CONDUCT AND DISCIPLINE OFFICER

Org. Setting and Reporting

These positions are located in the United Nations Field Peacekeeping Operations, Special Political Missions, Service Centres and Offices as applicable. The Conduct and Discipline Officer reports to the Chief of Service/Section, Conduct and Discipline or to a Senior Conduct and Discipline Officer, though this may vary depending on the mission structure. The focus of these positions is to lead the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of conduct and discipline programmes, including sexual exploitation and abuse, operations and other related activities in the country or region concerned.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Conduct and Discipline Officer will be responsible for the following duties:
• Advises management on all issues related to complaints about and questions on alleged acts, omissions and improprieties committed by the mission’s civilian, military and police personnel.
• Identifies trends/patterns, lessons learned and best practices related to conduct and discipline issues with a view to furthering mission’s objectives in policy development, preventive actions and awareness-building initiatives.
• Provides information to UN personnel on the UN rules and procedures in place that regulate conduct and discipline.
• Oversees case management, as well as undertakes reviews of alleged misconduct by UN peacekeeping personnel; receives and documents complaints, gathers information and determine whether further investigation is warranted.
• Liaises with the UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) and with missions’ investigative entities on investigations into allegations of misconduct, in order to ensure effective follow-up.
• Reviews and analyzes investigation reports prepared by investigative entities in field missions, or OIOS, and prepares recommendations for further actions by the mission.
• Takes the lead in identifying, establishing and maintaining contacts and partnerships with UN and other actors (national and international) with a view to pursuing the agenda for conduct and discipline activities and ensuring participation and effective integration of ideas in the planning and realization of such activities.
• Provides input for the development of various process, monitoring and control mechanisms to facilitate coordination, implementation and evaluation of conduct and discipline activities.
• Oversees data management and tracking of all forms of misconduct for all categories of peacekeeping personnel; develops systems to monitor the implementation and effectiveness of the mission’s efforts to address and prevent misconduct.
• Keeps current on developments and trends in the field of conduct and discipline and proposes strategies to increase awareness of UN peacekeeping personnel on the UN standards of conduct and measures to prevent instances of misconduct, (e.g. assists in the development and implementation of awareness raising programs, including through the provision of training on conduct and discipline matters) and develops mission-specific measures to detect personnel misconduct and ensures compliance with UN standards of conduct.
• Contributes to the development and implementation of public information and community outreach measures on conduct and discipline issues.
• Organizes and/or undertakes quantitative and qualitative research and analysis on the consistent application, within the mission, of UN and DPKO policies, procedures, and guidelines related to various aspects of conduct and discipline work; identifies problems and issues to be addressed and proposes corrective actions; liaises with relevant parties; identifies and tracks follow-up actions; produces progress and briefing reports.
• Carries out regular reporting functions (e.g. quarterly reports to senior management containing statistical analyses on conduct and discipline activities and recommendations resulting from the analyses, etc.); organizes and prepares written outputs, e.g. draft background papers, analysis, reports and studies, inputs to publications, etc.
• Engages in day-to-day coordination of activities with other mission components (e.g. legal officers, human resources, security, training, child protection, and UN entities).
• Manages and supervises junior staff.
• Performs other duties as required.

Competencies

Professionalism: Shows pride in work and in achievements; Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; Is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; Remains calm in stressful situations; Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; Tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; Delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; Operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; Supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; Takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

Judgement/Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; Gathers relevant information before making a decision; Considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; Takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; Proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; Checks assumptions against facts; Determines that the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; Makes tough decisions when necessary.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in the field of law, human rights, human resources management, or other related fields. Familiarity with administrative, labor, criminal and/or military laws and principles is desirable. A first-level university degree, with a relevant combination of academic qualifications and qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

Work Experience

A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in positions in the field of conduct and discipline, law, human rights and/or human resources management is required. Experience in gathering and analyzing information and problem-solving is required. Experience with the application of UN rules and regulations related to conduct and discipline is desirable, as well as experience in UN peacekeeping missions.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in English or French is required; knowledge of the other is desirable.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

The United Nations Secretariat maintains rosters of qualified and available candidates to fill anticipated job openings in peacekeeping operations, special political missions, and other field operations.

The purpose of this job opening is to generate a list of qualified candidates for inclusion in the Conduct and Discipline, P4, roster. The entire assessment process takes an average of six months; all applicants will be notified in writing of the outcome of their application (whether successful or unsuccessful) within 14 days of the conclusion of the process. Successful candidates will be placed on the roster and subsequently will be invited to apply for field mission vacancies open only to roster members. Roster membership does not guarantee selection.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation or sexual abuse, or crimes other than minor traffic offences, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.