UNDP Jobs - 52499- Consultant on Results-Based Management (RBM) and Q

Consultant on Results-Based Management (RBM) and Quality Assurance Support

Location :

Istanbul, TURKEY

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

04-Jan-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

Estimated February-August 2015 (6 months, approximately 140 working days)

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

The UNDP Regional Hub for Europe and the CIS (based in Istanbul, Turkey) is UNDP’s main knowledge and advisory hub for the countries serviced by UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS (RBEC). Through its regional programme, the Hub provides advisory support and knowledge management and innovation services to UNDP Country Offices in the ECIS region in the areas of sustainable development, effective democratic governance, energy and resilience, gender, health and development.

As per the UNDP Strategic Plan 2014-2017 “A systematic, organization-wide investment for improved RBM is under way and will be expanded in the future. It will include: the articulation of clear standards for RBM; minimum quality criteria for projects and strengthened quality assurance processes at all stages of the project cycle; a revision of the programme management cycle to improve quality, robustness and performance, while reducing time frames and administrative load; and establishment of a sustainable RBM support mechanism to work with country offices over the next two years”.

The consultant will be contracted to support the RBM work of the Regional Hub and carry out tasks specified below and will report to Senior Programme Coordinator, who is leading the Coordination, Quality Assurance and Oversight Team in the Istanbul Regional Hub.

Duties and Responsibilities

Regional programme monitoring and quality assurance:

Contribute to programme/project design, oversight and evaluation, through advising on results framework formulation as well as on applicable policies and procedures as required by the Supervisor
Contribute to Regional Programme Evaluation Plan implementation and support programme managers and evaluation team members on UNDP evaluation and monitoring policies, methodologies and tools, when applicable.
Provide efficient support to the Coordination, QA and Oversight Team in delivering various outputs as prescribed by the direct Supervisor on monthly basis
Any other duties within the scope of tasks and responsibilities specified in this Terms of Reference.

Renewal of Rosters on UNDAF/Country Programme and Monitoring and Evaluation Roster:

Finalize the preparation of the recruitment documents and obtain the necessary approvals.
Reestablishment of the Rosters on Teamworks space and launch of the renewed Rosters.
Support to Country Offices in accessing the Rosters and maintaining the proper feedback mechanism on the use of the experts.

Follow-up on the improvement of the mechanisms for Regional Hub services provision:

Ensure revision of the Service Tracker is completed and quality assurance mechanism for service provision and feedback is functional, in close cooperation with the IT Unit.
Mid-year reporting and analysis of results on advisory services is prepared;
Support to su.bstantive preparation for the Advisory Board meeting, as applicable and other interactions to report on the advisory services;
Draft Minutes for the Advisory Board meeting and any other documentation (as required);
Draft inputs to HQ policy formulation documents as required;
Any other duties related to the advisory services provision within the scope of this Terms of Reference.

Deliverables:

The consultant will be responsible for producing a number of deliverables expected from the assignment, including the following:

Outputs as requested by the direct supervisor delivered on a monthly basis (e.g. mid-year reviews, project evaluations, etc.).
Revised Service Tracker is operational as per the agreed schedule;
Mid-term report on Advisory Services is developed and submitted to the Management;
Background documentation and other supplementary documents for the Advisory Board is prepared;
Rosters on UNDAF/Country Programming and Monitoring and Evaluation are finalized launched as per agreed timelines.

Payment schedule:

Payments will be made once a month upon submitted satisfactory progress report against deliverables and upon its acceptance by the Supervisor. The timeline for submission of deliverables will be specified by the Supervisor at the beginning of each month.

Competencies

Strong interpersonal skills and communication skills, resourcefulness, initiative, maturity of judgment, tact, and negotiating skills, and the ability to cope with situations which may pose conflict;
Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN's values and ethical standards;
Proven ability to work in a team, develop synergies and establish effective working relations within the Istanbul Regional Hub, Country Offices, RBEC NY and various HQ Units, etc.;
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;
Ability to handle effectively multiple tasks without compromising quality, team spirit and positive working relationships;
Strong analytical aptitude and effective interpersonal, communication and presentation skills;
Ability to solve complex problems with minimal supervision;
Ability to provide sound advice in formulation, monitoring and evaluation of development programs and projects;
Ability to work with small multi-disciplinary, multi-national teams to deliver quality products in high stress, short deadline situations.

Corporate competencies:

Promotes the mission and values of the UN;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity;
Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Functional competencies:

Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations;
Effective interpersonal and communication skills;
Strong analytical, research, reporting and writing abilities;
Strong organizational and process management competencies;
Team working competencies and ability to effectively work in teams;
Ability to assess complex situations in order to screen succinctly and clearly critical issues and draw forward-looking conclusions.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s degree in development economics, business administration, social sciences or other fields related to the scope of the assignment;
Specialized training on RBM, programme and project management is an asset.

Experience:

At least 7 years of proven experience in RBM, programme and project management, monitoring and evaluation;
Consulting assignments are applicable;
Proven experience in UNDP is a strong asset.

Language:

Excellent English report writing and communication skills.

Evaluation of Applicants

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on a cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal.

The award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical (P11 desk reviews and interviews) and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Technical Criteria – 70% of total evaluation – max 35 points:

Criteria A (Academic background and training received) specified in the announcement – max 5 points;
Criteria B (Proven knowledge management or technical advisory experience in RBM, project management, monitoring and evaluation) – max 15 points;
Criteria C (Proven knowledge of UN/UNDP, particularly of specific modalities of work and priorities and good communication skills assessed through interviews) – max 15 points;

Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation – max. 15 points

Only those candidates who obtained at least 70% of points in each step of the process technical (P11 desk reviews and interviews) will be considered for financial proposal evaluation.

Application procedure

Qualified candidates are requested to apply online via this website. The application should contain:

Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application.
Filled P11 form including past experience in similar assignments and contact details of referees; please upload the P11 instead of your CV.
Financial Proposal* - specifying a total lump sum amount in USD for the tasks specified in this announcement. The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (number of anticipated working days, daily rate, travel costs to join the duty station/repatriation travel, if any, and any other possible costs).
Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials. Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.

*Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant/contractor during the contract period (e.g. fee, health insurance, vaccination and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services). This includes all travel to join duty station/repatriation travel. Financial proposal should not include costs related to missions, which will be paid separately as per UNDP rules and regulations.

Payments will be made only upon confirmation of UNDP on delivering on the contract obligations in a satisfactory manner.

Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org

General Terms and conditions as well as other related documents can be found under: http://on.undp.org/t7fJs.

Qualified women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply.

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.