Job: Physical Infrastructure Assessment Team Leader - UNOPS Rapid Response Roster

Location: Multiple 
Deadline: Wednesday, 23 October 2013 

Description

Vacancy code VA/2013/B0010/4042 Position title Physical Infrastructure Assessment Team Leader – UNOPS Rapid Response Roster, Multiple positions Level ICS-11 Department/office Sustainable Infrastructure Duty station Multiple Contract type International ICA Contract level IICA-3 Duration between 2 weeks and 4 months Application period 07-Oct-2013 to 23-Oct-2013 Print United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity Background Information - UNOPS

The pool of experts is used as a surge capacity for short term rapid deployments (between 2 weeks and 4 months). UNOPS Rapid Response provides a capacity of specialized humanitarian personnel and trained and prepared engineers to conduct infrastructure assessments in the context of conflict, disaster and preparedness. One of the objectives of UNOPS Rapid Response is to rapidly deploy personnel to the field. To accomplish this, a pool of experts for the above mentioned position has been established. Once approved as a member of a pool, candidates remain members for a three year period, after which they will be re-assessed should they wish to remain part of the pool.

The mission of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is to expand the capacity of the UN system and its partners to implement peace-building, humanitarian and development operations that matter for people in need. In line with its mandate UNOPS acts as a central resource for the United Nations system in procurement and contracts management as well as in civil works and physical infrastructure development, including the related capacity development activities. UNOPS has significant experience in post-conflict, post-disaster and geographically difficult environments and in the field of emergency reconstruction of disaster stricken communities. UNOPS has a solid track record of providing effective disaster response operations and continues to be called upon to conduct infrastructure assessments in both conflict and disaster contexts.

Functional Responsibilities

The rapid response Team Leader holds a key role and responsibility within the context of a UNOPS response mission. The primary role of the Team Leader is the systematic capture of relevant data in regards to the physical infrastructure sector, analysis of this data within the mission context; and to provide a clear output in conclusion. Using UNOPS infrastructure assessment methodology, the team leader is responsible to select and adapt a systematic infrastructure assessment methodology to both the mission context and resources available to the mission. The infrastructure assessment team leader is responsible for the coordination, allocation of tasks and day-to-day operations of the designated infrastructure assessment team and monitors and reports on progress. The team leader will provide all coordination aspects of technical site assessments: progress and implementation, identify operational problems and assists in resolving them by taking appropriate action, draft required correspondence to parties concerned and prepare reports. It is understood that the Team Leader can be working in complex and challenging environments with limited resources. The Team Leader will manage the assessment objective(s) while coordinating and working in partnerships with mission stakeholders and organisational structures to the best interests of the mission. It is the Team Leader's responsibility to deliver on time and on budget the assessment scope designated. The team leader shall perform the following specific duties:

• Mission Implementation Select and adapt a systematic physical infrastructure assessment methodology;
• Assist with developing the plan of action for implementing infrastructure assessments;
• Manage, coordinate and monitor activities of team members, in coordination with management and other team leaders (if any);
• Establish and manage a quality assurance and control mechanism within the assessment process
• Ensure information collected from technical assessments by the teams under his/ her supervision meets quality requirements and carry out improvements in the assessment methodology if necessary;
• If required, facilitate the field-level deployment of national infrastructure assessment staff and monitor activities to ensure quality control and adherence to the mission implementation timeframe;
• Organize materials and tools required for field assessments; Notify on anticipated delays or any mission related issues;
• General operations troubleshooting; Responsible for timely delivery of the expected outputs as required by clients and other stakeholders Assist in any relevant administrative and operational efforts of the unit as required; Assist in improving infrastructure assessment and data collection methodologies;
• Team Management Lead, support and motivate the infrastructure assessment team(s);
• Ensure that team members' roles and responsibilities are clearly defined;
• Manage the training for UNOPS personnel and implementing partners on the established UNOPS infrastructure assessment methodology if required;
• Provide technical knowledge, capacity building and training of team members as required;
• Oversee the implementation of security procedures in conformity with established UN Security rules and regulations;
• Coordination and Liaison Ensure strong coordination, liaison and representation in relevant fora;
• Communicate with the national and local authorities for liaison and coordination purposes;
• Coordinate and maintain close contact with relevant partners in the missions sector;
• Coordinate and liaise with other UNOPS field based units/implementation teams (if any) to ensure operational support and timely adjustment of mission scope;
• Liaise and build relationships with United Nations (UN) agencies and international non-governmental organizations (I/NGOs) for the purposes of facilitating activities and improving the quality and relevance of information analysis; Monitoring and Reporting Provide relevant reporting to management;
• Prepare reports to be shared in the different relevant clusters, technical working groups and other humanitarian coordinating bodies;
• Notify management on any shortfalls;
• On time delivery of assessments and accurate recommendations to partners;
• On time delivery of partners requirements and queries;
• Assist in assessing different phases of implementation and share lessons learned with the assessment team and management;
• General Duties Stay abreast of new trends and innovations in the field of physical infrastructure assessments; Contribute to a Lessons Learned Report at the end of the assessment mission Any other related duties as may be assigned;

Competencies

Key Competencies

• Ability to work under extreme pressure, on occasion in a highly stressful environment (e.g. civil strife, natural hazards and humanitarian crisis);
• Ability to work in a team and to build and sustain effective work relationship with subordinates and peers to achieve organizational goals;
• Ability to interact, establish and maintain effective working relationships with people in a multicultural and multi-ethnic environment, with sensitivity and respect for diversity;
• High level of professionalism and ability to work independently, under pressure and to adhere to strict deadlines;
• Excellent analytical, organizational, data management and decision making skills;
• Self-motivated, ability to take ownership of actions, and provide flexible and effective solutions to challenging situations;
• Strong skills in team leadership, planning, and problem solving;
• Comfortable taking decisions with confidence with limited information;

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education Advanced University Degree in Engineering or other relevant discipline.

A Bachelor's degree in combination with relevant years of experience may be accepted in lieu of a master's degree.

Work Experience

• A minimum of 7 years relevant professional experience specifically in the field of team leadership, engineering and infrastructure related activities , with at least 2 years (preferably 3 years or more) of experience with disaster management, humanitarian emergency related team management and cluster coordination systems;
• Experience in liaising with government officials, representatives of international and national organizations, private sector companies and other stakeholders;
• Previous experience in conducting physical infrastructure assessments in rapid response settings is highly desirable.
• Knowledge of UN core values, rules and regulations an asset;
• Strong understanding of the humanitarian emergency operating context, including Sphere, the humanitarian system, donors, security, and project/program management
• Good technical background in any construction related field an asset;
• Strong computer skills, including excellent database and information management ability;

Language

Fluency in spoken and written English is a requirement.

Knowledge of additional UN languages is an asset;

Contract type, level and duration

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (Retainer) Contract level:I-ICA 3 Contract duration: Depending on the mission, but between 2 weeks and 4 months. The fee will be based on a daily/monthly rate to be negotiated, depending on experience and the length and complexity of the mission. For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link: http://www.unops.org/ENGLISH/WHOWENEED/CONTRACT-TYPES/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements-ICAs.aspx

Additional Considerations

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time (CET)
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• For staff positions UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

More Info and Application