Background

The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) is a UN organization with a capital mandate (unique in the UN System) focused on reducing poverty and inequality first and foremost in the least developed countries (“LDC”s).   By the end of 2015 the international community is expected to endorse a new and, probably, single and universal sustainable development agenda that will replace the existing Millennium Development Goals. This will likely be accompanied by a new financing framework to be adopted at the next UN Financing for Development summit.  This new framework faces a rapidly changing development finance landscape that is characterized by an increased diversity of providers and sources such as DAC and non-DAC donors (e.g. India, China and Brazil), philanthropic foundations, high net-worth individuals, crowd-sourced donations, remittances and other private sector providers – such as the emerging impact investing industry; and, types of funding including traditional ODA, loans, risk mitigation, equity and blending instruments, as well as innovative financing mechanisms and the increasing use of ODA to leverage private finance including from domestic sources.

UNCDF is growing rapidly and the trend is expected to continue. In order to sustain this growth while ensuring a better planning of resources toward UNCDF’s goals and an increased impact in its intervention a Programme Management Support Unit under the oversight of the Deputy Executive Secretary. The PMSU team is expected to drive corporate programme management practices and systems/tools while providing important internal programme oversight and have an assurance role vis-à-vis UNCDF accountability for results and for the appropriate use of resources, including corporate rules and regulations and performance targets against the IRRM.

Post Context - The Regional Programme Management Specialist is an integral part of the of the UNCDF regional team in Bangkok and matrixed member of the corporate Programme Management Support Unit (PMSU) supporting the work of both UNCDF practices (FIPA and LDFP) in Asia and the Pacific. She/he reports to the Regional Technical Advisor and/or SHIFT programme manager, in Bangkok and is an integral, matrixed member of the PMSU under the supervision of the UNCDF Deputy Executive Secretary.

As a matrixed member of the PMSU unit, she/he is entrusted with the execution of services contributing to the improvements in system wide coherence in results through all the phases of the programming cycle; enhancing aid effectiveness by providing strategic and operational guidance to implement  UNCDF strategy as a contributing to supporting the results-oriented focus of UN Reform through the design and management of an adequate system to measure system-wide reform process results and development results.

S/he is also responsible for providing functional advice and support to the Programme Assistants in the UNCDF Bangkok office, in coordination with the Regional Technical Adviser and/or SHIFT programme manager.  The Regional Programme Management Specialist works closely with the Regional Technical Advisor, GTI Managers and Project Managers on technical and policy matters in project/programme work in Asia and is required to provide corporate inputs for financial planning and results based management to PMSU.

The incumbent works with the UNCDF regional and country teams on portfolio implementation, and contributes to resource mobilization initiatives. S/he actively supports the Programme Officers and project teams to ensure that UNCDF’s mission and comparative advantages are understood by partners, and that relevant inputs from UNCDF are integrated into the CCA, UNDAF, CPAP and other national programmes frameworks.

From Headquarters, the Regional  Programme Management Specialist receives overall leadership and policy direction from Practice Directors and guidance from the DES on programme management, including disbursement of resources, financial and performance management and programme coherence at the regional level; from Programme Management Support Unit on programmatic issues; from the Management Support Unit  on corporate operational issues; from the Partnerships, Policy and Communications Unit regarding tools, templates and processes for  partnership agreements;

At the regional level, the incumbent contributes to regional efforts to develop and maintain partnerships with UNDP, bi-lateral and multi-lateral organizations and other partners for non-core resource mobilization, knowledge management and policy support and harmonization.

Incumbent will support practices in planning, reporting and budget management and she/he will support Directorate in corporate results reporting / management reporting and EB Reporting as well as collaborate with PPCU (Partnerships, Policy and Communications Unit) in the application of contracts in line with results frameworks.

The Regional Programme Specialist works in matrixed collaboration with the Programme Finance Specialist and the RBM Specialist in HQ/PMSU ensuring the accurate reporting of corporate financial data while driving the development of corporate planning systems, tools, and standards.

Within the context of UNCDF programme activities, the staff member is ultimately accountable for achieving the key results summarized herein. These results in turn provide senior management with critical inputs in making decisions on resource allocations and planning; confirming the alignment of resources with results; providing corporate monitoring; and assessing performance.

The consequences of errors or less than satisfactory performance on the part of the staff member could therefore result in considerable negative impact to UNCDF in financial planning, results-based management and accurate reporting of corporate achievements.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of key functions:

  • Provides Programme Management for UNCDF projects within Asia and other CO Hubs;
  • Provides Corporate Planning Support in close coordination with PMSU and Directorate;
  • Provides general management on operational aspects of UNCDF for Asia and other CO Hubs in coordination with the Regional Technical Adviser;
  • Applies business development strategy, tools and intelligence to build and maintain strategic partnerships and capitalize on new business opportunities at sub-regional and country office levels;
  • Provides leadership in active acquisition and dissemination of business-sensitive knowledge within respective sub-region and sub-regional network of country offices.

PROGRAMME  MANAGEMENT: Provides programme management support for UNCDF projects within Asia and other CO Hubs focusing on achieving the following results:

  • Upon hand-off of project concept from the Regional Technical Adviser, development and approval of project concept papers and project proposal documents, ensuring from RTA soundness of technical design and strategy;
  • Funding and implementation modality negotiated and resolved with UNDP, donors and LDC government;
  • Review of work plans of project teams, ensuring clear performance targets are established;
  • Effective management of all financial and operational aspects of project implementation according to annual work plan of the project, ensuring targeted achievement of expenditures, delivery of activities and outputs; periodic advice to project teams on structuring inputs into budget based on expected outputs;
  • Reporting of project achievements, disbursement delivery and other areas of accountability to practices for input to ROAR; financial reporting and other non-core;
  • Financial arrangements to donors;
  • Effective and efficient implementation of ATLAS in line with project cycle;
  • Provision of corporate reports on evidence based trends with a view to ensuring an integrated approach between practices (close coordination with PMSU).

PLANNING SUPPORT: UNCDF corporate initiatives

  • Prepares analysis of complex UNCDF resource issues specific the practices and geographic activities.  Prepares detailed budget charts, tables, and spreadsheets, as needed, in support of a variety of budgetary analyses and special projects;
  • Compiles and displays data using table and graph spreadsheet applications. Responsibilities include the identification of relevant and usable data sources, selecting appropriate methods of data collection and data analysis, and reporting of conclusions, implications, and recommendations. Ensure compatibility with UNDP platforms, tools and resources;
  • Provides budget recommendations to respond to a wide range of issues.  Develops, formulates, and recommends funding scenarios to address concerns and facilitate resolution;
  • In coordination with the Management Support Unit, develops cash-flow projections and assists in the monitoring of funding requests sent to UNCDF and implementation of new resource allocations;
  • Compiles data and prepares reports for budgetary planning.   Contributes to the development and integration of databases (UNDP Platform for RBM) and reports to facilitate planning and decision-making. 

MANAGEMENT – OPERATIONAL ASPECTS: Provides general management on operational aspects of the UNCDF sub-regional office, in coordination with the Regional Technical Adviser, focusing on achieving the following results:

  • Effective and efficient management of human resources of the UNCDF Hub in Bangkok office (and other UNCDF country office units), including staffing and performance management, in consultation and close coordination with UNDP country office management and UNCDF Management Support Unit in HQ.;
  • Effective oversight of Procurement Processes in close coordination with MSU in HQ;
  • Effective and efficient management of financial resources for the UNCDF Hub in Bangkok office, including budget preparation, funding and reporting;
  • Accountable for full disclosure and due diligence to ensure transparency and no conflict of interest in the issuance of contracts, grants and activities of UNCDF in region. In this light vetting of appointees and/or grant recipients in close coordination with the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Fund;
  • Monitoring of financial exception reports for unusual activities, transactions and investigation of anomalies or unusual transactions. Provision of information to supervisors and other UNDP staff at HQ of the results of the investigation when satisfactory answers are not obtained;
  • Close monitoring of GTI activities and processes to ensure consistency with UNDP /UNCDF rules and regulations;
  • Monitoring of financial exception reports for unusual activities, transactions and investigation of anomalies or unusual transactions; Provision of information to supervisors and other UNDP staff at HQ of the results of the investigation when satisfactory answers are not obtained;
  • Business processes mapping and establishment of internal Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in Finance, Human Resources Management, Procurement, Logistical and ICT services within the Office;
  • Constant monitoring and analysis of the operating environment, timely readjustment of the operations, advice on legal considerations and risk assessment;
  • Ensure effective and efficient management of human resources of the UNCDF Hub and other CO under its purview including staffing Programme Assistants by providing functional advice and performance management, support in consultation with UNDP Regional/Country Office management and UNCDF Operations Division, as appropriate;
  • Effective and efficient management of project  financial resources for the UNCDF Regional Hub, including all aspects of project preparation, funding and reporting to ensure smooth implementation of project activities (i.e. identifying “bottle necks” and initiation of remedial actions);
  • Provide strategic training on programme support issues on demand basis.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT/EXTERNAL RELATIONS: Working closely with Practice Directors, and the PPCU applies business development strategy, tools and intelligence to build and maintain strategic partnerships and capitalize on new business opportunities at sub-regional and country office levels, focusing on achieving the following results;

  • Expanded support to more LDCs and increased average investment in Inclusive and Local Development Finance and other Global Corporate Programmes (LDPs), to ensure scalable models and lessons and to achieve greater local MDG impact in policy pilot areas;
  • Strengthened operational partnerships with major multilateral and bilateral organizations for business development and cost-sharing and increases in partner financing of Inclusive and Local Development Finance in LDCs;
  • Effective working relationships with LDC governments at local and national levels, UNDP, central banks, the World Bank and regional development banks, research and academic institutions, civil society and the private sector;
  • Dialogue and outreach to key external constituencies and partners, including UNDP country office management, to increase visibility and awareness of UNCDF comparative advantages and strategic niches within specific LDC; with UNDP, provision of UNCDF-focused inputs into CCA, UNDAF, CPAP, etc.

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: Provides leadership in active acquisition and dissemination of business-sensitive UNCDF knowledge within the UNCDF IF and LD networks of country offices, focusing on achieving the following results:

  • Identification and incorporation of lessons learned from the office experience for scaling up, policy influence and model refinement, coordinating input into portfolio management and planning at sub-regional level, and at Headquarters for UNCDF and UNDP's policy and programme support to Inclusive Finance and Local Development.

Impact of Results:

The results have a major impact on the overall effectiveness of the UNCDF practices and GTI (Global Technical Initiatives) within Asia and other Hub Countries as reflected in the ROAR, financial delivery, new business development and resource mobilization and on UNCDF's reputation as a preferred partner Inclusive Finance as well as other corporate endeavors and center of excellence  within the sub-region,  leading to  increase in  number of  LDCs and size of  projects  under the influence of UNCDF. The staff member is ultimately accountable for achieving the key results summarized above. These results in turn provide senior management with critical inputs in making decisions on resource allocations and planning; confirming the alignment of resources with results; providing corporate monitoring; and assessing performance.

The consequences of errors or less than satisfactory performance on the part of the staff member could therefore result in considerable negative impact to UNCDF in financial planning, results-based management and accurate reporting of corporate achievements.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:       

Advocacy/Advancing A Policy-Oriented Agenda

Level 2: Analysis and creation of messages and strategies

  • Creates effective advocacy strategies;
  • Performs analysis of political situations and scenarios, and contributes to the formulation of institutional responses;
  • Contributes to UNCDF practice areas and builds knowledge in at least one practice areas, and shares.

Results-Based Programme Development and Management

Level 1.1: Contributing to results through provision of information

  • Provides information for linkages across programme activities to help identify critical points of integration;
  • Provides information and documentation on specific stages of projects/programme implementation;
  • Provides background information to identify opportunities for project development and helps drafting proposals;
  • Participates in the formulation of project proposals.

Building Strategic Partnerships

Level 2: Identifying and building partnerships

  • Effectively networks with partners seizing opportunities to build strategic alliances relevant to UNDP’s mandate and strategic agenda;
  • Identifies needs and interventions for capacity building of counterparts, clients and potential partners;
  • Promotes UNDP’s agenda in inter-agency meetings.

Innovation and Marketing New Approaches

Level 2: Developing new approaches

  • Seeks a broad range of perspectives in developing project proposals;
  • Identifies new approaches and promotes their use in other situations;
  • Creates an environment that fosters innovation and innovative thinking;
  • Makes the case for innovative ideas from the team with own supervisor.

Resource Mobilization

Level 2:  Implementing resource mobilization strategies

  • Ability to provide high quality policy advice services on related issues;
  • In-depth practical knowledge of inter-disciplinary development issues; and,
  • Experience in design, monitoring and evaluation of development projects.

Promoting Organizational Learning and Knowledge Sharing

Level 2: Developing tools and mechanisms

  • Makes the case for innovative ideas documenting successes and building them into the design of new approaches;
  • Identifies new approaches and strategies that promote the use of tools and mechanisms.

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise

Level 2: In-depth knowledge of the subject-matter

  • Understands more advanced aspects of primary area of specialization as well as the fundamental concepts of related disciplines;
  • Keeps abreast of new developments in area of professional discipline and job knowledge and seeks to develop him/herself professionally;
  • Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments;
  • Demonstrates comprehensive understanding and knowledge of the current guidelines and project management tools and utilizes these regularly in work assignments;
  • Analyzes information on potential bilateral donors and national counterparts to recommend a strategic approach;
  • Identifies and compiles lessons learned;
  • Develops a resource mobilization strategy at the country level.

Global Leadership and Advocacy for UNDP’s Goals

Level 2: Analysis and creation of messages and strategies

  • Performed analysis of political situations and scenarios, and contributes to the formulation of institutional responses;
  • Uses the opportunity to bring forward and disseminate materials for global advocacy work and adapts it for use at country level.

Client Orientation

Level 2: Contributing to positive outcomes for the client

  • Anticipates client needs;
  • Works towards creating an enabling environment for a smooth relationship between the clients and service provider;
  • Demonstrates understanding of client’s perspective;
  • Solicits feedback on service provision and quality.

Core Competencies:

  • Promoting ethics and integrity, creating organizational precedents;
  • Building support and political acumen;
  • Building staff competence,creating an environment of creativity and innovation;
  • Building and promoting effective teams;
  • Creating and promoting enabling environment for open communication;
  • Creating an emotionally intelligent organization;
  • Leveraging conflict in the interests of UNDP & setting standards;
  • Sharing knowledge across the organization and building a culture of knowledge sharing and learning;
  • Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing is the responsibility of each staff member;
  • Fair and transparentdecision making; calculated risk-taking;
  • Ability to address gender equality and empowerment of women considerations in strategic and operational activities of UNCDF.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Master's degree (or equivalent) in economics, public/business administration, social sciences, or related discipline.

Experience:

  • A minimum of seven (7) years progressively more responsible experience in development field, most of which working for UNDP in the field in programme and operations, preferably in an LDC.

Language Requirements:

  • Fluent in English;
  • Another UN official language is an asset.

Note:

Applicants are strongly encouraged to upload (as a *pdf attachment) the completed and signed UNDP Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded fromhttp://sas.undp.org/Documents/P11_Personal_history_form.docx  Completion of all the fields is required.

Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.