UNDP Jobs - 51461- International Consultant

International Consultant - Assess the “Community of Practice, Knowledge Management, Communication and Advocacy” Component of the UNDP Gender Equality Strategy (Including Cyber-metric and Biblio-metric Analysis)

Location :

Home-based

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Dec-2014

Application Deadline :

26-Nov-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

40 working days

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

From Dec 2014 - January 2015

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

In 2014, the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is conducting a thematic evaluation of the contribution of UNDP to Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE).

The primary objectives of the evaluation are to:

(1) Assess UNDP’s contributions to gender equality and women’s empowerment during the 2008-2013 period;
(2) Assess the extent to which the Gender Equality Strategy (GES) 2008-2013 was used and successfully functioned as guidance to UNDP programming in the implementation of the Strategic Plan; and
(3) Provide actionable recommendations with respect to the implementation of the UNDP’s new, approved Gender Equality Strategy (2014 – 2018).

The scope of the evaluation is aligned with the 2008-2013 Strategic Plan vision of mainstreaming gender throughout the four UNDP focus areas of poverty reduction, democratic governance, crisis prevention & recovery, and environment & energy at the global, regional and country levels. It will cover two distinct but inter-linked results areas as framed in the GES namely, development results and institutional change, and assess the extent to which the GES functioned as “an integrating dimension of UNDP’s work in the implementation of the Strategic Plan. A full Evaluation Terms of Reference is available at the following link: http://erc.undp.org/evaluationadmin/downloaddocument.html?docid=7907.

During the period under evaluation, UNDP has used the web as a key communication medium and as a host to an increasingly wide array of documents in its efforts to spearhead institutional change and development results on gender equality and women’s empowerment. Cyber-metric analysis is being considered as one way to assess the effectiveness and relevance of this component of the GES. It is expected that this analysis will cover a sample of UNDP knowledge products that are wholly or partly online (e.g. professional networks/ communities of practice, official UNDP communication, and publications). This assessment will feed into the evaluation to aid in triangulating data and providing a picture of the on-line impact of UNDPs work in this area.

Please refer to the following appendices for the scope of publications, reports, data and information UNDP produced during the 2008-2013 period, which will serve as the basis for the Cyber-metric analysis:

Appendix I

Extract from the GES that describes the “Community of Practice (COP) and Knowledge Management (KM) Framework and the “Communication and Advocacy” that were seen as integral to ensuring results during the period 2008-2013. Please click the following link to access Appendix I - http://erc.undp.org/evaluationadmin/downloaddocument.html?docid=8194

Appendix II

List of publications, reports, web-based communication platforms UNDP has produced (2008-2013) to support corporate efforts at promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment. Please click the following link to access Appendix II - http://erc.undp.org/evaluationadmin/downloaddocument.html?docid=8195

This is a home-based assignment that does not require travel. The knowledge products and other sources of information to be analyzed will be shared by the Independent Evaluation Office.

Duties and Responsibilities

The assignment will be undertaken in 2 distinct phases:

Phase 1: Inventory and Stocktaking

The consultant will familiarize himself/herself with the GES framework for “Community of Practice, Knowledge Management and Communication and Advocacy”. Interviews will be undertaken as necessary with key members of the gender and communications teams. He/she will then undertake an initial stocktaking which will involve a mapping of the types of publications, reports, web-based communication platforms and information the organization has produce to support corporate efforts at promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment (as identified in Appendix III).

The first deliverable will be a brief report that provides a summary of the initial vision and implementation for the COP/KM and Communication component of the GES, and a mapping of the types of products and a proposal on how the consultant proposes to assess the quality and reach of these KM products using cyber-metric (and possibly other avenues of inquiry).

Phase 2: Assessment of the products of the COP/KM and Communication products

Based on the assessment and mapping above, the consultant will analyze a representative sample of the publications, reports, web-based communication platforms and information the organization has produce to support corporate efforts at promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The consultant will also analyze a representative sample of all UNDP Research and Publications, available here http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/librarypage.html for the period 2008-2013 to assess the manner in which the web and publications were used as key communication media in the promotion and reporting on institutional change and development results as relating to gender equality and women’s empowerment

More specifically, the consultant will conduct a cyber-metric analysis of the sample identified above with the objectives to:

Establish how these deliverables were disseminated and used;
Establish who the audiences were for these products and how they were reached;
Summarize the types and volume of financial resources that were used for these efforts; and
Ascertain the types of influence the institution’s digital resources have on its efforts to meet gender equality and women’s empowerment related goals.

During this inquiry, if possible, attention should be given to identifying institutional efforts to link gender mainstreaming/institutional change results with improved development results within the four UNDP thematic programme areas (e.g. poverty reduction & the MDGs, democratic governance, energy and environment, and crisis prevention & recovery).

The final deliverable associated with Phase 2 of the Consultancy is a report presenting the findings and conclusions including outcomes from the cyber-metric and bibliometric analysis. The report should be no longer that 30-50 pages (with annexes as required) and cover the time period 2008-2013.

Deliverables

The specific deliverables are:

Phase 1: Stocktaking and mapping with proposal on how to assess (including proposals on how to use Cyber-metric and Biblio-metric design)

Phase I deliverables: 1) Inventory of Corporate COP, KM, Communication and Advocacy products, and 2) Finalized cyber-metric analysis plan:

The consultant will work with the Evaluation Manager, Evaluation Associate Manager, Methodologist and IEO Consultant to refine the objectives of the analysis and sample, identifying key data to be measured in order to capture trends during the period covered in the UNDP Gender Thematic Evaluation 2014;
Undertake a limited number of targeted interviews with KM personnel in UNDP to identify existing cyber analytic studies, and existing monitoring, of corporate products that can be drawn upon to inform this analysis; and
In consultation with the IEO, the consultant will develop an analysis plan that outlines the analytical framework and action plan for the cyber-metric analysis that will be used to extract information to assess results of the COP, KM, Communication and Advocacy Frameworks. The analysis plan will also include an outline of the final report that is to be produced. Consultant deliverables will be an Inventory of relevant corporate COP, KM, Communication and Advocacy products, and a finalized cyber-metric analysis plan.

Phase 2: Analysis and report writing. The consultant will conduct the study using biblio-matric and cyber-metric analysis in accordance with the analysis plan agreed upon in Phase 1.

Phase II deliverables: 1) Cyber-metric analysis report, and 2) PowerPoint presentation summarizing cyber-metric analysis findings.

The analysis should address the following:

Whom does UNDPs web-based data and information related to gender equality and women’s empowerment serve, both internally and externally?
Is there evidence of a ‘multiplier effect’ on gender equality and women’s empowerment issues/priorities raised by UNDP and the Administrator?
How effective are UNDPs web-based knowledge management systems for supporting the performance of UNDP staff related to gender equality and women’s empowerment issues?
What best practices can be learned from UNDPs approach to web-based communication related to gender equality and women’s empowerment issues?
What aspects of the UNDP approach to web-based communication related to gender equality and women’s empowerment issues have not worked well and could be improved in future programming?
A network analysis of UNDP work in partnership with various actors in the field.

There will be 4 main deliverables associated with this consultancy:

Phase I - Stocktaking Inventory;
Phase I – Cyber-metric analysis plan;
Final Report including on the cyber-metric analysis. This final report should include data visualizations (graphs and network maps etc.), together with annexed supporting data; and
PowerPoint presentation summarizing cyber-metric analysis findings, including data visualizations.

Institutional Arrangements

The consultant will report directly to the Evaluation Manager on a regular basis, who will supervise the work. The consultant will be expected to work closely with the Evaluation Methodologist and IEO Consultant and in coordination with other consultants.

Payment will be made based on the satisfactory acceptance of the deliverables noted above. The assignment will not involve travel.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

Professionalism:

Ability to conduct research and provide recommendations on information and knowledge management trends;
Ability to demonstrate conceptual, analytical and evaluative skills and conduct independent research and analysis, identifying and assessing issues, formulating options and making conclusions and recommendations;
Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter;
Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results;
Is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns;
Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges;
Remains calm in stressful situations;
Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives in all areas of work.

Planning & Organizing:

Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies;
Identifies priority activities and assignments;
Adjusts priorities as required;
Allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work;
Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning;
Monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary;
Uses time efficiently.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in archival, information science, information systems, social science, or related field;
A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

Experience (5-7 years) in cyber-metric analysis; together with demonstrated data visualization expertise;
Experience in citation analysis, analysis of media coverage, web analytics and knowledge management platforms;
Adequate human resources to carry out the assignment within a short timeframe;
Capacity to analyse content use/citations in multiple languages (French, Spanish, Russian and Arabic).

Languages:

Fluency in English, with ideally some knowledge of Spanish, French, Russian or Arabic.

Recommended Presentation of Offer:

The following documents should be supplied and uploaded as one document:

Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP;
Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;
Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a methodology, if applicable, on how they will approach and complete the assignment.
Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided.