Senior Planning and Co-ordination Officer (S3)

General Minimum Requirements

The general minimum requirements for working with the OSCE are:

• Excellent physical condition
• Possession of a valid automobile driving license and ability to drive using manual transmission
• Ability to cope with physical hardship and willingness to work extra hours and in an environment with limited infrastructure

Field of Expertise Requirements

The general minimum requirements for working in this field of expertise are:

• Demonstrable organizational skills
• Proven ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing
• Demonstrable interpersonal skills and documented experience in negotiations
• Depending on the field activity's mandate, significant prior experience may also be required
• Negotiating experience, preferably in the area of monitoring operations and/or related activities
   

Level of Professional Competence Requirements

Furthermore, this level of responsibility requires the following:

Education:

Second-level universtiy degree/certified training course in a relevant field desirable. A first-level university degree in combination with two years of additional qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the second-level university degree.

Experience:

Minimum 6 years of progressively responsible and relevant professional experience in the area of programme and project management (including programme/project development and budgeting), strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting.

Mission Specific Requirements

Additionally, this particular post has specific requirements:

Mandatory:

• Second-level university degree in public/business administration, management, development studies, political science, international relations or related field;
• Previous international experience, preferably within field missions and in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), especially in Central Asia;
• Good understanding of the mandate and work of the OSCE;
• Proven successful experience in team management;
• Strong analytical skills with ability to compile and analyze significant amount of relevant information to produce practical solutions;
• Excellent organizational skills, with ability to work under pressure and to manage, undertake and provide guidance for the completion of multiple tasks having extremely short deadlines;
• Excellent communication (spoken, written and presentation) skills, including ability to tailor language, tone, style and format to match varying audiences and purposes;
• Cultural sensitivity and judgment, with ability to present sensitive issues and/or positions;
• Professional fluency in oral and written English;
• Excellent IT skills and professional proficiency in operating Windows applications and various planning and programme/project management tools, and to use the internet;
• Demonstrated gender awareness and sensitivity, and an ability to integrate a gender perspective into tasks and activities;
• Ability and willingness to work as a member of a team, with people of different cultural and religious backgrounds, different gender, and diverse political views, while maintaining impartiality and objectivity.

Desirable:

• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of the mandate and work of the Programme Office in Bishkek would be an asset;
• Working knowledge of Russian is highly desirable.

Tasks and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the Deputy Head of Programme Office, the Senior Planning and Co-ordination Officer is the focal point in the Programme Office for the evidence-based development and coordination of all programmes and drafting of all programme budgeting documents. The Senior Planning and Co-ordination Officer also liaises with the Secretariat (the Central Asia desk and the Programming and Evaluation Support Unit in the Conflict Prevention Centre) to develop project activities of the Office, and ensures effective and timely reporting and donor management. More specifically:

1. Overseeing the planning, approval, implementation and evaluation of the Office's Unified Budget (UB) and Extra Budgetary (ExB) Projects; advising senior management on issues pertaining to the Office’s project portfolios and programmatic implementation and formulates evidence-based recommendations for programme development;
2. Supporting the Office's programmatic staff in the planning, monitoring and evaluation of their projects and programmes; serving as the focal point for liaison with the Programming and Evaluation Support Unit (PESU/CPC) in the Secretariat; also liaising with the Central Asia Desk (CPC) in the Secretariat on programmatic issues;
3. Co-ordinating the Office's Programme Budgeting Cycle, including the drafting of relevant strategy documents
4. (Programme Outline, Unified Budget Proposal, Programme Budget Performance Report) and the elaboration of associated planning schedules;
5. Supervising three National Programme Officers and one Administrative Assistant, and managing their daily work plans;
6. Managing the implementation of the ExB and UB projects on the OSCE Academy in Bishkek and ensuring timely, quality reporting to donors;
7. Ensuring regular communication with the Office's existing and potential extra-budgetary donors, especially with regards to the submission of project reports required by donors;
8. Drafting speeches and talking points; drafting answers and inputs for information requests from the Secretariat;
9. Supporting the Head of Office and the Chief of Fund Administration in the review of administrative practices and contributing to the formulation of recommendations to ensure effective and efficient programme delivery;
10. Performing other duties as required.

For more detailed information on the structure and work of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek, please see: https://www.osce.org/programme-office-in-bishkek.

The OSCE is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages the nomination of qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious, ethnic and social backgrounds. Please note that nationals or permanent residents of the country of the duty station are not eligible to apply.
Candidates should be aware that OSCE officials shall conduct themselves at all times in a manner befitting the status of an international civil servant. This includes avoiding any action which may adversely reflect on the integrity, independence and impartiality of their position and function as officials of the OSCE. The OSCE is committed to applying the highest ethical standards in carrying out its mandate. For more information on the values set out in OSCE Competency Model, please see https://jobs.osce.org/resources/document/our-competency-model.
Candidates should, prior to applying, verify with their respective nominating authority to which extent financial remuneration and/or benefit packages will be offered. 
Please apply to your relevant authorities well in advance of the deadline expiration to ensure timely processing of your application. Delayed nominations will not be considered. The OSCE can only process Secondment applications that have been nominated by participating States. For queries relating to your application, please refer to the respective delegation as listed here: https://www.osce.org/contacts/delegations.