Consultant - Collaborative Surveillance and Coordination

Purpose of consultancy

To contribute to the design and management of the following initiative and its related projects:

• Collaborative Surveillance related projects such as:
  • Collaboratory.
  • Surveillance Data Standards.
  • Wastewater Surveillance.
  • Decision Support Pandemic Simulator.

Background

The Health Emergency Intelligence and Surveillance Systems Division (WSE) is responsible for building a system of collaborative intelligence enabling better decisions to avert and manage public health threats and risks. Its goal is to enable, strengthen and support countries, regional and global actors in averting and managing public health threats and risks through collaborative problem solving and decision-making for short-term action and long-term policies, informed by better data and analytics.

Deliverables

• Output 1: Foundational package of documents for program design, including vision statement, target operating model, theory of change, and communications plan.
  Delivery date: 01 July 2024
  • Activity 1: Finalize initiative vision statement and target operating model following a recognized gap analysis exercise.
  • Activity 2: Develop stakeholder engagement strategy and initiative communications plan following a recognized stakeholder analysis process.
  • Activity 3: Outline program’s theory of change following a recognized approach and a right-sized level of sophistication.
• Output 2: Intermediate package of documents for program design, including program business case, benefits realization plan, governance model outline, and high-level budget.
  Delivery date: 01 August 2024
  • Activity 1: Develop program’s business case and benefits realization plan.
  • Activity 2: Define a right-sized governance model for the initiative, and in collaboration with project team and senior management, finalize positions in the program governance bodies. Detail proposed approach for reviewing program progress and tracking delivery through phase reviews.
  • Activity 3: Map out high-level budget for program and support communications with interested stakeholders for early funding opportunities.
• Output 3: Final package of documents for program design, including detailed program plan, detailed program budget, and initial project plans with clear timelines.
  Delivery date: 01 September 2024
  • Activity 1: Design detailed program plan that highlights program dependencies and offers clear justification for prioritized workstreams.
  • Activity 2: Develop detailed program budget with human resource and activity costs, including support to regional offices and partners.
  • Activity 3: Detail project plans, in collaboration with project team and senior management. Ensure plan is flexible enough and adequately resourced to respond to ad hoc requests in a timely manner.
• Output 4: Facilitate the project execution through the timely completion of project status monthly reports, including the following components.
  Delivery dates: 01 October 2024, 01 November 2024, 01 December 2024, 01 January 2025, 01 February 2025, 01 March 2025, 01 April 2025
  • Activity 1: Update risk register, flagging major risks for stakeholders at appropriate intervals and proposing countermeasures.
  • Activity 2: Track project milestones and maintain up-to-date plan of project activities.
  • Activity 3: Track delivery against results framework and update results framework register of key indicators.
  • Activity 4: Provide technical guidance to the support project team in developing accurate projections of spending to correlate with planned project milestones.
• Output 5: Ensure timely and effective project governance, in coordination with project team and key stakeholders on a monthly basis, including the following activities.
  Delivery dates: 01 October 2024, 01 November 2024, 01 December 2024, 01 January 2025, 01 February 2025, 01 March 2025, 01 April 2025
  • Activity 1: Advise project stakeholders on a right-sized approach for project governance (in terms of frequency of meetings and composition of the bodies) and evaluate the functionality of the governance bodies on an ongoing basis.
  • Activity 2: Advise project team when to flag major risks or changes to project plan for project bodies review and decision, clearly documenting decisions that are taken in these meetings.
  • Activity 3: Facilitate preparation for the governance bodies meetings, drafting PowerPoints together with project teams and distilling key decision points for governance body review, clearly documenting decisions that are taken in these meetings.

Qualifications, experience, skills and languages

Educational Qualifications:

Essential:

• Advanced university degree in public health, public administration, project management, business administration, computer science or related fields.

Experience:

Essential:

• Over 10 years of relevant experience working in project management, strategy consultancy, or international development including public health related projects.

Skills:

• Excellent coordination and project management skills, including ability to work with wide range of stakeholders across the spectrum of government, donors, technical partners, civil society, humanitarian actors, and other expanded partners.
• Good knowledge of policies, systems, and procedures in global public health settings.
• Proactive identification, reporting and resolution/mitigation of issues and risks.
• Political acumen and ability to drive change and improvements in challenging, inter-cultural and complex environments.
• Excellent interpersonal negotiation skills, including ability to problem solve and manage conflict, including with senior counterparts at government level and amongst Gavi partners.
• Excellent communication skills.

Languages required:

Essential:

Expert knowledge of English.

Desirable:

Knowledge of another official language of the United Nations.

Location

Off site: Home-based.

Travel

The consultant is expected to travel.

Remuneration and budget (travel costs are excluded):

Remuneration:

Band level C - USD 10,000 - 12,500 per month.

Living expenses (A living expense is payable to on-site consultants who are internationally recruited):

N/A

Expected duration of contract:

11 months.

Additional Information

• This vacancy notice may be used to identify candidates for other similar consultancies at the same level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• If your candidature is retained for interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• For information on WHO's operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.
• WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.
• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.
• Consultants shall perform the work as independent contractors in a personal capacity, and not as a representative of any entity or authority. The execution of the work under a consultant contract does not create an employer/employee relationship between WHO and the Consultant.
• WHO shall have no responsibility whatsoever for any taxes, duties, social security contributions or other contributions payable by the Consultant. The Consultant shall be solely responsible for withholding and paying any taxes, duties, social security contributions and any other contributions which are applicable to the Consultant in each location/jurisdiction in which the work hereunder is performed, and the Consultant shall not be entitled to any reimbursement thereof by WHO.
• Consultants working in Switzerland must register with the applicable Swiss cantonal tax authorities and social security authorities, within the prescribed timeframes (Guidelines issued by the Swiss Mission are available at: https://www.eda.admin.ch/missions/mission-onu-geneve/en/home/manual-regime-privileges-and-immunities/introduction/Manuel-personnes-sans-privileges-et-immunites-carte-H/Non fonctionnaires et stagiaires.html