Jobs - 49842- Information Management Officer – NOB

Information Management Officer – NOB – (Open to Syrian Nationals Only)

Location :

Damascus, SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC

Type of Contract :

FTA Local

Starting Date :

01-Dec-2014

Application Deadline :

07-Oct-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

NO-B

Duration of Initial Contract :

One year

Languages Required :

Arabic English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

One year

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

Information management is a core component of a comprehensive support strategy for the humanitarian community. The Information Management Unit (IMU) will work to advocate for an environment whereby relevant data (spatial / GIS, non-spatial tabular, statistical, etc.) can be brought into a structure that supports the efficient management of data and information in the context of the humanitarian response.

Expectations of the humanitarian community specific for IM include:

To ensure the collection, supply and exchange of information supportive to the humanitarian community, and that this process is not politicized or otherwise compromised;
To coordinate the analysis of data and information about the humanitarian situation;
To identify needs and gaps as well as duplication of data and information;
To support the development of consistent assessments - especially of vulnerabilities;
To support the contingency planning process.

Key activities will include:

Developing and maintaining information management tools (especially the 4W - Who, What, Where, When database and Contacts Directory);
Providing spatial/geographic information services (i.e. RS/GIS/mapping);
Establishing and further developing an RHCO website as the backbone of an information dissemination strategy;
Supporting information management activities by sector lead agencies, including adaptation of standards for the collection, collation, analysis and dissemination of data to the locally agreed environment.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direction of the Head of the IMU, the incumbent will perform the following functions:

Support the development and maintenance of the Who Does What and Where (4W) database which will aid in the tracking of humanitarian focused activities within the NGO community and across the different parts of the country:

Under the technical supervision of the 4W lead, assist with building strong relationships and maintaining regular contacts with the local and international NGO community to gather information on their humanitarian and development activities in support of the Who, What, Where, When database. This requires frequently liaising with responsible parties;
Support the development of the following: standardized reporting formats, SOPs for need assessments, consolidating reports and data in the required formats for internal and external use;
Contribute significantly to the regular updating of 4W information by gathering information from organizations, this will require using different sources of information;
On a regular basis, collate and disseminate 4W maps to the humanitarian community and in cooperation with the Advocacy and Policy Officer and the Field Coordination Unit;
Support the management of the 4W database by identifying through various information sources (e.g. reports, web sites, brochures, etc) which organizations (who) are carrying out which activities (what) in which locations (where), When and for tracking the humanitarian/development activities and to present the information at various levels of detail;
Support the development of ICT procedures for the gathering/exchange of data with contributing partners as well as in the implementation of these procedures. This part of the work requires a strong level of technical ICT expertise in the areas of programming and/or scripting (e.g. MS Access, VBasic).

Assist with the development and perform maintenance tasks for Humanitarian web presence in Syria:

Assist the Graphics Designer in the development of web-based data entry forms and support the creation/updating of content (text and images) for web- publishing;
Technical support to the Reporting Unit, ensure the acurrency and correctness of published public information by maintaining linkages to internal document management system;
Support RHOC staff, and especially working with the Inter Sector Coordinator and Reporting Officers, in the process of creating/editing web-based content.

Support in the development of spatial/geographical information products (i.e. maps, but also metadata, data dictionary, etc.):

Lead, collect, extract, organize and file geographical data on humanitarian activities for the purpose of creating an archive of humanitarian information products;
Assist with the creation of maps and other related information products by using standard GIS software tools and related attribute and/or descriptive data. This component of the work requires a strong practical knowledge of relational database software like MS Access as well as MS Excel and experience with the pivot table function.

Helping to provide general IM support as well as data / information to the humanitarian community in Syria and in the region:

Assist in collecting, collating, formatting, verifying, and distributing emergency humanitarian intervention matrix to track responses, reduce duplication, and ensure timely response by the humanitarian partners and simultaneously identify gaps to trigger quick response;
Provide support in the preparation of meeting minutes and other technical reports relevant to the range of IMRU activities;
Provide basic graphics/design support for various presentations, as well as the layout of reports, and development of high quality visual products (typically these are: maps, tables, graphs, photos);
Any other tasks requested by the Supervisor and Head of Office.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Functional Competencies:

Knowledge Management and Learning:

Promotes a knowledge sharing and learning culture in the office;
Actively works towards continuing personal learning and development in one or more practice areas, acts on learning plan and applies newly acquired skills.

Development and Operational Effectiveness:

Ability apply conceptual models in support of formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development programmes and projects, mobilize resources;
Strong IT skills;
Ability to lead implementation of new systems (business side), and affect staff behavioral/attitudinal change.

Management and Leadership:

Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

BA degree in Computer Sciences, Engineering, GIS, Informatics, Information Technology or a related field.

Experience:

4 years with BA and 2 years with Masters Degree of relevant experience at the national or international level in the area of Knowledge/Information Management or related field previous relevant experience with UN and the NGO sector is an advantage.
Strong database design and management skills (familiarity with software such as MS Access, Excel, MySQL);
Good knowledge of GIS systems and supporting software (ESRI ArcMap10.0 are required), and experience in the development and management of spatial/geographic data layers;
Solid knowledge of MS Office software products is required (especially: MS Access, MS Excel, MS Power-point, MS Word);
Web design and database programming/administration skills (familiarity with PHP, HTML, DRUPAL, etc.).

The following skills are desirable:

The understanding of indicators and their development;
Publication development/production, especially drafting text, design of graphic elements and layout;
Public speaking – able to make presentations & chair meetings;
in English and Arabic;
Knowledge/familiarity with: Google Earth, Erdas Imagine, Adobe Photoshop, Indesign and Illustrator.

Languages:

Proficiency in English and Arabic is requirement.