Background

The Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy (BERA) leads and supports the organization in cultivating, building and nurturing strategic relationships and alliances that are essential for advancing and successfully achieving the mission of UNDP. Within BERA, the Communications Group leads and manages external communications through strategy, media, digital communications, marketing, branding and global storytelling. The Digital Communications team within the Communications Group is responsible for implementing digital communications globally through UNDP’s corporate websites, specialized storytelling platforms, social media channels and partnerships.  The Digital Communications team produces creative and strategic digital experiences to engage with global audiences and position UNDP as a global leader in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Digital Operations Associate is part of the Digital Communications team. Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Head of Digital Communications, s/he will coordinate the operational function of UNDP’s Digital Communications team, which includes fiscal coordination, procurement, recruitment, vendor management and administrative activities.  Occasionally, the Associate will be asked to support digital communications personnel with tasks such as drafting a web story, preparing social media posts and researching photos.

Duties and Responsibilities

Implementation of operational workflows within the digital communications team

  • Work with digital communications manager and operational specialists throughout UNDP to ensure efficient application of standard operating procedures
  • Working with digital communications team, complete operational tasks in timely and proper manner
  • Maintain and utilize office systems and productivity tools while staying up-to-date with new enhancements, upgrades and products to recommend improvements in operational coordination

Financial coordination

  • Diligently track expenses and revenues of the digital communications team
  • Reconcile team’s financial information with UNDP’s accounting system
  • Execute transactions including receivables and payables
  • Serve as focal point for usage of credit card and tracking of all requests
  • Run regular financial reports for management

Procurement and coordination of vendors

  • Work with procurement unit to follow standard operating procedures in selecting and contracting vendors
  • Work with digital communications team in obtaining online services, products and licenses
  • Organize and track procurement records and contracts
  • Maintain a schedule of renewals and expirations of services with the goal of avoiding service disruptions

Execution of various operational duties, enabling digital communications team to function smoothly

  • Support recruitment and onboarding processes for personnel including interns
  • Track assignments of workstations and equipment
  • Update email groups and digital accounts
  • Coordinate all technical aspects of meetings, such as reservations of appropriate rooms and testing and running of equipment and software
  • Serve as team’s focal point for purchases including office supplies and equipment

Occasional support of digital communications to external audiences

  • Input drafts of stories and blogs into the web content management system (CMS) for online publishing
  • Research photos and images for upcoming stories or social media posts
  • Monitoring social media activities on UNDP corporate accounts
  • Assist with setting up of publishing schedule on social media platforms

Perform other related tasks as needed

Competencies

Core Competencies:

  • Innovation
    • Ability to make new and useful ideas work.
  • Leadership
    • Ability to persuade others to follow.
  • People Management
    • Ability to improve performance and satisfaction.
  • Communication
    • Ability to listen, adapt, persuade and transform.
  • Delivery
    • Ability to get things done.
    • Ability to multi-task.
    • Ability to prioritize.

Technical/Functional – Primary:

  • Operations
    • Understanding of core operational functions including procurement, recruitment, resource management
  • Digital Productivity Tools
    • Ability to learn and use various software for the functioning of a digital office
  • Financial Coordination
    • Understanding of accounting principles and systems
  • Digital literacy
    • Understanding of concepts and terms related to digital communications

Technical/Functional – Secondary:

  • Knowledge Management
    • Ability to efficiently handle and share information and knowledge
  • Managing Complexity
    • Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities
  • Writing/Editing
    • Ability to communicate clearly, accurately and succinctly through written English

Ability to edit other people’s written pieces

Required Skills and Experience

Academic qualifications:

  • Completion of Secondary Education is required. A University Degree in Communications, Economics, Political Sciences and/or Social Sciences would be desirable.

Experience

  • Minimum of 6 years of relevant experience including financial operations, procurement, recruitment, at the national or international level is required;
  • Must have at least 1 year of experience in budgeting or financial management is required
  • Excellent administrative and computer skills, including Microsoft Office, and knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages is desirable;
  • Knowledge of Atlas or similar ERP system is desirable;
  • Previous experience in digital communications context is desirable;
  • Previous experience with a multilateral or international organization is desirable.

Language:

  • Excellent written and spoken English required.

Application Procedure

The application package containing the following (to be uploaded as one file):

  • A cover letter with a brief description of why the Offer considers her/himself the most suitable for the assignment;
  • Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects and specifying the relevant assignment period (from/to), as well as the email and telephone contacts of at least three (3) professional references

Note: The above documents need to be scanned in one file and uploaded to the online application as one document.

Shortlisted candidates (ONLY) will be requested to submit a Financial Proposal.

  • The financial proposal should specify an all-inclusive daily fee (based on a 7 hour working day - lunch time is not included - and estimated 21.75 days per month).
  • The financial proposal must be all-inclusive and take into account various expenses that will be incurred during the contract, including: the daily professional fee; (excluding mission travel); living allowances at the duty station; communications, utilities and consumables; life, health and any other insurance; risks and inconveniences related to work under hardship and hazardous conditions (e.g., personal security needs, etc.), when applicable; and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services under the contract.
  • In the case of unforeseeable travel requested by UNDP, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between UNDP and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed. In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.
  • If the Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNDP under a Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNDP.

The Financial Proposal is to be emailed as per the instruction in the separate email that will be sent to shortlisted candidates.

Evaluation process

Applicants are reviewed based on Required Skills and Experience stated above and based on the technical evaluation criteria outlined below.  Applicants will be evaluated based on cumulative scoring.  When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

  • Being responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
  • Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation where technical criteria weighs 70% and Financial criteria/ Proposal weighs 30%.

Technical evaluation - Total 70% (70 points):

  • Criteria 1. Demonstrated, relevant experience in operational functions (e.g. financial, procurement, recruitment). Weight = 20%;
  • Criteria 2.  Demonstrated experience using digital productivity tools for operational coordination.  Weight = 15 %;
  • Criteria 3. Demonstrated professional experience in digital communications office. Weight = 10 %;
  • Criteria 4. Demonstrated professional experience in the UN system or similar global organizations. Weight = 5 %; and

  • Criteria 5. Interview. Weight = 20 %.

Having reviewed applications received, UNDP will invite the top three/four candidates who score at least 35 points in the desk review for interview. Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (49 points) of the maximum obtainable points for the technical criteria (70 points) shall be considered for the financial evaluation.

Financial evaluation - Total 30% (30 points)

The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:

  • p = y (µ/z), where
  • p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated
  • y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal
  • µ = price of the lowest priced proposal
  • z = price of the proposal being evaluated

Contract Award

Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the combined score of Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered technically qualified and will be offered to enter into contract with UNDP.

Institutional arrangement

The consultant will work under the guidance and direct supervision of Head of Digital Communications, BERA and will be responsible for the fulfilment of the deliverables as specified above.

No travel is envisaged for this assignment.

Payment modality

  • Payment to the Individual Contractor will be made based on the actual number of days worked, deliverables accepted and upon certification of satisfactory completion by the manager.
  • The work week will be based on 35 hours, i.e. on a 7 hour working day, 3. In New York, the normal working hours are from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm, Monday through Friday, with a break of one hour for lunch. During the period when the General Assembly is in session (1 October to 31 December), the working hours are from 9:30 am to 6:00 pm.

Annexes (click on the hyperlink to access the documents):

Any request for clarification must be sent by email to cpu.bids@undp.org 

The UNDP Central Procurement Unit will respond by email and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all applicants.