Job: IC FOR THE REVIEW OF INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANCIES (IC) IN THE UNDP

Location :

New York, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Application Deadline :

08-Nov-13

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Post Level :

International Consultant

Languages Required :

English  

Starting Date :
(date when the selected candidate is expected to start)

02-Dec-2013

Duration of Initial Contract :

3-4 months

Expected Duration of Assignment :

3-4 months

Background

Introduction

UNDP hires more than 25,000 consultants annually. UNDP has a number of non-staff contract modalities and among them is the Individual Contract (IC) modality use for engagement of consultants.
As a general policy, the Individual Contract modality is used for the acquisition of services of an individual to perform time-bound and non-staff tasks aimed at delivering clear and quantifiable outputs which must be clearly identified in the contract and directly linked to payment.

Scope

The objective of this study is to provide an assessment of the use of consultants in UNDP, including relevant policies, regulation and contractual practices, as well as associated processes. The assignment seeks to improve efficiency and effectiveness of the use of individual consultancies in UNDP.

The study will include quantitative and qualitative information of consultants in UNDP and will highlight trends and main practices of selecting consultants by other UN organizations and IFIs. It will identify and help to disseminate best practices providing recommendations for improvement.

Duties and Responsibilities

Deliverables

UN system-wide and IFI main trends in engaging consultants specially in the areas of when to use/ definition, criteria to apply in the selection, selection process, remunerations mechanisms, contact durations, oversight mechanisms and entitlement provided (e.g. health insurance, paid leave, others). The assessment (no longer than 2 to 4 pages) expects to provide a high level overview of the approach that other agencies are taking in dealing with consultants and will be based on documentation review of agencies policies, manuals and regulations.

UNDP analysis will include a quantitative and qualitative analysis replying (among others) to the following questions:

• Are the types/ categories of consultants that UNDP recognizes aligned to the organizational needs?
• Is the definition and scope of use of IC contract clear?
• Is IC contract limited to the selection of consultants?
• If no, what are the main reasons for utilizing IC contracts for other purposes?
• Is there clarify in the use of individual consultants and other non-staff personnel positions such as service contract (SC) to perform certain project functions?
• Does UNDP have the right tools to engage non-staff?
•  Is there a clear and rational distinction between staff and non-staff tasks/ works?
• What are most useful areas/ works that you would like to use ICs for?
• Is the current UNDP policy for the selection of IC optimal? Where would you improve it? How and why?

Definition
Duration
Selection process
Remuneration mechanisms
Entitlements

• Are there sufficient guidelines, tools and policies to manage IC contracts?

Recommendations and final report including (but not limited) to suggestions to increase efficiency and effectiveness in engaging IC providing a cost-benefit analysis and risk identification/ mitigation for each option.

Methodology

The methodology will be a mix method combining quantitative and qualitative approaches for data collection and analysis including but not limited to;

• Desk review of major policy documents of UNDP and other UN agencies and IFIs including the World Bank
• Use of questionnaires with a view of obtaining relevant consistent and comparable data of a number of UNDP offices and field operations;
• Interviews to be held with relevant stakeholders;
• Review of selected IC cases to analyze implementation practices.

Time frame: the work is expected to be conducted in a 3 -4 months period

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent analytical and problem solving capabilities;
• Excellent communication skills;
• Ability to meet deadlines.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree in social and economic fields including public administration, economics, human resources or any other relevant field to the scope of the assignment.

Experience:

• Minimum 10 years of experience in the area of management, procurement, human resources with progressive experience;
• The candidates are expected to have attained a wide experience in the area of consultancy management in general with experiences ranging from public sector, multilateral organizations and private sector;
• A solid experience in planning and strategic planning providing evidence-based policy advice;
• Practical experience in organization management, strategic planning of associations and public organizations at the national, regional and multilateral level;
• Experience in formulating development strategies and policies. 

Language:

• Proven ability to write and communicate clearly in English is required.

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

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

Proposal:

• (i) Explaining why they are the most suitable for the work (maximum 1 page);
• (ii) Provide a brief methodology on how they will approach and conduct the work (maximum 2 pages).

Financial proposal:

• Financial proposal will only be required to candidates accessing to the interview round – Step 2 of the evaluation processes.

Personal CV including past experience in similar projects and at least 3 references

Financial Proposal:

• Lump sum contracts

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and payment terms around specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables (i.e. whether payments fall in installments or upon completion of the entire contract). Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR.  In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal will include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (including travel, per diems, and number of anticipated working days).

Travel: 
All envisaged travel costs must be included in the financial proposal. This includes all travel to join duty station/repatriation travel.  In general, UNDP will 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.

In the case of unforeseeable travel, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Evaluation

Step 1 – Candidates Screening
 
Based on the documentation required under section 4 (Proposal and CV) candidates will be screened. Candidates identified as most suitable for the assignment based on the established criteria and TOR will be invited to an interview and requested to submit a financial proposal.
 
Step 2 – Interview and cumulative analysis evaluation 
 
Cumulative analysis 
When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• a) responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• b) Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical (as a result of the interview) and financial criteria specific to the solicitation;
• Technical Criteria weight; 70%;
• Financial Criteria weight; 30%.

Inputs: 

Current Individual Consultant Policies are available on UNDP Extranet

https://info.undp.org/global/popp/cap/Pages/mgmt-ic.aspx

Any request for clarification must be sent in writing, or by standard electronic communication to the address or e-mail indicated above. UNDP will respond in writing or by standard electronic mail and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all consultants.

Click here for important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders).

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.

More Info and Application