 7 years) in leading cross-functional teams and multi-stakeholder initiatives is required.

• Experience with data management, analytics, and modeling is highly desirable.

• Experience with Google Workspace is highly desirable

c. Languages

• Proficiency in English is required.

• 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. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. 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.

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA) Retainer - A retainer contract is issued for a period of time during which the services of the individual contractor are required intermittently. The individual contractor agreement on retainer basis will specify a “unit price” per day worked. For budgetary purposes, a monetary cap will be determined when the contract is awarded and issued. Please note that the retainer contract will not provide for a minimum, and payment will be made only after completion of work. 

Contract level: Local Individual Contractor Agreement (LICA 11) / ICSC-11

Contract duration: One (1) year subject to satisfactory performance, availability of funds and necessity of services.