Finance Officer (Systems)

Before submitting an application, UNHCR staff members intending to apply to this Job Opening are requested to consult the Recruitment and Assignments Policy (RAP, UNHCR/HCP/2017/2 and the Recruitment and Assignments Administrative Instruction (RAAI), UNHCR/AI/2017/7 OF 15 August 2017.

Finance Officer (Systems)

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
The position is located in the Office of the Controller, Division of Financial and Administrative Management (DFAM) and reports to the Senior Finance Officer (Financial Systems Support and Reporting Unit). The FSSR Unit is based in UNHCR¿s Global Service Centre in Budapest and works in close coordination with DFAM Accounts and Financial Service (AFS) also located in Budapest.

In today's changing environment, UNHCR is seeing an increase in the complexity of financial and performance reporting requirements, diversity of technical skills in the workforce, and the impact of rapidly changing technologies.
The Finance Officer (Systems) will be responsible for ensuring that UNHCR ERP system MSRP and complementary tools such as the Business Intelligence platform meet evolving financial and administrative data analytics, dashboards and reporting requirements.

The incumbent will coordinate and communicate regularly with counterparts at relevant Divisions and Bureaux through the requirements analysis, solution design and development process and into production and dissemination of new data analytics and reporting tools. This may include outreach on the benefits of the tools as well as coaching and guidelines on how to access and use new reports.

FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT
Accountability
- UNHCR's statutory financial reporting (Annual Financial Statements) process is supported by MSRP from the perspective of systems and data integrity and the automation of information retrieval.
- UNHCR consistently complies with other regular and ad hoc reporting requirements, both internal and external, always ensuring systems and data integrity.
- Users at HQ and in the field are provided with appropriate data analytics, dashboard and reporting capacity as well as with the corresponding technical support, as appropriate.

Responsibility
- Act as deputy for the Head of Financial Systems Support and Reporting Unit (FSSRU).
- Provide system-related technical advice, guidance and support to users at HQ and in the field; Contribute to proposals for training plans and undertake training on MSRP and other relevant tools.
- Provide analysis of processes, systems and internal controls and propose and implement enhancements to the MSRP system, other tools and financial processes.
- Support implementing business intelligence data warehouse, tools and software to enable data analyses.
- Support the design and development of consistent reporting packages and dashboards within the Business Intelligence (BI) platform.
- Analyse and address ad-hoc data-related requests from various stakeholders.
- Support the preparation of the annual financial statements.
- Support the preparation of regular and ad hoc financial management reports.
- Propose and implement improvements to the reporting structure, and to reflect the inclusion of new sources of data.
- Perform other duties as required.

Authority
- Draft required reports.
- Propose improvements and suggestions for development to BI solutions, MSRP and other financial systems and procedures.
- Obtain from HQ and field offices any information necessary to carry out his/her responsibilities.

ESSENTIAL MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED. 
- Undergraduate degree (equivalent of a BA/BS ) in Computer Science, Information Systems, Business Administration, Finance or related field plus minimum 6 years of previous work experience relevant to the function. Graduate degree (equivalent of a Master¿s) plus 5 years or Doctorate degree (equivalent of a PhD) plus 4 years of previous relevant work experience may also be accepted.
- Professional experience in an international or multinational environment, preferably within the UN system, in finance management and reporting and/or in management of information systems.
- Solid hands-on background and experience in relational databases (RDBMS).   In-depth knowledge of financial management systems, PeopleSoft or a similar ERP system.
- Strong analytical skills in data management and design.
- Demonstrated knowledge of BI and data analytics solutions, including in the following area: performing data analyses from collection through reporting and recommendations; utilization of financial systems, reporting systems, and standard industry practices and reporting results and providing insightful results analyses.
- Excellent computer skills, in particular in MS Office applications.
- Excellent communication skills.
- Fluency in English, including strong drafting skills.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES
- Good knowledge of United Nations financial rules and procedures.
- Experience in supervisory responsibility.
- Good understanding of international accounting standards (such as IPSAS or IFRS).
- Exposure to UN/UNHCR field Operations.
- Good knowledge of French.
- Good knowledge of another UN official language. C001L3 - Accountability Level 3
C002L3 - Teamwork & Collaboration Level 3
C003L3 - Communication Level 3
C004L3 - Commitment to Continuous Learning Level 3
C005L3 - Client & Result Orientation Level 3
C006L3 - Organizational Awareness Level 3
M001L3 - Empowering and Building Trust Level 3
M002L3 - Managing Performance Level 3
M006L3 - Managing Resources Level 3
M004L3 - Strategic Planning and Vision Level 3
M003L3 - Judgement and Decision Making Level 3
X003L3 - Technological Awareness Level 3
X002L3 - Innovation and Creativity Level 3
X001L3 - Analytical Thinking Level 3
X005L3 - Planning and Organizing Level 3

The UNHCR workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages and opinions. UNHCR seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. Applications are encouraged from all qualified candidates without distinction on grounds of race, colour, sex, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity.

For those people applying for High Risk Duty Stations, we strongly encourage them – before deciding to apply- to read the country specific security and welfare country profiles which can be found on the Intranet under Support Services - Duty of Care (https://intranet.unhcr.org/en/support-services/duty-of-care.html). Ensuring staff are better informed is part of the increased attention UNHCR is paying to Duty of Care.

 

Staff after having applied to High Risk Duty Stations will have access to country specific information webinars with Field Safety Section (FSS) and Staff Welfare Section (SWS) colleagues and provided with a tool to test their psychological preparedness for serving in High Risk Duty Stations. Applicants who applied for a position in a High Risk country will receive, after the deadline for applications has expired, a joint invitation from the Staff Welfare Section (SWS) and the Field Safety Section (FSS) to participate in these webinars. During the Webinars, latest updates on security and well-being will be provided, and FSS and SWS will address questions raised by participants. Applicants are highly encouraged to benefit, when applicable, from all measures as they provide most up-to-date security and well-being information helpful to assess staff’s readiness to serve in a High Risk Duty Station. A Staff Welfare Officer will also be available, if and when required, to discuss with interested applicants the results of the psychological preparedness tool as well as readiness for assignment in High Risk Duty Stations.

 

Please note that the closing date for all vacancies in this addendum is Tuesday 25 June 2019 (midnight Geneva time).