UNDP Jobs - 59671- State Project Head, Creating Employment and Entrep

State Project Head, Creating Employment and Entrepreneurship Opportunities for Women in India (Open to Indian Nationals Only)

Location :

Delhi, INDIA

Type of Contract :

Service Contract

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

16-Sep-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

SB-4

Duration of Initial Contract :

One year (extendable)

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

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

India presently faces a dual challenge of a severe paucity of highly-trained, quality labour, as well as non-employability of large sections of the educated workforce that possess little or no job skills. The National Skill Development Policy (2015) of the Ministry for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship indicates that on the demand side, there is an additional net requirement of 11.92 crore skilled manpower in twenty-four key sectors by 2022. On the supply side, it is estimated that broadly 11.9 crore fresh entrants to the workforce over the next seven years (ie, by 2022) will need to be skilled. In addition, 30.7 crore of existing farm and non-farm sector workforce will need to be skilled, up-skilled or re-skilled. Women confront additional barriers, both social and economic, as a result of which their recorded participation in the workforce is limited to 27 per cent. The Skill Policy (2015) states that ‘’skill development is a shared responsibility of both the Government as well as the industry.’’ It lays a lot of emphasis on demand-orientation and the role of the private sector.

The project 'Creating Employment and Entrepreneurship Opportunities for Women in India’ represents a partnership between UNDP India, the IKEA Foundation and Xyntéo (a private sector advisory firm) with the ambitious goal to touch the lives of one million Indian women in 3 years through training, employment and entrepreneurial skills development, as well as development of a new model of public-private collaboration that can be adapted and replicated across India by the end of this ‘proof of concept’ phase in 2017.

This project will adopt a twin strategy. One element will focus on identifying opportunities for skilled personnel in the business sector and entrepreneurial opportunities in their supply chain. The second will focus on mobilisation and capacity building of women so that they avail of the opportunities arising from the business sector in a manner that is in harmony with their aspirations and needs. The project will be implemented in collaboration with Government, industries and implementing agencies who will be identified through due diligence process and will leverage on the existing Government programmes/schemes and existing platforms to reach the goal.

The project will be located in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and the NCR Region. Thus it is proposed to set up state-level offices in Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai/Pune and Gurgaon/Manesar. To the extent possible, these state offices will be located in the premises of the respective state-level skill missions.

The state offices will be responsible for planning, implementation and monitoring of state level programmes in the framework of the overall project strategy. Establishing close working relationship with the state government, the business sector and a variety of implementing agencies as well as the relevant programmes that are operational at the state level will be a key responsibility of the state offices. The state offices will also be responsible for functions such as documentation of lessons, knowledge management, communication and advocacy in support of the project goals.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Programme Manager of the UNDP/IKEA Project, the head of the state office has the responsibility for the following tasks:

Main Responsibilities:

Explore in depth the state-level policy framework, schemes and programmes, infrastructure and other public resources relevant to the project. Develop a vibrant partnership with the state government agencies such as the State Skill Development Missions/Corporations and State-level Womens’ Agency and establish a coordination mechanism;
Analyse the local socio-economic trends that will feed into the project strategy;
Analyse the local business environment and opportunities arising from the same. With support from Xynteo, identify business enterprises based on the due diligence methodology adopted and secure commitment from the shortlisted firms for partnership under the project;
Identify strong implementing agencies (social mobilisation agencies, skill development organizations, placement agencies, certification agencies, entrepreneurship support organisations, financial institutions etc.)that need to be considered while firming up the state—level implementation arrangements. Prepare a list based on the assessment criteria and coordinate the implementation arrangements;
Collaborate with government and other stakeholders to develop a business model which can be scaled across other clusters in the state based on the findings of the pilots;
Develop a comprehensive state-level implementation plan to achieve the goals and targets set;
Guide implementation through close working relationship with implementing agencies. Provide regular inputs on issues such as social mobilisation of women, curriculum development, certification, placement, and retention etc. Conduct field visits and proactively identify implementation gaps at different levels and provide necessary inputs/feedback;
Ensure compliance with UNDP regulations and rules, coordinate audit and follow up on audit observations. Manage the financial, human resource task and administrative tasks of the state office; maintain high morale and efficiency at all times;
Monitor the project as per the M&E plan. Prepare quarterly and annual reports to be submitted to UNDP;
Support implementation of the communication strategy and knowledge management functions through documentation of relevant lessons including human interest stories, innovations, success stories and best practices and dissemination of the same;
Fulfil advocacy role with state government, industry partners and implementing partners on project mandate.Contribute to state level discussions on Skill development/entrepreneurship development, curriculum development and support the skill development mission of the state;
Any other related tasks consistent with the level of the post and/or assigned by the Programme Manager.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

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.

Functional Competencies:

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise:

Knowledge about India’s development administration systems;
Good understanding of development issues such as human development, inclusive development, gender and participation, skill development and certification, entrepreneurship and Public private partnership models;
First hand exposure to different Govt. programmes and schemes for skill development and entrepreneurship for women.
Good understanding of PPP modalities and their implementation;
Good understanding of monitoring budget, expenses and tracking the outcomes;
Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments;
Good understanding of management issues relating to human resource, budgeting, partnership for development projects;
Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments.

Communication skills:

Good communication, interpersonal and presentation skills, with an ability to work in a multi-cultural environment.

Building Strategic Partnerships:

Establish, build and sustain effective relationships, partnerships and alliances, advocate effectively and communicate sensitively
Strong networks across diverse sectors at leadership levels.

Results based monitoring:

Result-orientation and ability to develop strategic approaches;
Identifies problems and propose solutions;
Demonstrates extremely strong influencing and facilitation skills.

Promoting Organizational Learning and Knowledge Sharing:

Generates new ideas and approaches, researches best practices and proposes new, more effective ways of doing things;
Builds staff competence, creating an environment of creativity and innovation;
Shares knowledge across the organization and builds a culture of knowledge sharing and learning.

Core Competencies:

Demonstrates/safeguards ethics and integrity;
Builds and promotes effective teams using mentoring and conflict resolution skills;
Works as a team member;
Facilitates and encourages open communication in the team, communicating effectively;
Demonstrates corporate knowledge and sound judgment;
Ability to work independently and under pressure;
Schedules activities to ensure optimum use of time and resources;
Monitors performance against development and other objectives and corrects deviations from the course;
Self-development, initiative-taking;
Fair and transparent decision making; calculated risk-taking;
Approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Post-graduate Degree or equivalent in Business Management, Economics, Social Sciences, Development Studies or related fields.

Experience:

A minimum of 7-8 years’ experience in a senior level of responsibility at the state or national level in managing a development programme focussing on livelihood, skill development, enterprise development and/or related fields;
With relevant experience of 5-6 years in leading large scale livelihoods promotion/skill development/entrepreneurship development programmes;
Mobilisation of women under development programmes;
Coordination and facilitation of senior, complex teams;
Providing management advisory services;
Hands-on experience in design, monitoring and evaluation of skill development and entrepreneurship development projects;
Experience in handling partnerships including funding.

Language:

Fluency in English and Hindi is essential;
Knowledge of regional language(s) would be an asset.

Travel:

Willingness to travel.

Remuneration package is Rs. 156,493/- per month (taxable). UNDP also offers additional benefits which include medical insurance coverage and limited pension reimbursement for contract holder and encourages work life balance.

UNDP strives to have a workforce which reflects diversity and gender balance, and applies an equal opportunities approach. UNDP does not solicit or screen for information in respect of HIV or AIDS status. All selection is on merit.