Administrative Assistant at United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Administrative officer (NO-C), the incumbent is responsible for the following duties:  

• Human Resources Management Initiates, reviews, processes and follows-up on actions related to the administration of the unit's human resource activities, e.g., recruitment of staff and consultants, placement, promotion, relocation, performance appraisal, job classification reviews, separation of staff members, training etc., ensuring consistency in the application of UN rules and procedures.
• Responds to enquiries and provides information and advice to staff regarding their entitlements, administrative procedures, processes and practices, conditions of service, duties and responsibilities, and entitlements under the Staff Rules and Regulations.
• Oversees the maintenance of vacancy announcement files and keeps track of status of vacancy announcements.
• Assists hiring managers with the recruitment of consultants in Inspira and raises shopping carts for consultants and ICs in UMOJA, as per delegated authority; monitor closely consultancy contracts in collaboration with the Resource Planning and Management section in Geneva.  
• Budget and Finance Assists in the preparation and review of financial and human resource proposals/requirements.
• Consolidates budget/work programme with respect to Headquarters' budget, trust funds, grants and procurement.
• Monitors expenditures and compares with approved budget; prepares adjustments as necessary.
• Assists managers in the elaboration of resource requirements for budget submissions.
• Assists in preparation of budget performance submissions and finalization of budget performance reports, analysing variances between approved budgets and actual expenditures. Prepares or customizes financial reports from IMIS system generated reports.
• Co-ordinates with other finance and budget staff on related issues during preparation of budget reports.
•  General Administration Drafts routine correspondence to respond to enquiries in respect to relevant administrative, financial audit, personnel matters.
• Coordinates extensively with service units and liaises frequently with internal team members both at Headquarters and in the field.
• Assists in the organization of meetings and conferences by the regional office: requesting index numbers and creating mini masters for meeting participants in UMOJA;
• Collect and recording bank information in BIRD; processing travel requests and expense reports on behalf of meeting participants; contributing to the management of the event/meeting including logistics, security, visas, protocol, hospitality etc.
• Advises staff on visa matters and rules pertaining to official business travel;
• Develops and maintains travel guides for the duty stations in the region including all relevant information; Umoja regional super user. Ensures new staff members receive the relevant equipment, phone access, intranet access, badge, etc.
• Assists staff members in the regional office with the issuance of UNLPs, visas, diplomatic IDs and customs clearance.
• Performs other related administrative duties, as required. May be responsible for guiding, training, and supervising the work of more junior General Service staff.  
• Contract Administration Assists with day-to-day administration of contracts between the UN and external contractors for outsourced services.
• Audits the contractors' invoices against the goods and services provided by the contractor and approved by the UN. Processes the payment of contractors' invoices and monitor payments.
• Prepares and processes all UN forms and permissions for contractual and work Unit, Section or Service UN staff, including: UN grounds passes, property passes, UN parking permits, swipe-card access and door keys.
• Acts at back up to the other assistant(s) in the office; performs other duties as required.

Competencies

• PROFESSIONALISM: Ability to perform a broad range of administrative functions, e.g., budget/work programme, human resources, database management, etc. Ability to apply knowledge of various United Nations administrative, financial and human resources rules and regulations in work situations. 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; commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work.  
• TEAMWORK: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others' ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.
• CLIENT ORIENTATION: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be "clients" and seeks to see things from clients' point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients' needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients' environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Education

• High school diploma or equivalent is required.

Work Experience

• A minimum of seven (7) years of experience in administrative services, finance, accounting, audit, human resources or related area is required.
• The minimum years of relevant experience is reduced to five (5) for candidates who possess a first-level university degree or higher.    
• Experience in support functions in international organizations such as the United Nations is desirable.    
• Experience working with the travel or consultants' modules of SAP (Umoja or other similar) is desirable.    
• Experience providing guidance to staff on human resources rules and regulations is desirable.    
• Experience providing support to conferences and large meetings is desirable.

Languages

• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of French is desirable. Knowledge of another UN official language is desirable.