Team Lead, HR Emergency/Event Response (HBE)

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The Department of Human Resources and Talent Management (HRT) is responsible for providing a sound, well managed, responsive and efficient organization-wide Human Resources Management strategy, global HR policy and advisory services and operational HR measures which support the work of WHO and its member states, encompassing, but not limited to: HR Policy Development, Organizational Design and Job Classification, Talent Acquisition and Talent Management (including Workforce Planning, Succession Planning, Global staffing, Career Development and Training, Rotation and Mobility), application of the UN Common System's Compensation and Benefits, HR Legal Advisory Services, Administration of Justice, Global staff/management relations, and representation of WHO in inter-agency UN Common System HR initiatives.

PURPOSE OF THE POSITION

The purpose of the position is to manage the HR Emergency/Event Response (HBE) team within the HR Business Partners (HBP) Unit, in the Department of Human Resources and Talent Management (HRT) focusing on the provision of HR policy and advice to strengthen the Department's programme area of work in support of WHO's Health Emergencies Programme, (WHE or “the Programme”). The Team Lead is responsible to guide, review, monitor and evaluate program activities within the assigned areas of responsibility, seamlessly combining the support of the HR Business Partners and Associates with the emergency events and response group; hold consultations across all WHO major offices, other UN agencies and/or international counterparts on program needs within the areas of work; and establish milestones, new policies and strategies to address WHO Health Emergencies Preparedness & Response workforce needs to deliver on the objectives of the Organization.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

• Provides technical leadership and managerial support within the Department in the area of HR business partnering with the WHO's Health Emergencies Programme (WHE), based in Geneva, and in particular: provides strategic and operational advice on, but not limited to, workforce strategic planning, succession planning, talent acquisition (recruitment and selections), entitlements and benefits, performance and career progression issues, training and leadership development, appropriate contract types and related special agreements. The HR Emergency/Event Response (HBE) team liaises closely with the Office of the Executive Director (HEO) and with the Management Officers of the Programme and its Divisions - WHO’s Emergency Response (WRE) Division and WHO’s Emergency Preparedness (WPE) Division, HQ and Regional Office counterparts on a number of HR related matters and crosscutting projects.
• Develops and proposes policies and strategies for implementation through collaboration across all major offices and provides advice in developing further areas of human resources management for strengthening and improving the capacity of WHO's HEO workforce in the context of emergency response and preparedness.
• Manages the programme area in delivering its objectives through efficiently managing a team of HR experts, financial resources and effective work planning to optimize the programme's deliverables in line with the mandate of the Organization.
• Leads and conducts research on best practices in implementing programmes and activities, information management, and capacity building in the respective area of work.
• Manages the monitoring, evaluation and reporting of the subject area of work of key performance indicators, reporting requirements and mechanisms to optimize performance of programme deliverables.
• Serves as the HR reference among the peer community, UN Agencies and other stakeholders in the respective area of expertise.
• Represents the programme area of work and liaises with and utilizes partnerships in other UN Agencies, or international organizations in the various areas of HR planning, management and service delivery.
• Performs all other related duties as assigned.

Specific duties:

• Provide leadership and guidance to the HBE team ensuring that activities are carried out in a highly professional and timely manner and particularly within the context of emergency settings; optimize the performance of the team through motivation, continuous learning, workload management and workflow improvements.
• Manage the embedded data team to optimize and develop links across systems and processes to support HR needs, ensuring integration of existing databases that would enable efficient monitoring mechanisms and the provision of regular reports on business needs, including deployments, pipeline management and critical pain points, successes and concerns; advocating the use of and increasing regional capacity to ensure compliance with the Virtual Strategic Health Operations Centre (vSHOC).

Emergency/Event Response

• Develop and establish new end-to-end HR emergency management systems or adapt the existing ones, covering all HR related functions from planning through rostering, sourcing, matching, deployment, on-boarding, on-site tracking of movements, end of assignment, staff security, health, and well-being as well as performance assessment.
• Coordinate and oversee the sourcing and outreach efforts, rosters management, targeted sourcing, use of stand-by partners, technical networks, NGOs, UNVs and FMTs; ensuring efficient and timely ongoing support on deployment of surge capacity and in coordination with the Country Offices; and coordinate and maintain oversight of related pre-deployment briefings and on the job training; manage the transition of these briefings to other partners.
• In the context of emergency operations, lead the development of SOPs in coordination with relevant technical and administrative focal points, drawing upon lessons learned from other emergency response efforts, other UN agencies and implementing partners, as appropriate;
• Design innovative approaches and transformational procedures for a more effective implementation of Human Resources management during all phases of emergency preparedness and response; propose solutions for contentious cases.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Essential: An advanced level university degree in Human Resources Management, Business Administration, Public Administration, Psychology, Law (human resources related), or other relevant area related to the functions of the position.

Desirable: Training in project management.

Experience

Essential: A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in the area of Human Resources Management and workforce planning, and the management of human and financial resources. Demonstrated experience in successfully managing and leading diverse of teams of both professional and administrative support staff, and which were directly supervised. Demonstrated experience in emergency preparedness and response and in HR management in such environments. Demonstrated experience in providing strategic advice and guidance on HR policies and strategies to senior management/decision makers. Demonstrated WHO or UN experience at the international level.

Desirable: Experience in Regional and/or Country Offices would be an advantage.

Skills

• Excellent skills in workforce planning and staffing of multidisciplinary programmes;
• Strong knowledge and skills in the application and provision of advice on a vast array of HR policies and entitlements;
• Strong skills in providing advice to senior management and decision makers on workforce planning and HR strategy;
• Strong skills in the area of developing and establishing polices and strategies;
• Excellent skills and proven ability in managing diverse teams of both professional and administrative staff and in managing financial resources;
• Good skills in mobilizing human and financial resources;
• Proven ability to provide strong client service and engage and communicate effectively and diplomatically with internal partners within the Organization and other external partners within other UN agencies, international organizations, service providers, and other stakeholders.
• Commitment to collaborate effectively with other key partners across the three levels of the Organization.
• Proven ability to multi-task across various planning and implementation processes within a stressful environment, and across various groups with different partners.

WHO Competencies

• Teamwork
• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
• Communication
• Ensuring the effective use of resources
• Building and promoting partnerships across the organization and beyond
• Promoting innovation and organizational learning.
• Creating an empowering and motivating environment

Use of Language Skills

Essential: Expert knowledge of English. Intermediate knowledge of French.

REMUNERATION

WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 88,162 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 6,465 per month for the duty station indicated above. Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level.
• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test may be used as a form of screening.
• In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and Manual.
• Staff members in other duty stations are encouraged to apply.
• For information on WHO's operations please visit: http://www.who.int.
• WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
• WHO's workforce adheres to the WHO Values Charter and is committed to put the WHO Values into practice.
• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• WHO has a mobility policy which can be found at the following link: http://www.who.int/employment/en/. Candidates appointed to an international post with WHO are subject to mobility and may be assigned to any activity or duty station of the Organization throughout the world.
• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Member States are particularly encouraged.