Associate Portfolio Support Officer, Multiple positions

Based in Geneva, the Europe and Central Asia Regional Office (ECR) supports UNOPS offices throughout the region through: management, financial and programmatic oversight of global and country-specific portfolios, clusters and operations centres, including hosting services; fund and management advisory services; project implementation; procuring goods and services; and managing human resources.

ECR ensures that projects are executed to the highest standards, providing a shared knowledge base and ensuring that best practices and lessons learned are disseminated between business units and projects across the entire region.

 ECR strategy is to:

• Strengthen UNOPS role in operationalizing the Sustainable Development Goals with particular emphasis on health, environment and economic development.
• Position UNOPS in the Balkan sub-region, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
• Strengthen the implementation of ECR global and regional programmes, with revitalized partnerships in infrastructure, procurement and project management.

ECR operates global portfolios from offices in Geneva, Brussels and New York, and country-specific programmes from its operations and project centres located in Eastern Europe and Central Asian countries.

Cities Alliance, which is hosted by UNOPS, is a global partnership for the promotion of cities in poverty reduction and sustainable development. Headquartered in Brussels and supported by a Secretariat, it is a unique partnership with a diverse membership including – global organisations of local authorities, national governments, international non-governmental organisations, foundations, knowledge networks and multilateral organisations – which have come together to strengthen both impacts and coherence in urban development. Cities Alliance is a global leader, with a strong track record in grant making, that supports strategic city planning, slum upgrading strategies and national policies designed to make cities more inclusive and sustainable. Members promote longer-term and integrated work programmes, while actively promoting gender equality throughout all activities.

The Associate Portfolio Support Officer will work as a member of a small team responsible for delivering an agreed set of hosting services, supported by a matrix of responsibilities and a service level agreement, to meet the business needs of the Cities Alliance Secretariat.  The Associate Portfolio Support Officer will report to the Portfolio Manager for Cities Alliance, and may also serve as HR focal point. 

1.       Support service delivery

• Provide operational support to meet the business needs of the Cities Alliance Secretariat by delivering an agreed set of services in the areas of human resources, procurement, travel, and grants.
• Assist in managing the processes required to recruit individual contractors and fixed term positions foreseen in the Cities Alliance Secretariat’s annual HR plan. Liaise closely with Cities Alliance Task Managers by providing assistance with terms of reference, vacancy notices, coordination of written assessments and interviews, and processing and submitting documents for recruitment awards. The selected candidate may also serve as HR focal point.
• Assist with the preparation of a quarterly procurement plan and conduct procurement processes for contracts with firms following standard UNOPS rules and procedures. Liaise and provide support to Cities Alliance Task Managers to promote efficiency, transparency, value for money and consistency in obtaining goods and services.
• Process a range of workflow transactions in the OneUNOPS ERP system ensuring speed, accuracy, quality and consistency.
• Ensure all documents and records for Cities Alliance are filed systematically and consistently according to an agreed Information Management framework to facilitate teamwork and back-up support.
• Monitor and apply all new developments of UNOPS policies, rules and tools regarding budgeting, financial management and accounting, HR, procurement and travel. Communicate relevant changes to the Cities Alliance Secretariat in a timely way and provide any support required with implementation.
• Contribute to efforts undertaken by the Cities Alliance Secretariat to mainstream gender equality.

2.       Financial monitoring and reporting

• Prepare financial reports according to the Cities Alliance Secretariat’s Financial Monitoring & Reporting Framework. Review expenditures to ensure accuracy of records, flag and follow up to resolve any anomalies on project budgets or expenditure, liaising closely with UNOPS central units and keeping the Cities Alliance Secretariat informed.
• Analyse financial data related to procurement, travel, HR administration, and grants. Compile statistical information and prepare charts and graphs for management use to track expenditure and trends quarterly and/or annually.
• Execute specific tasks related to grants e.g. recording commitments in oneUNOPS, releasing disbursements, recovering unspent balances, in accordance with Cities Alliance’s Grants Manual.
• Process travel requests and expense claims for Secretariat personnel and handle travel arrangements for meeting participants funded by the Cities Alliance Secretariat.
• Reconcile petty cash transactions and replenish as necessary.
• Review the accounts regularly to ensure records are accurate and commitments closed out in a timely way to facilitate project closures and prepare the financial year closure exercise.
• Provide support to the Cities Alliance Secretariat for project closures and settle any unspent balances with the donor.
• Provide auditors with information and access to systems as required.

3.       Teamwork and client relations

• Prioritise and organise work to ensure services required are delivered to high standards of effectiveness and efficiency. Provide practical, solution-oriented follow-up and support to needs expressed by the Cities Alliance Secretariat, ensuring compliance with UNOPS policies and procedures.
• Contribute to effective teamwork and workflow management, propose and implement ideas that will improve the efficiency of the Portfolio Management Team through optimisation of the workflow and standardisation of processes.
• Maintain high quality and strong client-focus interactions with the Cities Alliance Secretariat at all times. Provide clear and regular updates on progress to deliver the support services required.

4.       UNOPS corporate requirements and reporting

• Prepare and provide support as required to specific actions undertaken by the Portfolio Management Team on corporate requirements and reporting e.g. quality assurance, annual results-based reporting, asset management and greenhouse gas reporting.
• Provide support in relation to safety and security issues, and other ad hoc requests as required.

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in business administration, public administration, international relations, economics or a related field and 1 year of relevant experience required.

Candidates with a first level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in a related discipline with a total of 3 years’ accumulated experience in at least one or more of the following areas: budgeting, finance, accounting, human resources, operational support and procurement are also eligible.

• Previous experience in daily operations and support services is an asset in some, or all, of the following: procurement, human resources (including recruitment), travel, budgeting, financial monitoring and reporting,  payroll and administration of contracts.
• Knowledge and relevant experience with UNOPS policies and procedures is highly desired.
• Experience handling/supporting human resource processes in a UN / UNOPS context would be a distinct advantage.
• Proven capacity to handle a high volume and diverse range of support services within strict deadlines and to high quality standards.
• Strong numeric skills, general ease in handling large volumes of information and managing data in an ERP system and ability to present information clearly and succinctly.
• Proficiency in the use of the Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Outlook, Powerpoint). Advanced skills in Excel  required
• Experience with OneUNOPS ERP system is mandatory 

Fluency in English is required (reading, writing, speaking). 
Knowledge of other UN languages (particularly French) is an asset.

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS supports the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to serve people in need by expanding the ability of the United Nations, governments and other partners to manage projects, infrastructure and procurement in a sustainable and efficient manner.

Working in some of the world’s most challenging environments, our vision is to advance sustainable implementation practices, always satisfying or surpassing our partners’ expectations.

With over 7,000 personnel spread across 80 countries, UNOPS offers its partners the logistical, technical and management knowledge they need, wherever they need it.

A flexible structure and global reach means that we can quickly respond to our partners' needs, while offering the benefits of economies of scale.