Job: Board Operations Officer

Location: Washington, DC 
Deadline: Monday, 28 October 2013 

Description

Background / General description:

Established in 2002, the Global Partnership for Education ('Global Partnership' or GPE), formerly the Education for All Fast Track Initiative, has grown and evolved to become the premier partnership focused on basic education in developing countries. Its members include 59 of the world's poorest developing countries, over 30 bilateral, regional, and multilateral agencies; development banks; the private sector; civil society groups; and teachers organizations. The GPE Board of Directors, the Global Partnership's governing body, sets its policies and strategies and approves all funding.

The Global Partnership provides its developing country partners support to build and implement sound education plans. In this respect, GPE manages trust funds that have allocated approximately $ 3.1 billion since its inception. The Global Partnership aims to achieve Education for All by efficiently using international and national resources and matching donors' priorities with developing countries' own education goals and strategies.

The GPE Secretariat, which has approximately 60 staff, is hosted by the World Bank in Washington, DC. As a consequence of the Partnership taking a greater leadership role to achieve international development goals in education, the Secretariat is developing its capacity to support country level processes and meet expectations from GPE's stakeholders to demonstrate concrete results and outcomes as well as clear value for money.

The Board Operations Officer will report to the Senior Board Operations Officer. The position entails direct interaction with Board members, including the Chair, and other Secretariat team members. The position's overall focus is on enabling an effective and efficient business framework in support of the Board's oversight and decision making roles.

Note: If the selected candidate is a current Bank Group staff member with a Regular or Open-Ended appointment, s/he will retain his/her Regular or Open-Ended appointment. All others will be offered a 2 year term appointment.

Duties and Accountabilities:

The duties and responsibilities of the Board Operations Officer include the following:

• Drafts accurate notes and reports on items and issues that arise in the course of managing the Board business, including agendas, Chair and CEO/Head briefings and notes, and other written products as required.
• Prepares and reviews Board documents, and consults with originators and others as necessary in order to ensure content meets Board expectations, that recommendations (if any) are clear, and comply with Board policies and procedures.
• Helps to support operation of Board meetings or other Board sub -Committee meetings as appropriate to ensure

(i) agreed standard of meeting conduct,

(ii) clear and accurate recording of decisions,

(iii) adherence to procedures,

(iv) accurate and timely recording of requests by the Board or other Board sub-Committee, and inclusion of such requests in Board, sub-Committee and Secretariat work programs as appropriate. Coordinates with members of the Secretariat in the preparation and provision of documentation to the Board or other sub-Committees prior to meetings as needed.

In consultation with the Senior Board Operations Officer, advises Secretariat teams and other partners on interpretation of Board decisions.

In consultation with the Senior Board Operations Officer, advises on transparency and reputational risk issues; ensures that Board documents, decisions and policies are posted on GPE website.

Works effectively with other areas of the Secretariat and Partnership.

Selection Criteria:

• MA/MS degree or equivalent in a relevant field of study (law, public policy, economics or other related fields), with a minimum of five (5) years of experience. Eight (8) years of experience is preferred, including some experience in international development issues.
• Understanding of corporate governance, including institutional policies and operational processes and procedures; an interest in institutional and organizational issues, and demonstrated skill at handling complex, process-related work.
• Experience working with government and other partners, including bilateral donors, multilateral organizations, and NGOs.
• Direct experience working in international development accompanied by a solid understanding of international development policy.
• Demonstrated strength in oral and written communications, including ability to draft governance documents and to articulate ideas verbally in a clear and compelling way to audiences of varied levels.
• Strong diplomatic and people skills.
• Ability to maintain a sense of perspective when working under pressure, to remain calm in difficult and stressful situations.
• High level of integrity and track record in handling confidential matters.
• Highly attentive to details, ensuring accuracy of all documents and communications.

Competencies

Project Management - Understands and utilizes the basic concepts of project management, as they relate to the implementation of a project.

Knowledge and Experience in Development Arena - Understands policy making process; distills operationally relevant recommendations/lessons for clients.

Client Orientation - Takes personal responsibility and accountability for timely response to client queries, requests or needs, working to remove obstacles that may impede execution or overall success.

Drive for Results - Takes personal ownership and accountability to meet deadlines and achieve agreed-upon results, and has the personal organization to do so.

Teamwork (Collaboration) and Inclusion - Collaborates with other team members and contributes productively to the team's work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view.

Knowledge, Learning and Communication - Actively seeks knowledge needed to complete assignments and shares knowledge with others, communicating and presenting information in a clear and organized manner.

Business Judgment and Analytical Decision Making - Analyzes facts and data to support sound, logical decisions regarding own and others' work.

Information on the Global Partnership for Education can be found at: www.globalpartnership.org

Note: Only applicants selected for interviews will be contacted.

The World Bank Group is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

More Info and Application