Management Mentor Specialist

Remote | New York City

Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
Location: Remote | New York City
Grade: Level not specified - Level not specified
Occupational Groups:
Closing Date: Closed

Background

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP: we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Office/Unit/Project Description

UNDP’s Water and Ocean Governance Support Program (WOGSP) is funded by Sida and sits within the Nature Hub of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support and comprises a broad and longstanding suite of regional and country-level activities in support of best practice water and oceans governance.

In 2022, the 2nd high‐level United Nations Ocean Conference was tasked to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14): "Scaling up ocean action based on science and innovation for the implementation of Goal 14: Stocktaking, partnerships and solutions". As one of the key players in the UN Ocean Conference, UNDP BPPS – through the Water and Ocean Governance Program – launched the Ocean Innovation Challenge with the intention to serve as a source for innovations leading to actionable, sustainable, replicable, scalable, and potentially transformative improvements in Ocean management to meet the commitments of SDG 14. The Ocean Innovation Challenge (OIC) is now in its 4th call.

The Model Innovation Challenge Modality of UNDP requires significant monitoring, evaluation, and substantial management and technical oversight of all OIC projects as a condition for approval, because the OIC incubates innovators that includes start‐up companies and NGOs, and other organizations that may not be eligible for contracting under standard UNDP Procurement practices. To successfully provide this guidance to existing and onboarding OIC Projects, additional leadership expertise is needed to provide management mentoring to OIC Innovators. Further, review of and feedback for all OIC deliverables ensures that each Innovation is on track and maintains the quality standards and expectations of UNDP.

Under the guidance and supervision of the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor, the Management Mentor Specialist will serve as the reviewer of OIC project deliverables, and provide support, guidance, and line management oversight to ensure that innovators remain on track with their contracts, understand and follow UNDP procurement rules, and conform with OIC SOPs. The Management Mentor Specialist will provide guidance to the OIC Team, and all OIC innovators, in working with government counterparts, and other key stakeholders as needed.

With input from the PTA on Oceans acting and in collaboration with the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor, the incumbent will help raise funding and support the further development and operationalization of WOGSP’s Contribution to the UNDP Strategic Plan and development of strategic partnerships towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

In addition to the responsibilities of the OIC, which is part of the wider WOGSP, the Management Mentor Specialist will work in close coordination with the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor to support the implementation of the wider WOGSP in 2024, and help develop the 2025-2030 strategy proposal for additional support from Sida. This position will include backstopping the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor in the development of the UNDP Water Services Offer; development of the UNDP institution-wide database on water; and the development of the UNDP Water Solutions Catalog. This position will also provide technical and management guidance to the WOGSP team in the development and implementation of the activation of the Nature Pledge where needed. Weekly calls will be held with the supervisor to track progress of deliverables described in the TOR.

Scope of Work

Through this contract, the IPSA holder will provide key leadership support and project management expertise to UNDP/BPPS/WOGSP acting as Management Mentor Specialist for the WOGSP.

General tasks:

Under the supervision of and in close coordination with the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor the IPSA holder will:

A. Mentor and reporting on ongoing OIC projects

Provide project management oversite, guidance, and mentoring for OIC innovators;
Ensure innovators clearly understand deliverables and schedules;
Provide guidance to innovators on working with government counterparts and other key stakeholders;
Meet with individual OIC Innovators on a regular basis to ensure quality requirements of UNDP are met in all deliverables and that work is correctly paced to ensure delivery on schedule;
Review materials submitted by the innovators, with recommendations on improvements in management and technical aspects;
Work with the wider OIC team, to provide a series of trainings to OIC Innovators on management approaches for innovation success;
Provide oversight and project management inputs to the annual OIC Donor Report, and the OIC Terminal Evaluation 2024;
Work with OIC team to promote results of the ongoing round of Innovation Challenges;
Provide additional support to the Water and Ocean Governance Programme as needed.

B. Mentor and advice to the WOGSP Sida Component B

Provide collaborative inputs to the development of the UNDP Water Services Offer, and UNDP Ocean Promise as aligned with the Nature Pledge; and support effective functioning and delivery of the fully integrated WOGSP.
Provide technical inputs into the verification and refinement of the UNDP-wide water database in coordination with the Nature Hub Knowledge Management team and the CEO Digital Office of UNDP;
Lead technical guidance on the development of the Water Solutions Catalogue for application at the Country Office Level;
Contribute to country-level activities of Global Water and Ocean Governance Support Program, including through the activation of the Nature Pledge via water and ocean governance;
Contribute to the implementation of the Nature Pledge and its linked Ocean Promise and emergent Water Services Offer in national and international fora, to support building partnerships with the public and private sector in support of the 2025-2030 Water and Ocean Governance Support Programme, Ocean Innovation Challenges, and wider implementation of the Water Services Offer;
Participate actively in the WOGSP/ Sida B2 Steering Committee Meetings, and Terminal Evaluation;
Work with the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor to develop the 2025-2030 Sida Programme Proposal including support to budget management, definition of tasks and responsibilities of UNDP and Responsible Parties, and inputs into applied water governance approaches, based on professional experience in water management, IWRM, Integrated Coastal Management, and Ocean Governance.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Institutional Arrangement

The incumbent will work from home;
The incumbent will report to, and be directly supervised by the OIC Manager and acting Senior Water Advisor, and will liaise closely with PTA on Oceans. The Consultant will be given access to relevant information necessary for execution of the tasks under this assignment.
The incumbent will be responsible for providing her/his own workstation (i.e. laptop, internet, phone, scanner/printer, etc.) and must have access to reliable internet connection;
International mission travel may be required.

Competencies

Core

Achieve Results	LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact
Think Innovatively	LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems
Learn Continuously	LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences
Adapt with Agility	LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands
Act with Determination	LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results
Engage and Partner	LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration
Enable Diversity and Inclusion	LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity

Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies

Thematic Area	Name	Definition
Business Direction & Strategy	Strategic Thinking	Ability to develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDP’s objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, potential risks and opportunities; linking the vision to reality on the ground, and creating tangible solutions. And ability to leverage learning from a variety of sources to anticipate and respond to future trends; to demonstrate foresight in order to model what future developments and possible ways forward look like for UNDP.
Business Direction & Strategy	Entrepreneurial Thinking	Ability to create clarity around UNDP value proposition to beneficiaries and partners and to develop service offers responding to client needs based on UNDP’s organizational priorities and mandate.
Business Development	Collective Intelligence Design	Ability to bringing together diverse groups of people, data, information or ideas, and technology to design services or solutions.
Business Management	System Thinking	Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system
Business Management	Partnerships Management	Ability to build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts, and others in line with UNDP strategy and policies.
Business Management	Communication	Ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels
2030 Agenda: Planet	Nature, Climate and Energy	Ocean Governance: Ocean governance legal and policy frameworks

Minimum Qualifications of the Successful IPSA

Min. Academic Education

Advanced University Degree (Master´s degree or equivalent) in applied project management, technical aspects of water and ocean governance, or related area.
A first-level university degree (Bachelor´s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with additional 2 years of qualifying experience, will be given due consideration in lieu of advanced university degree.

Min. years of relevant Work

Minimum 7 years (with Master´s degree) or 9 years (with Bachelor´s degree) of previous working experience with international organizations in both marine/oceans and freshwater management.

Required skills

Previous knowledge management and extensive governance and policy implementation experience working with national and international organizations, required
Experience of knowledge management, professional development capacity building program implementation , and mentoring of start ups, NGOs, government officials, and private sector, required
Experience in high level management of public organizations pertaining to water and ocean, required
Experience with management and oversight of international and interdisciplinary teams, required
Management experience with successful implementation of public sector funded projects, required

Desired additional skills and competencies

Previous experience with United Nations or other international organization is an advantage
Experience in systems approaches and/or multi‐stakeholder collaboration is an advantage
Experience in stakeholder engagement and gender mainstreaming in both water and ocean governance is an advantage

Required Language(s)

Fluency in English is required.
Knowledge of another UN language(s) is an asset.

Disclaimer

Important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders)

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment.

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Non-discrimination

UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.

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This vacancy is now closed.