Background

1. Organizational Context

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

Communications is a key component of UN Women’s work in the Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region and constitutes a vehicle for ensuring visibility for successful UN Women initiatives, results and programmes as well as for raising awareness about key issues of gender equality and women’s empowerment. Effective communications also contribute to mobilizing resources as donors would like to see value for money. 

New digital media have brought about dramatic changes in the ways people consume information and interact. Not only have digital communication channels changed how people access and share information, they have also generated new content formats. Audiences are drawn to the appeal of visual and interactive presentations. UN Women ECA Regional Office (ECA RO) communications unit intends to expand and strengthen its digital communications and its presence on social media with the aim of improving its standing and awareness with partners and digital audiences by telling impactful stories and conducting strong advocacy using new digital formats.

Under the direct supervision and guidance of the Regional Communications and Advocacy Specialist, the consultant will assist the Communications Section in developing and implementing cutting-edge digital and social media communications initiatives.

Duties and Responsibilities

2. Functions

Under the supervision of the Regional Communications and Advocacy Specialist, the consultant will:

• Substantively support the daily management of regional social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr and Instagram):
  • Write engaging, audience-friendly social media posts, ensure regular updates on social media and support with production of other content for social media
  • Design high-quality visual content for social media
  • Maintain and drive communication with fans and followers
  • Keep up to date with new social media tools, best practices and how other organizations and companies are using them in order to identify new campaigning opportunities
  • Analyze social media analytics together with the communications team to support the expansion of UN Women’s reach over social media in the region
• Support research on specific themes relating to UN Women’s mandate;
• Support the organization and preparation of meetings, events and webinars planned by the ECA RO;
• Contribute to the visibility of events, campaigns and key activities planned by ECA RO and field offices, (drafting articles, contributing to podcasts, photos, etc.);
• Support the development of communications assets such as brochures, flyers, infographics, fact-sheets, multi-media assets etc.;
• Support with the production of multimedia content, design engaging, audience-friendly, cutting-edge digital assets;
• Draft and design internal newsletters for UN Women staff
• Design the quarterly ECA Newsletter
• Regularly update the website with engaging content
• Keep the internal knowledge management tools up-to-date, including SharePoint and Microsoft Teams

In addition, the consultant will support on administrative tasks:

• To support events’ organization: service providers’ selections (communication agency, hotels, printer, etc.) and elaboration of terms of references, drafting selection minutes, contracts, etc.
• To follow the reception of deliverables and the service providers’ payment;
• To ensure the shaping of reports and documents;
• To ensure translations and synthesis.

3. Expected Deliverables and Payment Schedule

The following table summarizes main activities and expected deliverables against targeted delivery deadlines and indicative working days to be invested by the Consultant.

Payment Schedule:

The Consultant shall be paid upon successful completion of the deliverables in monthly installments as per the above table. Payment shall be affected only if all the deliverables in this TOR are submitted to UN Women ECA RO within the timeframes stipulated in the TOR and they are approved by the respective supervisor. Without submission and approval of the deliverables, Consultants shall not receive any payment even if they invest time for this assignment.

Travel:

For No Travel Assignments:

This is home-based assignment and no travel requirements are envisioned under this assignment.

In case of an unforeseeable travel, the travel arrangements will be handled by UN Women as per the UN Women rules and regulations.

For Both

For all travels under this assignment, the Consultants are required to provide the relevant project staff with requested travel documentation in a timely manner and before the travels. Please note that failure to do so may result in no entitlement.

4. Key Performance Indicators

• Timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered.
• Adherence to UN Women standards and rules.

Competencies

5. Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies

• Ability to communicate sensitively, effectively and creatively across different constituencies;
• Knowledge of gender equality and women’s empowerment issues;
• Focuses on impact and results for client;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
• Proven networking skills, and ability to mobilize support on behalf of UN Women;
• Good negotiating skills;
• Knowledge and understanding of UN system;
• Strong IT skills, including databases, extranet and office software packages;
• Strong analytical and interpersonal skills.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies:  http://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-employment-values-and-competencies-definitions-en.pdf

UN Women 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.

Required Skills and Experience

6. Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in one of the following disciplines: communications, public relations, journalism or other relevant subjects is required.

Skills and Experience:

• At least two years of experience in communications and/or social media
• Experience using social media management platforms (Hootsuite, Trello), and producing content for social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram)
• Experience producing multimedia content, including infographics, graphic designs and GIFs
• Experience with website content management (Drupal is an asset)
• Excellent writing and research skills;
• Previous experience within the UN system is an asset
• Previous experience working on gender issues is an asset
• Familiarity with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, In-Design and other graphic design production tools.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English (written and oral)

7. Application Procedure

The following documents should be submitted as part of the application:

• Cover letter to include a brief overview about which of your previous experiences makes you the most suitable candidate for the advertised position.
• CV in English containing the relevant educational and professional experience.
• Signed UN Women Personal History (P11) Form including past experience in similar assignments which can be downloaded at http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment
• Financial Proposal:  Specify a monthly and daily amount  (daily rate, personnel costs, travel expenses to join in duty station, living allowance, etc. should be included in the Offer) for the tasks specified in this Terms of Reference and considering 20 days for every month expected as working days;

When applying; the Cover Letter, CV and the signed P11 Form should be merged into one (1) single PDF document since the system will allow only to upload maximum one document. Therefore, please combine these forms and documents into one (1) single PDF document and upload them to the system.

Should they be short-listed in consideration of the consultancy post, candidates should have the ability to quickly submit degree certificates, medical certifications or any other requested document.

Incomplete applications such as applications without a financial proposal may not be considered. Applicants are responsible to make sure to have provided all the requested application materials before the deadline

8. Evaluation of Applicants

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal. Contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer receives the highest score out of below defined technical and financial criteria. Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation will be considered for financial evaluation.

The maximum number of points assigned to the financial proposal is allocated to the lowest price proposal. All other price proposals receive points in inverse proportion. A suggested formula is as follows:

p = 30 (µ/z)

Using the following values:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

An interview/written test may be used for the selection of best candidates.

Annex I: Price Proposal Guideline and Template

The prospective Individual Consultant should take the following explanations into account during submission of his/her price proposal.

Daily fee - The daily price proposal should indicate a “lump sum amount” which is “all-inclusive”; All costs (professional fees, communications, consumables during field related missions, etc.) that could possibly be incurred by the Contractor needs to be factored into the proposed price.

UN Women will not withhold any amount of the payments for tax and/or social security related payments. UN Women shall have no liability for taxes, duties or other similar charges payable by the Individual Contractor in respect of any amounts paid to the Individual Contractor under this Contract, and the Contractor acknowledges that UN Women will not issue any statements of earnings to the Individual contractor in respect of any such payments

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided?on the basis of?qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.? 

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.? 

UN Women?has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination.? All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel 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.)?