Background

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.

Part of the Strategic Partnerships Division (SPD), the Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships and Advisory Services (MPAS) Section leads UN Women’s engagement with the private sector, corporations, philanthropy, foundations, and individuals - both in terms of a substantive components and resource mobilization - and it drives a wide range of UN Women’s global initiatives: HeForShe, Women Entrepreneurship Accelerator (WEA), Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) and Unstereotype Alliance (UA). It also leads the work with all UN Women National Committees, and on the development of the individual/digital giving as well as Advisory Services business line for private sector. MPAS’ main aims are to ensure that UN Women develops and sustains high quality and impact focused partnerships to achieve maximum results for gender equality and women’s empowerment.

UN Women, in partnership with the UN Global Compact, launched the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) to guide the private sector on how to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment in the workplace, marketplace and community. More than 6,500 companies have adopted the WEPs.

The WEPs Secretariat, housed within UN Women’s Multi-stakeholder Partnerships and Advisory Services section, handles the administrative and operational aspects of the WEPs initiative, including all elements of private sector client management, onboarding, and engagement for WEPs signatories.

The consultant will support the WEPs Secretariat with the above functions and report directly to the Global Head of the Women’s Empowerment Principles at UN Women HQ.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Consultant will report directly to the Global Head of the Women’s Empowerment Principles and collaborate with MPAS colleagues and WEPs focal points across UN Women’s regional and country offices.

Summary of functions

  1. Carry out WEPs signatory onboarding process
  2. Provide ongoing support to UN Women field offices on WEPs
  3. Support companies in various stages of the WEPs Journey
  4. Update WEPs website and prepare newsletters and social media
  5. Other activities

Key functions:

1. Carry out WEPs signatory onboarding process

  • Conducting the onboarding process (i.e. verification of applicants, approval and publishing of signatories).

2. Provide ongoing support to UN Women field offices on WEPs

  • Respond to queries on eligibility of specific companies/organizations.
  • Help problem-solve technical difficulties encountered by approvers/publishers of WEPs signatories.
  • Train new colleagues on the WEPs signatory approval/publishing process.
  • Host regular (monthly) Zoom/Teams meetings to update colleagues and facilitate discussions across the organization on specific topics.

3. Support companies in various stages of the WEPs Journey

  • Respond to queries from potential WEPs signatories about the WEPs, eligibility and other FAQs.
  • Respond to queries from WEPs signatories (new and old) on how to showcase their information on their company profile pages, including on how to report on the WEPs indicators.
  • Host regular webinars and meetings to engage WEPs signatories in the WEPs journey.
  • Prepare demand-drive guidance on WEPs implementation where gaps exist.
  • Facilitate exchange of experience in the WEPs journey, including through blog articles.

4. Update WEPs website and prepare newsletters and social media

  • Update WEPs website (on Drupal) and liaise with the IT team to address technical issues, bugs, maintenance and enhancements of the WEPs website.
  • Review and quality assurance of UN Women’s WEPs knowledge products for posting on the website.
  • Prepare WEPs newsletters and news updates on a monthly basis.
  • Create and post social media assets (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn).

5. Other activities

  • Provide data updates and analytics on WEPs on a monthly basis (e.g. through excel)
  • Quality assure the WEPs database and clean it for duplicates and other errors.
  • Financial monitoring of WEPs Donations (once a month, or as funds are made available).
  • Liaise with and collaborate with the UN Global Compact team.
  • Other tasks as assigned by the Global Head of WEPs.

Competencies

Core values and Guiding principles:

Integrity:

  • Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism:

  • Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:

  • Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff.
  • Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

Ethics and Values:

  • Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

Organizational Awareness:

  • Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Development and Innovation:

  • Take charge of self-development and take initiative.

Work in teams:

  • Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multiethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Communicating and Information Sharing:

  • Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

  • Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others.

Conflict Management:

  • Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution.

Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:

  • Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

  • Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competences:

  • In-depth understanding of gender equality and women’s empowerment issues, challenges and motivations in the private sector.
  • Ability to organize and complete multiple tasks by establishing priorities.
  • Experience establishing, building and sustaining effective relationships with clients, demonstrating understanding of client’s perspective; anticipates client needs and addresses them promptly.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Master’s degree in business, finance, social sciences, economics, or related fields. Two additional years of experience could substitute for a Master’s degree.

Experience:

  • Minimum 2 years of relevant experience in the field of gender equality and women’s empowerment.
  • Experience working on gender equality and women’s empowerment in the private sector is desired.
  • Knowledge of database and content management platforms (e.g. drupal).
  • Proficiency in organizing and analyzing data in excel.
  • Experience with designing, creating content and disseminating newsletters through digital platforms (e.g. Constant Contact, MailChimp, …).
  • Experience with social media strategy, content development, design and posting.
  • Experience in working in a multicultural and web-based environment.

Languages:

  • Fluency in English is required. Fluency and knowledge of other UN language, particularly French and Spanish, is an asset.