Director – P05

In accordance with paragraph f. of Article 44 of the General Standards, the official languages of the Organization are English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.  No candidate for a position in the General Secretariat subject to the competition requirement shall be contracted until he/she has been administered language proficiency exams by the DHR in at least two of the official languages. Nevertheless:

(i) Any candidate, including a staff member, whose native language is one of those four languages shall only be required to demonstrate proficiency on an exam in one of the others; and

(ii) Persons applying for G-1 and G-2 positions at Headquarters and G-3 driver/clerk positions in those Offices of the General Secretariat in the Member States where the language requirement unduly restricts the recruitment of otherwise qualified staff shall be exempt from this language proficiency requirement for as long as they occupy those positions. Subsequently, in order to be eligible to compete for a higher-level position, any staff member who has benefited from this exemption must demonstrate proficiency in a second official language of the Organization; and

(iii) A person selected as the best candidate may receive a fixed-term contract, which will be considered to have lapsed in case the person does not pass the required language examination in a second official language within the 36 months following the appointment.
(iv) During all steps of the recruitment and selection process, a candidate for a position in the General Secretariat shall demonstrate proficiency in at least one official language of the Organization.

(v) During all steps of the recruitment and selection process, the application of language requirements shall be guided by the principles of merit, equitable geographic representation, proportionality, and non-discrimination. The lack of proficiency in a second language should not be grounds for elimination during the recruitment and selection process.

(vi) Persons applying for positions in the Offices of the General Secretariat in the Member States shall demonstrate proficiency in the official language(s) of the Member State.

(vii) When the native language of the candidate is not one of the four official languages of the Organization, the candidate shall be required to sit a proficiency examination administered by the DHR in at least two of the official languages.

The salary for this position corresponds to Grade P05, Step 1, in accordance with Staff Rule 103.3 Initial Salary:
(a) A staff member on initial appointment shall be placed in the first step of the grade of post, without exemption.
(b) This rule does not apply to a staff member who is already employed by the General Secretariat and is selected, promoted, demoted, reassigned, or otherwise transferred to a different post. In such cases, salary shall be determined in accordance with the applicable provisions of these Staff Rules.
            
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

This is a functional lead, authority-in-the-field type position designed to make critical impact in the Organization, and is assigned all or part of the following responsibilities. (NOTE: these responsibilities and expected results are standardized, and are not necessarily performed by all staff members sharing this job title):

•    Serves as a Director in the Office of the Executive Director. Primary advisor on technology matters to the Executive Director. Has frequent direct contact with the Secretary, and occasional contact with the Chief of Staff and representatives of member states to provide advice on technology matters. Works closely and collaboratively with other Directors of the Office of the Executive Director’s team to provide services in a seamless fashion to the Organization.
•    Assumes an organization-wide leadership role supporting the OAS General Secretariat, and to varying degrees other Inter-American system Principal and Specialized Organs, working independently but always keeping the Executive Director well informed.
•    Prepare and implement an OAS information resources management vision, mission and overall strategy. Identifies innovative and emerging technology trends through change management activities that improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization’s services. Builds relationships across the organization and supports the implementation of policies and governance while explaining complex concepts in business terms. Participates in overall business planning, applying a current knowledge and future vision of technology to ensure DOITS delivers results consistent with the organization's guiding mandates. Determines long-term organization-wide information needs and develops overall strategy for information needs, systems development, hardware acquisition, and systems integration. Acts as senior interface with non-technical user functions to determine overall information systems approach.
•    Leads a team of information resource and technology staff members and contractors/consultants. Leads by example, fosters collaborative and pleasant team environment, coaches and mentors more junior IT team members to improve performance. Manages industry partners/vendor relationships. Assess, motivate and train personnel to sustain reliable operations for hardware and software while providing high levels of customer service. Provide leadership, guidance and monitoring of supervised staff by setting clear work objectives, ensuring timely and effective use of performance reviews and feedback mechanisms, engaging in regular communications, and solving interpersonal or technical conflicts; establish and support a learning environment, to include staff development in the Organization’s fundamentals, managerial competencies and technical expertise;
•    Maintain an effective information assurance program. Ensure integrity of organization-wide data, proprietary information, and related intellectual property.
•    Work with other areas to facilitate records and knowledge management and archiving. Responsible and accountable for communication and information shared with external auditors and the Office of the Inspector General.
•    Improve OAS-wide efficiency, accountability and oversight. Plan and organize the formulation, development, implementation, and control of information systems to monitor and improve business processes. Promote collaboration across the OAS and establish an environment, which encourages participation, stimulates each team member's creativity, and fosters a multidisciplinary approach to the solution of specific problems while breaking existing silos.
•    Provides strategic IT consulting based on strong business management capability. Responsible for project management and delivery of IT business strategy consulting services and specialized software development to meet both routine organizational requirements and the specialized requirements of OAS project managers working to implement donor-funded projects. When opportunities arise, responsible for revenue generation, building a client base and establishing/maintaining contacts in multiple client organizations. Responsible for the overall management of project teams and development of staff. Manages relationships with internal clients and may have responsibility for business development.
•    Provide overall management and definition of all OAS computer and communication infrastructure, managing transition to, and operation of, cloud-based services. Lead day-to-day operations of DOITS functions. Oversee the delivery of IT services, including requirements and feasibility analyses, coordination or IT procurements, software development, configuration and implementation, network management, communications systems, maintenance of corporate systems, infrastructure support, network and data security, strategic planning and business continuity. This includes managing OAS data centers, public and private cloud environments, production scheduling functions; a help desk, communication networks (voice and data) at headquarters with connectivity to overseas offices/missions, and development and management of a wide variety of commercial and customized software applications.
•    Prepare and justify DOITS program and budget proposals.
•    Responsible for developing comprehensive plans regarding acquisitions and modification of the Organization's IT infrastructure to support operations, streamline business processes and facilitate collaboration to accomplish organizational strategic goals.
•    Maintain productive collaborative relationships with counterparts, particularly IT Directors at other international organizations in order to leverage their knowledge to the benefit of the OAS. Modify service provision models based on best practices at other international organizations.
•    Coordinate with the Office of the Assistant Secretary General to manage the connectivity of OAS National Offices and with other Secretariats to support special mission offices.
•    Determine the viability of, and recommend projects and modernization activities for, the organization. Determine strategies for implementation, including suitable financing, financial resources mobilization, and executing arrangements. Assure the timely monitoring, reporting and evaluation of results and accomplishments for the benefit of the Member States, General Secretariat and Principal and Specialized Organs.
•    Works closely with the Assistant Secretary General dependency and technical personnel of Member States hosting the annual General Assembly to meet IT requirements in often challenging environments.
•    Oversee negotiations with suppliers, distributors, federal and state agencies, and other organizational entities and approve contracts and agreements.
•    Define DOITS personnel component including the organizational structure, competencies and terms of reference. Performs DOITS personnel gap assessment, while monitoring and enhancing individual competencies.
•    Ensure proper maintenance of OAS standard and customized software and hardware installations, and facilitate further enhancements and upgrades. Monitor workloads to ensure equitable distribution of work and maintain job satisfaction, efficiency and output; and address deviations of work results from objectives.
•    Provide a stable managerial framework that demonstrates accountability, trust and value to Member States, clients and donors.
Provide intellectual leadership to guide and motivate staff to work in a multicultural environment; promote a culture and positive work environment of ethical behavior and integrity in accordance with the OAS’ ethics standard; ensure a culture of respect, responsibility, accountability, and compliance.
•    Direct and participate in the development of information resource management governance policies and guidelines and their implementation. Consult with stakeholders and provide authoritative advice in relation to policy and procedures. Maintain current knowledge of equipment, systems and programming techniques appropriate to the organization.
•    For special projects funded by donors, work with program managers from other Secretariats and Principal and Specialized Organs to define overall requirements and develop systems based on efficient business processes in compliance with OAS standards for sustainable technology programs. When opportunities arise, work to facilitate mobilization of financial and technical resources from Member States, Permanent Observer countries, other regional and international organizations and institutions, the private sector and civil society organizations; discuss and negotiate the provision of services and funding.
•    Represent the GS/OAS at regional and international meetings and consultative groups on subjects and issues in the area of competence.
•    Perform other related duties as assigned, including replacing and/or backstopping for others, including the Executive Director.

QUALIFICATIONS:

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:  
Essential: First University Degree (Bachelor) in one or more of the following fields: Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, Business Administration, Management or a related field, issued by a duly accredited institution and 15 years of relevant experience at national and international level OR Advanced University Degree (Master) in one of the fields listed above and 10 years of relevant experience OR Doctorate and 6 years of relevant experience. Relevant and progressively increasing responsibility managing computer and telecommunications networks and software development/maintenance. Significant managerial experience, including management of large teams is required.

Desirable: Experience in a C-level role within an organization- or corporation- and wide responsibilities in an international environment. Knowledge of best practices around HR, Procurement and Financial activities. Knowledge or willingness to learn of the OAS mandates and priorities as related to the area of work and/or the dynamics of the Inter-American agenda and system. Project Management Professional (PMP) and IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) certifications. Relevant and progressively increasing responsibility managing modern IT service delivery and IT infrastructure operations, data and business automation operations, cloud stack environments, and Information Security engineering and operations. Proven experience leading digital transformation projects. Proven experience successfully leading large modernization investments. Significant experience implementing industry best-practice processes frameworks.

COMPUTER SKILLS: Ability to effectively work using Microsoft Office (e.g. Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and other applications such as Oracle, Visio, Access, Share Point) and software applicable to the area of work.

LANGUAGES:
Essential – Proficient in at least two of the following languages: English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish (read, write and communicate). The selected candidate must satisfy the applicable language-proficiency examination requirements under Article 44(f) of the General Standards, including passing the required DHR-administered examination in a second official language within the applicable timeframe. The lack of proficiency in a second language should not be grounds for elimination during the recruitment and selection process.  

Desirable –  Working knowledge of other two OAS official languages.

PERSONAL COMPETENCIES: Client Orientation, Knowledge Sharing, Teamwork, Interpersonal Skills, Managing and Coaching Staff, Strategic Planning, Encouraging Innovation, and Decision Making/Judgment. Ability to clearly communicate in the languages required for the post.

The GS/OAS embraces equality, diversity and inclusion. Accordingly, in accordance with its rules and regulations, the GS/OAS is committed to providing equal employment opportunities and achieving a diverse staff. In selecting candidates, it will take into account equitable geographic representation, as well as gender equity and equality.

Please note that the mandatory retirement age for staff members at the General Secretariat of the OAS is 65 years. 

Benefits:

- Compensation: 
Professional Category: Remuneration = Basic Salary + Post Adjustment 
Net of taxes for non-US citizens  

- US citizens tax reimbursement: US Citizens are reimbursed for most taxes paid on OAS remuneration.  

- Paid Annual Leave: 21 days from 1st year.  Increase to 30 days within 5 years.  

- Sick Leave and Parental Leave.

- Health Insurance: OAS pays 2/3 of premium.

- Pension and Savings Plans: In addition to salary, OAS contributes 14% of pensionable remuneration to a Retirement and Pension Plan. Staff contribute 7%.

- Additional benefits (dependent on contract type): Mobilization allowance, repatriation grant, home leave travel, dependency allowance, life insurance.