Senior Evaluation Officer P5

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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.

ABOUT WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.  The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes.  Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

We are seeking to fill the position of Senior Evaluation Officer at the P5 level, based in the Office of Evaluation (OEV) at our Headquarters in Rome, Italy. This is a specialist position and requires a high level of evaluation expertise.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

This job is based in Headquarters (HQ) and reports to a Deputy Director of Evaluation. You will lead a team of staff working on key work-streams, provide second-level quality assurance for certain evaluations and are likely to manage directly the most complex and/or sensitive evaluations.

Through the Office of Evaluation (OEV), the Director of Evaluation provides global leadership, standard-setting and oversight of WFP’s entire evaluation function and is accountable for setting and enhancing the framework of norms and standards, accountabilities and coverage for both centralized and decentralized evaluations; as well as maintaining the high quality of WFP’s centralized evaluation function with continued innovation and improvement in evaluation quality and relevance. The Director of Evaluation heads an independent evaluation function within the WFP Secretariat and is independent in planning, selecting and presenting centralized evaluations as well as reporting on the performance and resourcing of the overall function to WFP’s Executive Board.

The Director also acts as secretary for the Evaluation Function Steering Group (EFSG) which is responsible for steering and guiding the strategic direction for WFP Evaluation Function. More specifically, the EFSG supports the ED’s role in championing the WFP Evaluation Policy, safeguarding its provisions and facilitating the evaluation function’s development in line with the Policy, Charter and Strategy and embedding evaluation into decision-making and practice across WFP. In addition, the Director oversees and supports the decentralized evaluation function, developing and managing guidance and support mechanisms necessary for high quality decentralized evaluation, aiming for comprehensive and balanced evaluation coverage and increasing use of strategic evaluation partnerships. This includes enhancing capacity across WFP to meet stakeholders’ requirements for accountability; strengthening its culture of learning, together with its partners, and facilitating evidence-based decision-making.

JOB PURPOSE

To provide independent evaluation evidence, assessing the performance and results of policies, programmes and activities of WFP for accountability and learning to inform future direction. Job holders are expected to take the lead on evaluation activity associated with a particular approach and/or thematic area.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

1.    Contribute to the development of evaluation strategy, policies and plans to ensure: a) timely and effective approaches to evaluating the performance and results of policies, programmes and activities; b) application   of the normative framework, quality support, assessment mechanisms and reporting on evaluation.
2.    Drawing on latest evaluation practice, manage high profile and/or highly complex evaluation processes and budgets from  preparation  and design through to completion, meeting high professional standards in line with norms and standards and codes of conduct for evaluation in the UN system, embodied in  WFP's Evaluation  Quality  Assurance  System (EQAS) to ensure the production of independent, credible evidence  and  recommendations  for  future directions.
3.    Drawing from good practices, further enhance EQAS guidance and approaches and methodologies for WFP evaluations. 
4.    Source, recruit, manage and quality assure the work of external consultants to ensure the production of evaluations that meet EQAS requirements.
5.    Engage stakeholder groups, both internal and external to WFP, appropriately in the evaluation process   and manage communications.
6.    Provide quality assurance for Country Strategic plan evaluations or other types of evaluations managed by evaluation officers in OEV from the preparation to completion.
7.    Promote WFP’s evaluation culture of accountability and learning through analyzing  evidence  and  lessons; preparing syntheses and  summaries of evaluation  findings and  recommendations  and presenting to these, tailoring messages to specific audiences and platforms, and working with internal and external stakeholders to enhance learning from and use of evaluation evidence in policy, programme and project design.
8.    Contribute to strengthening use of evaluative evidence through preparation and dissemination of innovative evidence products. 
9.    Lead development and implementation of a specific stream of Office of Evaluation work-plan, as assigned by the Director, providing functional supervision and/or line management to other staff working on that stream; provide coaching and guidance to staff to ensure appropriate development and enable high performance, and/or second level quality assurance on a particular type(s) of evaluation.
10.    Lead specific evaluation expertise group(s) to enable sharing of experience and development of good practice.
11.    Represent the Office of Evaluation as required in inter-agency forums on monitoring  and  evaluation issues and in professional bodies and networks, developing strategic relationships, as appropriate, to  enhance WFP performance and results.
12.    Effectively mainstream cross-cutting issues (equity, gender, inclusion of persons with disability, human rights, humanitarian principles, protection, accountability to affected population) into WFP evaluation processes and support the organization in mainstreaming these approaches in programme design and implementation to help ensure that the most vulnerable benefit from WFP services.
13.    Other as required.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

• Advanced University degree in International Development, Economics, Social Science or other relevant fields, or First University degree with additional years of related work experience and/or training/courses.

Language:

• Fluency (level C) in English language.
• Fluency (level C) in French or Spanish. 

Experience:

• Strong team management skills and proven ability to produce results to deadlines.
• 11 years or more (of which at least four international) of relevant professional experience both in the field and in Headquarters in international development or humanitarian work, evaluation and/or policy studies.
• At least 8 years’ experience in conducting / managing complex, global and country-specific evaluations including inter-agency and joint evaluations.

Other job specific requirements: 

• First-hand experience in conducting as team leader complex global and country-specific evaluations (under time and financial constraints), in diverse contexts, assessing policies and programs including subject areas relevant to WFP (desirable).
• First hand experience in evaluation quality assurance and assessment mechanisms.
• In-depth, up-to-date understanding and knowledge of global geopolitical issues relevant to WFP’s mandate and the implications for evaluation policy and practice to achieve Agenda 2030.
• In-depth, up-to-date understanding and knowledge of advancing international professional evaluation standards to define and adapt evaluation functions that support and aligns with WFP’s strategic goals.
• Broad knowledge of diverse evaluation practices, concepts, and principles
• Demonstrated ability to communicate knowledge and skills effectively and remote coaching skills.
• Membership in professional evaluation association and/or professional certificate in evaluation is highly desired.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Mobility is and continues to be a core contractual requirement in WFP. This position is however classified as “non-rotational” which means the incumbent shall not be subject to the regular reassignment process unless the position is reclassified as rotational.

WFP offers an attractive compensation and benefits package, including basic salary, post adjustment, relocation entitlement, travel and shipment allowances, 30 days’ annual leave, home leave, an education grant for dependent children, pension plan and medical insurance.

Please visit the following websites for detailed information on working with http://www.wfp.org Click  on: “Where we work” and “Our work” to learn more about WFP’s operations.

http://icsc.un.org Click on Quick Links > Salary Scales > by date http://www.unstaffmobility.org Learn more about countries where the UN operates

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

Deadline to submit applications is Sunday, 27 June 2021 (11.59PM CET).

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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.