Consultant - Subject Matter Expert, Business Innovations Group

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance

JOB TITLE:                            Subject Matter Expert, Business Innovations Group

JOB GRADE:                        Consultancy level III (equivalent to P-5/D-1)

REPORTING TO:                Project Team Lead (D-2) or Functional Area Lead (D-1), Business Innovations Group project team

CONTRACT TYPE:              Consultancy/Short Term Contract or Temporary Assignment

CONTRACT LENGTH:        6-12 Months

LOCATION:                          Rome, Geneva or Budapest

The Subject Matter Experts (SME) role is to provide specialised, technical expertise to the Project Team and lead an inter-agency team to support delivery of the Business Innovation Group targets set by the Secretary-General in his December 2017 report. A SME is required for each functional area which may be incorporated into a network of global shared service centers or consolidated at country level into a UN common back office.

The project team will ideally have ONE subject matter expert for EACH of the following functional areas:

1) administration 2) finance 3) human resources 4) information communications and technology 5) logistics 6) procurement 7) fleet management.

Each SME will be accountable to deliver a coordinated plan and pilot study for the back office functional area for which they are responsible. To deliver this, the SME will need to provide their subject area expertise to:

• Lead and coordinate an inter-agency group of technical experts (P-4 to D-1) from their functional area to deliver a coordinated design describing how that functional area can be made more efficient through the use of shared global service centers and a country level common back office;
• Identify components within the functional area which can be improved through the introduction of new technologies or policy improvements (including through the operationalization of the Mutual Recognition Framework);
• Prioritize areas of focus for the implementation of common back offices for the functional area, including a clear business case and cost-benefit analysis;
• Work closely with all members of the BIG Project Team to ensure that the work of the functional area of responsibility is consistent with that being undertaken in the other functional areas;
• Participate in cross functional discussions and concept development for other areas of work within the BIG project team;
• Liaise and communicate effectively with focal points in relevant agencies in the UN to agree on plans and help secure buy-in and alignment;
• Analyze implementation steps, timing and resources needed and analysis of key planned changes, paying particular attention to positive and negative behavior-drivers and to change enablers;
• With the project team and technical experts, assist in identifying pilot locations and plan and possibly implement pilot activities that will support the overall set of BIG objectives.

EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCIES REQUIRED

Experience:

• More than twelve years of experience in the UN development / humanitarian sector and / or in a related organization.
• More than five years of experience at Officer level working in a team responsible for one or more of the back-office process streams.
• Field experience in the relevant field is preferred.
• Hands-on experience implementing change management initiatives.
• Experience of client supporting, including country offices, for one or more of the back-office process streams.

­Education:

• At least a bachelor’s and preferably a master degree in a field related to the specific functional area.

Language: 

• Excellent verbal and written language skills in English, with clear, consistent communication.

Competencies:

• Ability to coordinate a diverse group of technical experts towards agreement and common planning.
• Ability to prioritize and plan one’s own work effectively.
• Ability to analyze and interpret disparate data sources.
• Strong written and verbal communications skills in English, with a second UN language an advantage.
• Demonstrated strong team player.

DELIVERABLES

• Conduct a desk review of activities that are already conducted in common for the relevant process streams and contribute to cataloguing common services.
• Undertake planning meetings with relevant UN entities to agree a set of priorities for delivery of common back offices.
• Identify issues and constraints that need to be addressed to implement planned changes.
• Conduct a cost benefit and analysis of planned changes.
• Lead inter-agency efforts to develop a project plan for planned changes, including pilot study.

• Support the compilation of a lessons-learned report to serve as part of the project evaluation report.

Terms and Conditions

WFP offers a competitive compensation package which will be determined by the contract type and selected candidate’s qualifications and experience.

Please visit the following websites for detailed information on working with WFP.

http://www.wfp.org Click on: “Our work” and “Countries” to learn more about WFP’s operations.

Deadline for applications: 28 February 2019

Ref.: VA No. 103849

Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.