Career Opportunities at UNICEF

Job organizational context:  The Chief of Operations reports to the Country Office Representative who is at D2/D1 level.

The Chief of Operations directs the operations of Country Office (CO) in support of program delivery. Incumbents report to the Representative and receives general direction and guidance.

As member of the CO Senior Management Team (SMT) Incumbents contributes to results-based and gender-based strategic decision processes. Incumbents acts as an advisor to the SMT on all aspects of the CO's management and operations in support of effective Governance, Risk and Compliance management.

The Chief is responsible for providing authoritative leadership and technical guidance to the CO Operations Team, for the timely and efficient delivery of financial, administrative, human resources, procurement and logistics, and ICT services that are fully integrated and in support of the CO's program strategies and activities; and in full compliance with organizational strategic plans, policies, procedures and guidelines and standards of performance, ethics and integrity.

The Chief fosters collaboration within the office, and with the operations-related community at Regional and HQ offices, as well as with other UN agencies. Incumbents actively participate in and contribute to activities promoted by the UNDG.

In an effort to measurably improve UNICEF's ability to deliver better results for children, and to also support the Operations team, Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) is embarking on a transformational process in a number of key areas. To support these initiatives, Regional Office in Nairobi is launching a batch recruitment to fill these three (3) key positions.

1. Chief of Operations, Nairobi, Kenya
2. Chief of Operations, Nairobi, Somalia Desk (Kenya)
3. Chief of Operations, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
   
   

Key Expected Results

• Leading and managing the CO's Operations function.
• Lead a multidisciplinary team of Operations professionals (financial, human resources, administrative, procurement and ICT) for the delivery of efficient services to programmes.
• Involving the team, set strategies, performance targets and indicators to determine priorities and to monitor progress. Monitor overall team performance to ensure results are achieved according to plans, objectives and performance standards/indicators.
• Promote critical thinking and introduce innovative approaches and best practices in the COs' operations management, in support of programme effectiveness, and compliant with organizational rules, regulations, practices and approaches. Institutionalize and share best practices and knowledge learned with global/regional colleagues to contribute to organizational development initiatives to strengthen management and operations. 
• Continuously develop and strengthen explicit knowledge within the section to ensure institutional memory is maintained and enriched. Lead/plan/implement capacity building initiatives to enhance competencies in operations management and services in the CO.
• Pursue innovation, documenting new processes to work and embed them into the design of new approaches.
• Monitor and evaluate operations' performance to identify weaknesses, areas for improvement and potential problems. Take appropriate action and/or alert relevant colleagues for timely action. Implement management improvements to maximize efficiency and performance in operations.
  
  

Develop training activities to ensure effective operational performance and efficiency

• Providing leadership and technical guidance to the CO's governance, risk and compliance management
  
  

Strategic planning

• In the context of the Country Programme Management Plan (CPMP), contribute to the definition of results-based and gender-based management strategies, organizational structure, and the planning of resources made available to the CO to support the implementation of the CO's programme strategies.
• Lead the Country Programme financial planning process with the formulation of the Integrated Budget (IB), in close consultation with internal stakeholders, and following analysis of staffing, programme inputs, and operational requirements.
• Contribute to the development of the Country Office annual/multi-annual management plans, and the clear definition of management priorities, expected results and staff accountabilities.
  
  

Governance systems management

• Manage the CO's consultative committees and bodies that support the decision processes in the Office (e.g. Country Management Team, Contract Review Committee, Property Survey Board, Joint Consultative Committee, etc.). Chair the key Operations-related committees.
• Advise the Representative on the composition and terms of reference of the consultative committees. Ensure that members receive appropriate orientation on their roles, and provide technical support based on corresponding organizational policies and guidelines.
   

Policy interpretation and application

• Provide authoritative technical and operational advice on the application, interpretation and implementation of operational policies, procedures and guidelines to the Representative and CO's internal and external stakeholders.
• Resolve complex operational issues and/or recommend (and document) deviation from policies and guidelines that maybe required in achieving organizational/CO needs/goals.
• Implements the effective communication, training, roll-out, monitoring and evaluation of new operational initiatives, guidelines and procedures.
  
  

Risk management and Internal Controls

• In compliance with UNICEF's ERM policy, provide technical support and guidance in the identification and management of the CO's risks that may affect achievement of the CP's objectives.
• In compliance with the UNICEF Financial Regulations and Rules and supporting organizational policies and procedures, provide authoritative advice in the design, management and monitoring of internal control systems to support the ethical, and efficient use of UNICEF resources, and the provision of accurate records on their utilization.
• In collaboration with the Deputy Representative, ensures the implementation of agreed audit recommendations; advise on corrective measures to be taken and establishes relevant internal controls.
• Participate in design and implementations of the CO's Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) plans and lead Business Continuity Management (BCM)
• Support the Representative with staff Security responsibilities in collaboration with UNDSS and UN inter-agency partners to ensure the complete protection of UNICEF staff and their dependents, premises and assets and. Conduct briefings to ensure that the staff members fully understand the emergency procedures and their own responsibility for their protection and that of their dependents.
   

Performance management

• Contribute to the monitoring of the CO's performance against benchmarks established in the CPMP and AMP and organizational key performance indicators.
• Provide leadership in the CP's annual and mid-term reviews on Operations related performance, and take timely actions to address areas that require improvements.
• Building partnership and networking.
• Maintain government counterpart relations; address issues pertaining to conditions of service, operational facilities and privileges within the context of the Basic Cooperation Agreement.
• Build and strengthen strategic partnerships with global/regional/country office Advisers/Specialists and practitioners through active networking to promote common approaches, encourage partnerships and to advocate greatest and coherent practices.
• Participate and/or represent UNICEF (as delegated/designated) in key events/meetings and in inter-agency discussions and planning on operations (including emergency/security planning) to ensure organizational position/priorities are fully considered and integrated in the in development planning/agenda setting and to build alliances to encourage working together and coherently as a UN system to enhance program efficiency and operations reforms (e.g. HACT, common premises/services).
• Contribute to global and regional strategic planning and policy changes/formulation on operational matters as necessary; Provides technical input to contribute to the establishment of operational guidelines in close coordination with the head of office, the Regional Operations Officer and DFAM. Negotiate cost effective  contractual arrangements with service providers as well as with implementing partners as required.

Qualifications of Successful Candidate

• Advanced university degree in business management, accounting, economics, financial management or other related social sciences is required.  Professional license from internationally recognized institutions in relevant fields may be accepted in conjunction with a first level university degree, in lieu of an advanced university degree.
• A minimum of ten years of relevant professional work experience in financial management and business operations in an international organization and/or large corporation is required.
• Work experience in emergency duty station is considered an asset. 
• Experience in a UN system agency or organization some of which served in a developing country is an asset.  Proven experience in managing successful client-oriented work units.  Experience in working with corporate ERPs and IPSAS is highly desirable.
• Fluency in English (verbal and written) is required.  Knowledge of an additional UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish) is considered an asset.   

Competencies of Successful Candidate

Core Values (Required)

• Commitment
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Integrity

Core Competencies (Required)

• Communication [level 3]
• Drive for Result [level 3]
• Working With People [level 3]

 Functional Competencies (Required)

• Leading and Supervising [level 3]
• Formulating Strategies and Concept [level 3]
• Analyzing [level 2]
• Relating and Networking [level 3]
• Deciding and Initiating Action [level 2]
• Following Instructions and Procedures [level 3]

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