Chief, Strategy and Planning, P-5, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), New York, USA Position #99923

Education Cannot Wait (ECW) is a fund dedicated to education in emergencies and protracted crises. It was established in 2016 during the World Humanitarian Summit by international humanitarian and development aid organizations, along with public and private donors, to help reposition education as a priority on the humanitarian agenda, usher in a more collaborative approach among actors on the ground and foster additional funding to ensure that every crisis-affected child and young person is in school and learning.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, education...

Education Cannot Wait (ECW) is a fund dedicated to education in emergencies and protracted crises. It was established in 2016 during the World Humanitarian Summit by international humanitarian and development aid organizations, along with public and private donors, to help reposition education as a priority on the humanitarian agenda, usher in a more collaborative approach among actors on the ground and foster additional funding to ensure that every crisis-affected child and young person is in school and learning.

ECW provides partners, on the ground in emergency situations, resources that can be allocated in a flexible, swift and responsive manner, and over a period sufficient to accelerate and support education delivery for Children and youth. As such, one of the main five objectives of ECW as highlighted in the 2018-2021 Strategic Plan, is to increase finance for education in crisis to allow for sufficient investments to improve access, quality, and continuity of learning for all children.

How can you make a difference?

The Chief Strategy and Planning will report to the Director (Head of Secretariat) and provide critical support in the development of the ECW next Strategic Plan and annual workplans, and ensure their alignment with critical aspects of ECW work including budgeting, financial sustainability, effective advocacy, M&E, risk management and safeguarding within the ECW Fund. In this respect, the Chief of Strategy and Planning will play a lead role in supporting the Director in leading ECW through its strategic planning cycles and ensuring the successful contribution to the fund outcomes through aligned annual planning and monitoring of secretariate outputs. This will include leading on stakeholder consultations and shaping the development of the Strategic Plan.

 The Chief, Strategy and Planning will be responsible for supervising staff with specialization in strategic planning.

The duration of this post is 2 years with the possibility of extension.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

• Oversee the development of a comprehensive, inclusive strategic plan and growth strategy by collaborating with the funds Director, senior management and the executive committee, which determines the Fund’s overall vision, and sets the concrete targets for the next strategic cycle; ensuring all relevant policies, strategies and plans are in place, including a strategic planning process.
• Contribute effectively to the advocacy campaign to promote the new strategy and advance the ECW Mobilization and fundraising campaign with the advocacy/Communications and Partnerships teams.  
• Lead the preparation of mid-year and annual reviews with counterparts to track progress towards the realization of ECW goals and donor requirements and ongoing initiatives.
• Analyze factors, competitive/complementary opportunities, changes, organization capabilities, sector related politics and priorities, as well as strategic risks and threats.
• Drive decision-making that creates medium- and long-term improvement in the fund positioning in relation to other focal education actors and funds.
• Review key strategic priorities, identify lessons learnt and translate them into implementable considerations within the fund’s strategy and annual plans.
• Actively support the Director on strategic initiatives and investments
• Contribute to participating in negotiating strategic partnerships, especially with UN and major education funds.
• Ensure departmental/unit strategic planning projects reflect organizational strategic priorities.
• ECW’s Strategic Plan and results framework are linked to national and international planning and results frameworks, and funding mechanisms.
• Corporate, portfolio and programme risks are appropriately managed and risk reporting processes strengthened.
• ECW’s strategic plan exercise focus on the Strategic Differentiation of the fund to highlight its value added in relation to other multilateral funds and investment mechanisms.
• ECW strategic plan process and products helps the ECW secretariate in aligning the Fund; taking the main priorities, ideas and aspirations, and breaking them down into achievable steps (outputs) throughout the Fund’s planning processes to help achieve outcomes gradually, but surely.
• Strategic Plan serves as the ECW case for investment guiding more advocacy for political commitment and mobilizing more funding; doing this while demonstrating to world leadership the value of investing in the Fund to achieve clear and collective global goals for EiE&PC.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• Advanced University's degree (or equivalent) in one or more of the following disciplines: strategic planning, economics, law, statistics, finance, social sciences, public administration, or other related fields.
• A minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible experience in formulating strategic plans, planning and reporting, humanitarian and development action, and related areas at the international level, involving management. Experience working with diverse stakeholder groups or multi-stakeholder partnerships, including strong experience of working with donors. Experience and solid knowledge of development and humanitarian contexts is highly desirable.

Expected technical competencies include:

• Policy dialogue: Familiarity with UN engagement frameworks (HNO, UNDAF, SDGs, UN reform and Paris Declaration objectives) and education in emergencies and protracted crises (EiEPC) and child protection in emergencies (CPiE) frameworks and initiatives.
• Strategic thinking, ability to identify inter-related issues, engage with uncertainty and take a systems-strengthening approach to a range of areas, including strategic planning, risk management and safeguarding. Ability to support the Director in articulating a clear strategic vision for the ECW Fund.
• Development and humanitarian planning: Management of strategic planning and reporting processes, providing input and guidance in the design of UN-related planning frameworks, in line with HNO, UNDAF, SDG and MDG action planning.
• Relationships: Ability to develop and foster relationships with key stakeholders, including donors, UN agencies and civil society partner organizations, and UNICEF as host.
• Evidence-based advocacy and campaigning.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is an asset

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA). The UNICEF competencies required for this post are...

Core competencies

• Nurtures, Leads and Manages People (2)
• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (2)
• Works Collaboratively with others (2)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (2)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (2)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (2)
• Drives to achieve impactful results (2)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (2)

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Click here to learn more about UNICEF’s values and competencies.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children.

This position is not considered an elevated risk role. However, UNICEF reserves the right to conduct further vetting/ assessment within the scope of child safeguarding as appropriate.

Remarks:

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Your appointment is limited to ECW, a UNICEF hosted fund. While UN staff regulations and rules, as well as UNICEF policies and procedures, apply to you during your appointment, certain provisions therein may apply to you differently due to the limited scope of your appointment. In particular, you will not be subject to rotation exercise as per the Executive Directive on Staff mobility and rotation (CF/EXD/2015-002) or any revision thereof. In addition, during your appointment in ECW, you will not be considered eligible for conversion to a Continuing Appointment as per UNICEF Administrative Instruction on Continuing Appointment (CF/AI/2017-002) or any revision thereof. In the event that your post is abolished, the priority granted and other support provided to staff on abolished posts in staff selection processes will only be extended to posts within ECW and not to other posts in UNICEF.

UNICEF candidates: To return to a UNICEF appointment outside ECW, you will need to be selected in a competitive recruitment exercise. Upon selection for a UNICEF post outside of UNICEF hosted funds, the period you have served with the UNICEF hosted fund will count towards the calculation of the tour of duty in your duty station and eligibility for a continuing appointment.  

 External Candidates:  To secure a UNICEF appointment outside ECW, you will need to be selected in a competitive recruitment exercise. Upon selection for a UNICEF post outside of UNICEF hosted funds, the period you have served with the UNICEF hosted fund will count towards the calculation of the tour of duty in your duty station and eligibility for a continuing appointment.