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Building Blocks Partnerships Development Management (PDM) Consultant

Italy

  • Organization: WFP - World Food Programme
  • Location: Italy
  • Grade: Consultancy - International Consultant - Internationally recruited Contractors Agreement
  • Occupational Groups:
    • External Relations, Partnerships and Resource mobilization
    • Project and Programme Management
  • Closing Date: Closed

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

Who we are looking for: We are seeking to identify Building Blocks Partnerships Development Management (PDM) Consultant

What we offer: a consultancy contract of up to 11 months from start date will be offered to the selected candidate(s).

Workplace: This position is based in Nairobi, Kenya, with a global scope.

 

 

 

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world's largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. WFP Technology Division (TEC, formerly known as the IT Division) is the digital business engine of the World Food Programme, providing the business with multi-pronged and resilient technical capabilities able to respond with the agility required in humanitarian operations.

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

Through the "Building Blocks" (BB) project, WFP has been applying blockchain technology towards better achieving its mission and improving the lives of the people it serves. Operational since 2017, BB is the world's largest and most advanced blockchain implementation in the humanitarian sector, currently serving 1 million people in Jordan and Bangladesh.

Building Blocks serves both as a coordination mechanism among organizations providing assistance (e.g. UN and NGOs) and an online distribution mechanism for various types of assistance (e.g. food and cash).

BB is not a proprietary WFP solution. Instead, it is a shared blockchain network, 100% equally owned, operated, and governed by its members. On top of this common infrastructure, various applications can be built, such as value transfers, supply chain track & trace, and digital ID.

Over the past four years, BB has made significant technological advances and is now an enterprise-grade solution. For WFP, BB is the corporate system for inter-organizational coordination and online redemption of assistance.

BB is offered for free to reputable humanitarian organizations. The idea is to have investments in the common infrastructure synergistically benefit all members and avoid wasting donor resources on replicating the same features across various disparate and unconnected proprietary humanitarian systems. Through BB, the people we serve are at the center of everything, and through holistic coordination of assistance, the humanitarian community can achieve a higher impact on the ground with the same amount of limited resources

The concept of a commonly owned network (as opposed to a single organization-owned system) is new in the humanitarian sector and not well understood. Therefore, the ideal candidate for this position should be able to overcome the misperceptions that surround blockchain, successfully explain BB's commonly owned network concept, and gain membership from new humanitarian organizations so we can all work together towards common objectives.

 

The difficulty and amount of work required to succeed in this role should not be underestimated. Having superior technology, a worthy goal, and a genuine offer are not enough on their own. Legacy thinking, resistance to change, vested interests, and inter-organizational politics are among the significant challenges to overcome.

 

WFP has a bold vision for Building Blocks disrupting the humanitarian system for the better and is looking for a highly driven and competent individual to help bring about the change.

 

 

ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Under the overall supervision of the Head of Emerging Technologies, the Building Blocks Partnerships Development Management Consultant's responsibilities include:

  • Develop an in-depth understanding of BB and its broad current and future value propositions.
  • Map out the global aid/humanitarian landscape in detail, including key players, main activities/trends, funding challenges, mandate shifts, politics, technological challenges, and field-level constraints/interdependencies.
  • Based on the global mapping exercise, identify populations/areas/locations for which the various features of BB could add value, especially in a multiorganizational context.
  • Design and execute BB's global partnership and communication strategy, including creating and managing high calibre BB brand content (digital and print), concept notes, presentations, and proposals ensuring a consistent, cohesive, and engaging BB story tailored to different audiences.
  • Work with internal/external stakeholders to define/validate problems/opportunities.
  • Engage with internal/external partners to expand the global roll-out of Building Blocks and onboard new members to the BB network. This is the top task of this role. Every other accountability and responsibility directly/indirectly support this task.
  • Gather feedback and propose new BB features/functionalities/use cases/implementation opportunities
  • Establish synergistic relationships with key humanitarian/technology industry figures.
  • Represent and present BB wherever/whenever required, including at high-level conferences and to executive heads of various organizations.
  • Perform any other relevant tasks.
  • The role may require frequent and/or prolonged travel to many countries around the globe; therefore, the incumbent must be willing and able to undertake such travel

 

 

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

Education

  • University degree in marketing, advertising, communications, or related field.

Experience

At least 10 years of related professional experience, including:

  • Sales/business development/marketing/partnerships, ideally with a focus on technology.
  • Writing and executing strategy.
  • Collaborating with internal and external stakeholders on business-critical matters.
  • Developing and delivering internal and external communication materials, website content, concept notes, presentations, proposals, etc.
  • Representing organizations at high-level conferences and similar events.
  • Project management experience would be an asset

Skills & Knowledge

  • Highly self-driven.
  • Able to thrive in complex multi-stakeholder contexts with dynamic requirements, frequent changes, and numerous internal/external constraints.
  • A continuous strive to develop new skills outside of comfort zone.
  • Excellent entrepreneurial mindset.
  • A strong sense of ownership.
  • Able to work in a fast-paced environment with tight deadlines.
  • High tolerance for ambiguity and able to decide from incomplete information.
  • Able to convey context-adjusted information clearly, concisely, and accurately.
  • Ability to come up with innovative solutions to problems without precedent.
  • Strong conflict resolution and consensus-building skills.

Language:

Fluency in oral and written English is required. An intermediate knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) or Portuguese (one of WFP's working languages) is desirable.

 

 

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: 16 January 2022 at 11:59pm Rome time (CET/CEST)  

REF: 154790

 

 

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.

Saving lives, changing lives

 

 

 

 

This vacancy is now closed.
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