Jobs - 66893- Individual Contractor- International Expert for St

Individual Contractor- International Expert for Study into the Motivation of Public Officials in Pakistan and Kazakhstan

Location :

Home-based

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

15-Jul-2016

Application Deadline :

27-Jun-16 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

5 Months

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

A motivated public service workforce is a critical component to the economic and human development of nations and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, yet relatively little is known about what motivates public service officials in developing countries to join, perform well and build a career in the public service. Research on motivation in the public sector has so far been conducted mainly in western or developed country settings.

In this regard, UNDP is interested to understand the factors affecting motivation of public officials in developing countries more deeply, and what can be done to improve motivation and performance levels of individuals and government organizations. To this end, UNDP is initiating research of public service motivation in Pakistan and Kazakhstan as a pilot study that can potentially be conducted in other countries in the future too.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective:

Provide a reliable platform and sound evidence to inform practical strategies and action that can enhance and address motivation of public officials in developing countries.

Scope of work

The scope of this project will include:

Developing an online survey instrument to be used initially in country studies in Pakistan and Kazakhstan, but with very strong basis to be expanded to other countries (actual administering in other countries is outside the scope of this project).The survey instrument needs to have a strong conceptual framework and be grounded in appropriate theory (social/political science or other relevant theory).The survey instrument cannot be overly onerous to administer and complete;
Providing advice on administering the survey instrument in Pakistan and Kazakhstan;
Analysing the results and preparing at least three clear, succinct, and publishable study reports based on these results, separately for (1) Pakistan and (2) Kazakhstan; and a (3) comparative study of motivation in public service officials in the two countries.A key component of each of these reports will be appropriate, contextualized actionable proposals arising from results of the survey;
Delivery of an approved final project report.

The selected consultant is expected to:

Demonstrate sufficient understanding of the subject matter to deliver the entire scope of this project.This will be assessed in the Proposal submitted for consideration. Other educational qualifications will also apply.

Ensure the project deliverables as outlined in the project scope, and as further detailed below.

The proposed structure is as follows:

Development of Online Survey Instrument

Some recent papers, including one with a review of literature on motivation of public officials will be provided. Possible frameworks/models for the survey instrument will be provided to facilitate the work (these should not be considered prescriptive details for the project).Nonetheless, the consultant is expected to possess relevant knowledge and expertise for this task;
The survey instrument should comprise at least two parts to ensure different objectives can be met simultaneously: (i) ‘Global’ section; (ii) Country-specific section;
The ‘global’ section would comprise questions that would be applicable in any developing country.This is to enable eventual comparisons between countries, within/between regions, or within/between different categories of countries (e.g., lower middle-income, higher middle-income, etc.), or other global comparisons;
The country-specific section would allow UNDP on-ground offices (in Pakistan and Kazakhstan) and the respective national governments maximum flexibility to address the specific needs within the national context, without compromising the consistency of the global section;
The survey instrument would also need to differentiate respondents, minimally by their level of seniority (e.g., entry-level officer, middle manager, senior manager) as research has shown that there may be fundamental differences in what motivates officials at different responsibility levels.Assessing officials from different levels separately would produce results which would allow more accurate diagnosis of motivation levels and would allow more targeted response interventions, where needed.Other relevant and practical categorizations, e.g., based on extent of involvement in policy-formulation or direct face-to-face contact with citizens, and different functions of the respondent government officials as needed for sensible and useful outcomes should be proposed by the consultant;
The appointed consultant is required to submit drafts and revisions of the survey instrument to the Project Advisory Group for review and endorsement before implementation;
The appointed consultant is expected to advise on, and respond to focus group consultations to inform the development of the survey instrument.Focus group members may include academic experts (for feedback to ensure robustness in the design of the survey instrument) and government officials (to highlight practical ground issues that need to be addressed).UNDP will nominate focus group members;
A test/pilot of the survey instrument may be included as part of this design stage. The consultant is expected to play only a supervisory/advisory role and is not expected to physically administer this test;
The survey instrument should be developed to be delivered on widely-available open source software;
The proposed survey instrument should be in English, amenable for both online and paper-based response and preferably require 30min or less for a respondent to complete.No specialized training should be required for respondents to complete the survey instrument.In addition, the instrument should be seamlessly administered when translated (translation will not be expected of the consultant).

Advice on administering the survey instrument in Pakistan and Kazakhstan:

The consultant will work with UNDP colleagues and/or government officials in Pakistan and Kazakhstan to administer the survey.The consultant will play an advisory role in order to ensure reliability of results, and is not expected to directly administer the survey;
Where travel to these countries is required, such trips will be funded in accordance with prevailing UNDP travel guidelines for consultants;

Analysing the results and preparing at least three clear, succinct reports:

Reports, as described above, need to be in English, and of publishable quality;
The appointed consultant is required to submit drafts and revisions of the reports to the Project Advisory Group for review and endorsement;

Supervisor and reporting arrangements

The consultant will report to the project management team (Assistant Country Director, Chief, Development Policy Unit, UNDP Pakistan; Project Manager, Head of the Research Team of the Regional Hub of Civil Service in Astana; Senior Advisor, Global Centre for Public Service Excellence) or their nominees on a regular (minimum fortnightly) basis;

The consultant is required to submit a draft and revised version of the survey instrument to the project management team for feedback (two rounds of comments) who will consult the Project Advisory Group (comprised of academics and experts in the field of motivation in the public sector and other UNDP staff and country representatives). Approval will depend on endorsement of the final version by the Project Advisory Group. Similarly the final reports will be required to undergo a review and endorsement process by the Project Advisory Group.

Timeline

Work on the project is expected to commence by 15 July 2016 and be completed on or before 15 December 2016. The online survey instrument is to be completed, approved, and ready to be administered by 31 August 2016. Preliminary approved versions of reports are expected to be submitted by 15 October 2016 and final reports by 15 December 2016.

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications.

Technical proposal:

The proposal should include (without being limited by) the following:

Description of conceptual framework undergirding survey instrument;
Explanation of academic research reasoning behind choice of conceptual framework;
Proposed methodology described generally, but with sufficient details like sample selection (choice of survey respondents), sample sizes, proposed tests for statistical significance, etc.;
List of detailed insights expected upon completion of this study (e.g., “From this study, a statistically significant number (x%) of middle managers working in day-to-day roles dealing with policy formulation exhibit abc form of intrinsic motivation in their work).
Anticipated uses of the above insights;
Filled P11 form including past experience in similar projects and contact details of referees.

Lump sum contracts

The financial proposal shall indicate the all-inclusive lump sum fee;

The contract price will be a purely professional fee, and is a fixed output-based price, based on the following milestones, regardless of extension of the herein specific duration.

Please Note

The financial proposal must be all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant/contractor during the contract period (e.g. professional fee, and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services). The fee should be quoted in US dollar only.

Payment Modality:

Milestones (and percentage of contract price)

Approved online survey instrument (after Project Advisory Group endorsement): 20%;
Satisfactory advisory inputs on administration of survey instrument (after completion of surveys): 10%;
Upon approval of the draft required three reports (after Project Advisory Group endorsement) on: 45%;
Upon approval of any required revisions of the survey instrument, and approval of the final report: 25%.

Travel

Work may be conducted from the consultant’s location. The appointed consultant should be available for remote (e.g., Skype) discussions during (or close to) the office hours in Singapore, Islamabad, and Astana.

Note: If you request additional information, please write to procurement.info@undp.org. The team will provide necessary information within due date. However, any delay in providing such information will not be considered a reason for extending the submission date of your proposal. All/any query regarding the submission of the proposal may be sent prior to the deadline at the e-mail/address mentioned above.

For more detailed information please visit UNDP CO website:

http://www.pk.undp.org/content/pakistan/en/home/operations/procurement0/undp-ic-2016-151--international-expert-for-study-into-the-motiva.html

Please submit your Technical and Financial proposals to the following address: not later than June 27, 2016 at 1500 hrs. Pakistan standard time.

UNDP-IC-2016-151

UNDP Registry, Quotation/Bids/Proposals

United Nations Development Programme

Serena Business Complex, 2nd Floor, Khayaban-e-Suharwardy,

Islamabad, Pakistan

Tel: 051-8355600 Fax: 051-2600254-5

OR by email to bids.pk@undp.org no later than June 27, 2016 at 1500 hrs. Pakistan standard time. Please put UNDP-IC-2016-151 in the subject line.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP, and partner organizations;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability,

Functional /Technical Competencies:

Extensive knowledge of public administration reform, public sector capacity development, and/or public service motivation;
Up-to-date on developments in public administration reform or change management, public sector capacity development, and/or public service motivation in LIC and LMIC countries
Demonstrates strong analytical skills
Responds positively and in a timely manner to feedback;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Excellent time-management skills and adept at setting personal targets

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

At least a Master’s Degree or equivalent in Public Administration, Political and Social Sciences, Economics, International Development, Business, or related field.

Experience:

Minimum of 15 years of relevant experience inclusive of extensive national and international working experience in the development arena with a particular focus on public administration reform, public sector capacity development, and/or public service motivation;
Demonstrated experience in working with the public service in LIC and LMIC countries on issues of public administration reform or change management, public sector capacity development, and/or public service motivation is required;
Experience in developing and implementing research tools (in particular survey instruments), research report-writing, leading/managing knowledge product development and dissemination;
Experience in working with UNDP or other UN agencies is an added advantage.

Language:

Excellent written and oral English communications skills;
Knowledge of other languages desirable.

Other:

Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials. Payments will be made only upon confirmation by UNDP on delivering on the contract obligations in a satisfactory manner;
Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when traveling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org;
Qualified women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply;
Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process;
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.