Senior Finance and Budget Assistant, G7 at United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON)

Responsibilities
BUDGETING:

• Preparation of cost estimates and budget proposals in terms of staff and non-staff requirements for regular budget and extra-budgetary resources under UNON Administration;
• Monitoring budget implementation and performance and recommending reallocation of funds as necessary;
• Ensuring that requisitions for goods and services are in line with authorized budgets, the priorities of the Organisation and within he UN financial rules and regulations;
• Reviewing requests for creation and extension of positions as well as requests for recruitment in terms of availability of funding;
• Assisting in the execution of cost recovery in line with established agreements and policies and providing support on the collection of associated receivables;
• Performing certifying functions of financial transactions as per delegation.

ACCOUNTING:

• Responsible for the processing of financial documents in line with the financial rules and regulations;
• Reviewing and analysing of various accounting data, financial statements input and preparation of reports;
• Scrutinising supporting documents for completeness, accuracy and validity of requests in line with applicable policies, procedures, rules and regulations;
• Verifying accuracy of postings and processing corrections as appropriate;
• Analysing and monitoring open item managed accounts (OIM) in the SAP ERP system (UN Umoja), initiating and coordinating corrective action;
• Performing approval functions of financial transactions as per delegation.

GENERAL:

• Preparing and analysing reports with a view to identifying anomalies and unusual trends and recommending corrective action as appropriate;
• Performing data extraction and preparing various reports for management review;
• Responding to queries and drafting correspondence in relation to budgetary and financial matters from management, clients (internal and external), auditors and other stakeholders and ensuring timely responses to clients’ requests and queries through the iNeed portal;
• Ensuring that accurate and complete accounting; reporting and internal control systems are functioning;
• Ensuring that all relevant records and audit trails are maintained;
• Acting as team leader and provide day-day management and supervision, training and guidance to other general services staff;
• Providing support to Unit Chief in the planning of unit and team staff work plans, monitor and report performance against the plans and key performance indicators;
• Knowledge retention and quality assurance focal point for the team;
• Assists with the collection and analysis of data as well as preparation of data presentations and reports for information sharing, responding to queries, knowledge management, planning and decision making;
• Assists with visualizations and updating information material such as web pages or brochures;
• Performing other related duties as required by Section or Unit Chief.

Competencies

• PROFESSIONALISM: Knowledge of, and ability to apply financial rules, regulations and procedures in the UN environment; knowledge, skills and ability to extract, interpret, analyze and format data across the full range of finance and budget functions; 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.
• 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.
• ACCOUNTABILITY: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honors commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.
• 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 if such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Education

• Completion of High school diploma or secondary school is required.
• Supplemental courses/ training in finance, administration, project management or related field is desirable.
• A recognized accountancy qualification (e.g., Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountants (CIPFA) is desirable.

Work Experience

• A minimum of ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience in finance, budget or related area is required. The minimum years of relevant work experience is reduced by two years for candidates who possess a first level University degree.
• Experience in supervising a team is required.
• Experience with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) is desirable.
• Working experience with an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) finance system such as Oracle or SAP is desirable.
• Experience with complex data analysis and reconciliations is desirable.
• Working experience with business intelligence tools is desirable.
• Experience with integrated business processes, analytical and reporting tools is desirable.

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 official United Nations language is desirable.