Closing date: Monday, 9 March 2015

Posting Title: SENIOR PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT OFFICER, P5

Job Code Title: SENIOR PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT OFFICER

Department/ Office: United Nations Environment Programme

Duty Station: PARIS

Posting Period: 8 January 2015-9 March 2015

Job Opening number: 15-PGM-UNEP-38618-R-PARIS (X)

United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity

Special Notice

Appointment against this position is for an initial period of one year and may be subject to extension. Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.

All applicants are strongly encouraged to apply on-line as soon as possible after the job opening has been posted and well before the deadline stated in the job opening. On-line applications will be acknowledged where an email address has been provided.

If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. If the problem persists, please seek technical assistance through the Inspira 'Need Help?' link.

Organizational Setting and Reporting

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the United Nations system,s designated entity for addressing environmental issues at the global and regional level. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action.

The overall objective of the UNEP's Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE) is to encourage decision makers in government, local authorities and industry to develop and adopt policies, strategies and practices and technologies that promote sustainable patterns of consumption and production, make efficient use of natural resources, ensure safe management of chemicals and contribute to making trade and environment policies mutually supportive. It promotes the development, use and transfer of policies, technologies, economic instruments, managerial practices and other tools that assist in environmentally sound decision making and the building of corresponding activities. This post is located in UNEP/DTIE/SCP at the Paris duty station.

Under the supervision of the Chief, SCP branch, the incumbent will act as Head of Unit and perform the following duties: Responsibilities

1. Strategic development and overall coordination of UNEP's activities and projects

• Build and manage a coherent and integrated urban development programme with a focus on resource efficiency, consumption and lifestyles;
• Provide overall coordination of existing urban and sustainable buildings projects, planning, implementation; Identify problems and issues and initiate correlative actions;
• Develop and lead the strategic development plan for the urban programme under the framework of the Global Initiative for Resource Efficient Cities/GI-REC and establish synergies with the 10-YFP programmes such as Sustainable Buildings and Construction, Sustainable Public Procurement and Sustainable Lifestyles;
• Represent UNEP in relevant projects and networks; Prepare papers, reports and provide input to UNEP's planning and reporting.

2. Strategic positioning and consolidation of the Sustainable Buildings and Climate Initiative (SBCI) and GI-REC

• Ensure delivery of substantive and relevant output for the above;
• Identify needs and opportunities;
• Conduct fund raising to secure resources;
• Ensure internal (UNEP) and external coordination of activities in relation to Sustainable UN; Develop the annual work program and the budget for SBCI, GI-REC and other initiatives
• Identify and realize opportunities for increasing global support and as relevant membership to these initiatives
• Provide support to concerned staff and partners, experts and consultants;
• Develop policies, tools, metrics, methodologies and projects related to sustainable buildings and resource efficient cities.

3. Consolidate and expand the cities and lifestyles programme, in close cooperation with relevant partners and with the support of adequate resources and support regional centers:

• Use Letter of Agreements, Project Cooperation Agreements, and other administrative tools to execute monitor and report on activities
• Provide substantive backstopping to consultative meetings and conferences;
• Initiate and coordinate outreach activities;
• Conduct training workshops and seminars, make presentations on assigned topics/activities;
• Coordinate activities related to budget funding in programme/project preparation and submissions, progress reports and financial statements and prepare documents/reports.

4. Monitoring, reporting, budgeting and planning

• Ensure that communication activities on built environment activities are timely and meet needs expectations, regular updates to partners;
• Update of relevant websites and conduct formal reporting to donors and within UNEP;
• Ensure that the budget tracking system up to date, all major costs are budgeted, and expenditure are within range;
• Provide reports and input to common activities and projects in the Cities and Lifestyles unit and the SCP branch.

5. Perform any other related duties assigned.

Competencies

Professionalism

• expert knowledge and understanding of sustainable consumption and production, resource efficiency and sustainable development policies in the international arena
• Ability to identify key strategic issues, opportunities and risks.
• Ability to generate and communicate broad and compelling organizational direction.
• Ability to communicate clearly links between the Organization's strategy and the work unit's goals.
• Demonstrated ability to provide innovative technical leadership by performing and/or overseeing the planning, development, and management of operation.
• Demonstrated ability to negotiate and apply good judgment
• Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns;
• shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations.

Communication

• Speaks and writes clearly and effectively;
• listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately;
• asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication;
• tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience;
• demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Planning and Organizing

• Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies;
• identifies priority activities and assignments;
• adjusts priorities as required;
• allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work;
• foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning;
• monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary;
• uses time efficiently.

Leadership

• Serves as a role model that other people want to follow: Empowers others to translate vision into results; Is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives;
• Establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support;
• Anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions;
• Drives for change and improvements; does not accept the status quo;
• Shows the courage to take unpopular stands.
• Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work;
• Demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.

Managing Performance

• Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority;
• Makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member;
• Accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches task to skills;
• Monitors progress against milestones and deadlines;
• Regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff;
• Encourages risk-taking and supports creativity and initiative;
• Actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff; appraises performance fairly.

Education

• Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in civil engineering, architecture, social sciences or related field is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

• A minimum of ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience in project or programme management, administration or related field is required.
• Experience from work on sustainable Cities and /or Sustainable Consumption and Production and from international work is required.
• Experience working with the UN is an asset.

Languages

• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.
• For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written English is required.
• Knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage

Assessment Method

• Evaluation of qualified candidates for this position may include a substantive assessment which will be followed by a competency-based interview.

United Nations Considerations

Job openings posted on the Careers Portal are taken off at midnight (New York time) on the deadline date.

Applications are automatically pre-screened according to the published evaluation criteria of the job opening on the basis of the information provided by applicants. Applications cannot be amended following submission and incomplete applications shall not be considered. The selected candidate will be subject to a reference checking process to verify the information provided in the application.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the At-a-Glance on 'The Application Process' and the Instructional Manual for the Applicants, which can be accessed by clicking on 'Manuals' on the upper right side of the browser on Inspira.

The United Nations shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. (Charter of the United Nations - Chapter 3, article 8). The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Candidates will be required to meet the requirements of Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter as well as the requirements of the position. The United Nations is committed to the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity for all its human resources, including but not limited to respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to whether they have committed, or are alleged to have committed criminal offences and/or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.