A. Background Information

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a permanent international court established to investigate, prosecute and try individuals accused of committing crimes in the scope of the ICC’s jurisdiction. The ICC is composed of four organs. These are the Presidency, the Chambers, the Office of the Prosecutor and the Registry. The ICC Headquarters are based in The Hague, The Netherlands. The ICC has one Liaison Office in New York and maintains full-time physical presences in five situation countries, namely, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Mali, Ukraine. In total, the ICC has activities in relation to 17 countries globally. The ICC has approximately 1,200 staff members.

The Registry, headed by the Registrar, is responsible for non-judicial aspects of the administration and servicing of the Court, without prejudice to the functions and powers of the Prosecutor. This includes providing management and judicial support services to the Court, as well as those aspects of external relations and field operations falling within the purview of the Registry.

Accordingly, the Registry is composed of three Divisions: 1) Division of Management Services, 2) Division of Judicial Services, and 3) Division of External Operations. Each Division is headed by a Director, and the three Directors, together with the Chief of Office, support the Registrar through the Registry Management Team (RMT) in ensuring that the Registry fulfils its tasks effectively and efficiently.

The Registry’s Legal Office (RLO) is directly under the authority of the Registrar.

The Immediate Office of the Registrar (IOR) supports the Registrar in setting the Registry’s strategic objectives, overseeing inter-organ relations as well as in enhancing internal communication for the whole Court  and driving the development of Court-wide policies.

The IOR is responsible for coordinating, and where required taking the lead in, the engagement with the Presidency, the OTP, the secretariats, and the other offices on matters of strategy and policy.

The IOR also acts as the operational focal point for the Registry’s Divisions, providing practical support to the Registrar with a view to ensuring, in a coordinated and effective manner, the overall managerial oversight and control of the Registry.

Given that the Registry is the largest and, in terms of its functions, most diverse organ of the Court, managerial and oversight functions are very important. In this regard, the IOR plays a key role in a number of areas, including the preparation of the Court’s budget, addressing staff related issues, facilitating the conclusion of agreements, and indeed in virtually all other fields of the Registry’s operations. At the same time, through the Registrar’s representational role, the IOR aims to widening the support for and the understanding of the mandate of the Registry and of the Court in the international arena.

    B. Purpose

To ensure the Court remains effective and responsive in an increasingly uncertain and complex global environment, strengthening institutional sustainability and resilience is a strategic priority. This includes enhancing business continuity frameworks, embedding robust risk mitigation practices and developing the ability to adapt swiftly to evolving challenges—be they operational, technological, legal or geopolitical. This initiative is aligned with Strategic Goal 3 of the Strategic Plan 2026-2029 and is essential to ensuring the Court’s ability to maintain uninterrupted operations during times of crisis.

    C. Scope of Work

The expert will contribute to the formulation of contingency protocols covering judicial, operational and information technology functions, while also enhancing the integration of crisis management and risk management frameworks. The consultant will play a critical role in supporting the ICC in its institutional maturity process so as to strengthen the Court’s institutional resilience, operational preparedness and long-term sustainability in a rapidly evolving global environment.

The consultant will use as one the basis of their work the advisory gap analysis of Business Continuity at the ICC undertaken by the Office of Internal Audit in December 2025.

The primary objectives of this consultancy are:

• Conduct a Court-wide Business Impact Analysis, with a focus on judicial, operational and information technology functions
• Develop a proposal for institutional level business continuity plan, including continuity strategies, processes and governance structures, roles and policy framework aligned with ISO 22301 standards to include annual reviews, risk assessment, business impact analysis and testing that would underpin the ICC business continuity plan
• Develop a proposed methodology and templates for the development and adoption of key operational level business continuity plans to include essential and time critical business services, supporting processes, recovery time objectives and minimum acceptable level of delivery.
• Develop terms of reference for BC focal points
• Propose a plan for a Court-wide training programme on business continuity, maintenance, testing and lessons learned.

The consultant is expected to work closely with the IOR as well as consult widely with internal stakeholders to be identified by the IOR.

     D. Duration

The Consultant is expected to complete the assignment and produce a final report within 90 working days from the date of signing the contract.

    E. Reporting      

The consultant shall report to the Chief of Office of the Registrar, and work in close collaboration with a number of relevant internal stakeholders.

    F. Required Qualifications and Expertise: 

1. Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) in Business Administration, Risk Management, Security Studies, Information Systems Management, Organizational Resilience, or a related field.

A first‑level university degree combined with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree.

2. Professional Experience

A minimum of 5 years (seven years with a first-level university degree) of progressively responsible experience in business continuity management, organizational resilience, crisis management or disaster recovery planning within complex institutions, preferably international or public-sector organizations.

Demonstrated experience in conducting organization-wide Business Impact Analyses (BIAs), including in multi-functional environments such as judicial, operational, and ICT domains.

Proven track record in designing and implementing business continuity frameworks aligned with international standards (e.g., ISO 22301).

Experience developing institutional-level business continuity policies, governance structures, continuity strategies, and operational plans.

Experience formulating continuity methodologies, templates and toolkits, including recovery time objectives (RTOs), minimum acceptable levels of service (MALS), and time‑critical process mapping.

Experience designing or implementing continuity-focused training programmes, capacity‑building workshops, simulations, or exercises (e.g., tabletop exercises, scenario‑based testing).

Demonstrated ability to work with IT disaster recovery planning and understand the interplay between technology and organizational resilience.

Prior experience working with or within judicial bodies, law enforcement agencies, multilateral institutions or similar high‑integrity environments is highly desirable.

Experience working with audit findings, gap analyses or internal‑control assessments to develop improved institutional systems or governance mechanisms.

3. Technical Skills

Comprehensive knowledge of ISO 22301 Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS) and related guidelines.

Strong understanding of risk assessment methodologies, continuity lifecycle management, crisis response protocols, and resilience maturity models.

Familiarity with industry standards in IT continuity and disaster recovery, including dependencies between infrastructure, systems, and critical business services.

Proven ability to deliver clear, structured, and evidence-based reports and recommendations.

Ability to develop standardized continuity templates, including BIAs, risk assessments, crisis governance structures, recovery plans, and performance indicators.

4. Soft Skills and Organizational Competencies

Excellent analytical skills and ability to synthesize complex institutional information.

Strong stakeholder engagement capabilities, including facilitation of consultations across diverse operational units.

Demonstrated ability to work both independently and collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams.

High level of communication skills, including the ability to explain technical business continuity concepts to non‑technical audiences.

Sound project management skills, including the ability to deliver high‑quality outputs within tight timelines (90 working days).

Have excellent proven written and spoken English or French and strong oral and written communication skills.

     G. Budget and Payment Terms:

The Pro Bono services are preferred. Pre-approved travel costs and daily subsistence allowances will be based according to the rates established at the ICC. For Fees based services, the total price shall be in a fixed lump-sum amount, and milestone payments corresponding to outputs shall be indicated in the proposal. Payments under the contract will be output-based and will be made upon satisfactory completion of each milestone and finally upon the satisfactory completion of the assignment. The ICC general terms and conditions for consultants or procurement of services will be applied, based on the selected contract modality. Should the consultant be required to travel to the Netherlands, Pre-approved travel costs and daily subsistence allowances will be based according to the rates established at the ICC.

     H. Submission of Proposals: 

This opportunity is limited to individuals that would like to engage with the Court directly and is not extended to commercial companies. Interested consultants or Individual Service Providers are invited to submit their proposals, including a detailed methodology, work plan, timeline, budget, and CV(s) of the consultant(s), by 23 March 2026.