Background
All evaluations in UNDP should follow the principles outlined in the 2016 UNDP Evaluation Policy, in line with the 2016 UNEG Norms and Standards for Evaluation. UNDP has a dual evaluation system with independent country programme evaluations and UNDP-wide thematic evaluations conducted by the UNDP Independent Evaluation Office, and decentralized evaluations such as project, outcome and UNSDCFs, commissioned by UNDP programme and policy units at country, regional and headquarters levels. All decentralized evaluations within UNDP are carried out by independent external consultants. More information regarding UNDP’s evaluation structure, processes and procedures can be found in the UNDP evaluation guidelines.
To facilitate the timely completion of decentralized evaluations for programmes and projects, UNDP is developing a roster of evaluation experts under the UNDP’s GPN/Experts Roster for Rapid Response (GPN/ExpRes Roster), comprised of vetted capable and qualified individuals who can be called upon as International Consultants (ICs) to carry out independent evaluations. A screening procedure will be applied to select the prospective applicants to be registered in the Roster. The Roster will be maintained for a period of 3 years. Retention in the Roster of selected experts will be contingent on continuous delivery of satisfactory services.
The GPN/ExpRes Roster is a recruitment and deployment mechanism which maintains technically vetted consultants across 21 profiles and 79 sub-profiles to support the work of UNDP Country Offices/units and other UNDP partner agencies.?
Duties and Responsibilities
Selection of candidates will be done by the Regional Bureau/Hub, Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) and Crisis Bureau (CB) M&E specialists in close collaboration with the relevant programme or policy unit. Responsibility for management, contracting and payment of evaluators will be held by the programme or policy units at the Country Office, Regional or Headquarters level.
The ICs will be assigned to carry out mid-term or terminal evaluations for selected projects and programmes. In cases where there is a national consultant (NC) as part of the team, the IC will act as a team leader. Specific reporting and working relationships will be specified at the time of contracting for a specific assignment. Detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) with relevant annexes and additional guidance will be provided for each assignment.
For each assignment, expected tasks and deliverables may include but not be limited to:
- Inception report
- Draft and final evaluation reports
- Documenting good practices, and lessons from the evaluation
- Conducting validation workshop with key stakeholders
The exact timing, due dates and guidance for each deliverable will be outlined in each assignment-specific TOR.
Working Arrangements:
- Candidates successfully selected through a technical criteria review and an interview will be included in the UNDPGPN/ExpRes Roster for a period of up to three (3) years once roster is approved;
- The level of work requirements will vary according to each individual assignment (including whether or not travel is required);
- Consultants will be home-based with possible mission travel, depending on the assignment;
- UNDP does not warrant that any quantity of services will be purchased during the term of entry into the Roster as this will depend on forthcoming needs and performance appraisals;
- Entry into the Roster is non-exclusive (i.e. it does not prohibit UNDP from sourcing expertise from other rosters, entities, or individuals);
- The final nature and scope of each assignment will vary and will focus on particular aspects of this Terms of Reference (TOR). Such details will be included in a separate TOR for each specific assignment;
- If an expert has been involved in design of a project or has a vested interest in the result, s/he will not be considered to carry out the evaluation as this poses a conflict of interest as per UNDP guidelines;
- The financial proposal will specify only the all-inclusive daily fee and payments will be made to the consultant based on number of days worked payable against assigned deliverables. Such fee would be the ceiling amount;
- The Consultant will be responsible for providing her/his own working station (i.e. laptop, internet, phone, scanner/printer, software, etc.) and must have access to reliable internet connection;
- Given the global consultations to be undertaken during this assignment, the consultant is expected to be reasonably flexible with his/her availability for such consultations taking into consideration different time zones where applicable;
- Payments will be made as specified in the actual contract upon confirmation of UNDP on delivering on the contract obligations in a satisfactory manner and as per specified due dates.
Competencies
Integrity:
- Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
- Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
- Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
- Treats all people fairly without favouritism;
- Fulfils all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.
Technical:
- Demonstrated skills in writing reports and evaluations, experience with UN being an asset;
- Advanced editing skills;
- Computer literacy for Microsoft Office Package or equivalent;
- Proven experience in the developing country context and working in different cultural settings.
Communication:
- Speaks and writes clearly and effectively;
- Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately;
- Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication;
- Tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience;
- Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
Professionalism:
- Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter;
- Conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results;
- Motivated by professional rather than personal concerns;
- Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges;
- Capable of working in a high-pressure environment, managing many tasks simultaneously;
- Excellent analytical and organizational skills;
- Exercises the highest level of responsibility and able to handle confidential and politically sensitive issues in a responsible and mature manner.
Teamwork:
- Works well in a team to advance the priorities of the assignment and UNDP as a whole;
- Projects a positive image and is ready to take on a wide range of tasks;
- Focuses on results for the client;
- Welcomes constructive feedback.
Client Orientation and Communication:
- Good interpersonal and networking skills, ability to establish and maintain effective working relations, supports and encourages open communication in the team, and facilitates team work;
- Ability to communicate verbally and in writing with a wide range of stakeholders, in a manner which is courteous and professional at all times, employing an appropriate level of formality and diplomacy;
- Ability to follow instructions accurately and also to work under minimum supervision.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Master’s degree in a relevant field in development studies, international development, other relevant political or social sciences area, or closely related field (Max. 10 points).
Experience:
- At least 5 years of professional work experience in conducting and managing evaluations (Max. 30 points);
- Experience in the usage of various research methodologies (Max. 10 points);
- Experience applying SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) indicators and reconstructing or validating baseline scenarios (Max. 10 points);
- Demonstrated experience in gender sensitive evaluation and analysis (Max. 5 points);
- Experience working with one or more of the following thematic areas: cross-cutting development issues, poverty, governance, resilience, sustainable planet, energy or gender (Max. 15 points);
- Experience working in one or more of the following regions: Latin America & Caribbean; Africa; Arab States; Eastern Europe & CIS; Asia & Pacific; Global (Max. 9 points);
- Experience with the United Nations system will be considered an asset (Max. 7 points);
- Quality of past evaluations based on two samples (Max 4 points).
Language:
- Excellent oral and written communication skills in English language (max. 8 points);
- Good command of other UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish) is an advantage. (Max. 2 points).
Evaluation method and inclusion in roster:
- Only those applications which are responsive and compliant will be evaluated;
- The technical criteria (education, experience, language [max. 110 points] and interview [max.30 points]) will be based on a maximum 140 points;
- Candidates scoring 77 points or higher from the review of the education, experience and languages will be considered for the interview;
- Candidates obtaining 21 points or higher in the interview and who have accepted UNDP’s General Terms and Conditions will be included in the roster.
Documentation to be submitted:
- Candidates must clearly indicate in a cover/motivation letter the following:
- TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE with conducting evaluations
- TECHNICAL AREA(S) the candidate has experience in: (a) cross-cutting development issues; (b) poverty; (c) governance; (d) resilience; (e) sustainable planet; (f) energy; (g) gender
- REGION(S) the candidate has experience working in: a) Latin America & Caribbean; b) Africa; c) Arab States; d) Eastern Europe & CIS; e) Asia & Pacific; f) Global
- Applicants must submit a P11 or CV including Education/Qualification, Professional Certification, Employment Records /Experience;
- Applicants must submit or provide links to two writing samples of past evaluations;
- Applicants must reply to the mandatory questions asked by the system when submitting the application;
- Applicants must submit a duly completed and signed Annex II Offeror´s letter to UNDP confirming interest and availability for the Roster to be downloaded from the UNDP procurement site. Such fee would be the ceiling amount.
Kindly note you can upload only one document to this application (scan all documents in one single PDF file to attach). Incomplete applications will not be considered.
UNDP Personal History form (P11):
http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/corporate/Careers/P11_Personal_history_form.doc.
General Conditions of Contract for the ICs:
Annex II Offeror´s letter to UNDP confirming interest and availability for the Individual Contractor (IC) assignment
http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=55398