Org. Setting and Reporting

This position is located in the Executive Office of the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM), New York. Administrative Assistant will report to a designated Officer or Senior HR Partner.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Administrative Assistant will be responsible for the following duties:

Human Resources Management

• Participates in recruitment and placement exercises; including screening applications, preparing candidate profiles, supporting interviews
• Reviews, processes and follows-up on actions related to the administration of the Executive Office’s activities, e.g. recruitment of staff and consultants, placement, promotion, relocation, performance appraisal, support job classification reviews, separation of staff members, training, development of business process analyses and standard operating procedures, etc. whilst ensuring consistency in the application of UN rules and procedures
• Responds to enquiries and provide information and policy advice to staff regarding HR and administrative policies such as conditions of service, duties and responsibilities, and entitlements under the Staff Rules and Regulations
• Monitors and maintains staffing tables and performs related actions in Umoja Organizational Management
• Prepares and processes Umoja travel requests for certification, including processing of exceptional cases
• Prepares periodic reports and relevant statistical data/charts e.g. Compensatory Time Off (CTO) or overtime, broadcast email list, telephone directory
• Undertakes research on a range of HR-related issues and assist in the preparation of notes/reports
• Reviews, monitors and updates data of staff in Umoja concerning attendance/absence records
• Provides guidance and organize training on time-related issues and entitlements to staff and counterparts in client offices
• Liaises with Division of Health-Care Management and Occupational Safety and Health (DHMOSH), Time Managers and Senior Time Administrators on relevant matters
• Provides input and feedback for monthly management reports

General Administration

• Monitors status of expenditures.
• Reviews status of relevant expenditures and compares with approved budget.
• Reviews requisitions for goods and services to ensure (a) correct objects of expenditure have been charged and (b) availability of funds.
• Prepares statistical tables and standard financial reports.
• Prepares, processes and follows-up on administrative arrangements and forms related to the official travel of staff.
• Reviews and process payment to vendors and individual contractors for services.

Contract Administration

• Assists with day-to-day administration of contracts for contractors for outsourced services.
• Evaluate requests of contractors and conducts onboarding procedures
• Maintain rosters of contractual vendors and contractors.
• Provides estimates for budget proposals.
• Monitors not to exceed (NTE) ceilings for vendor contracts and monitor financial reports.
• Reviews invoices and process actions in Umoja for payment for vendors and CICs.
• Provides guidance to client offices on language contractors relating to procedures and processes.
• Audits the contractors’ invoices against the goods and services provided and approved by the UN.
• Reviews contracts, verifies accuracy and resolves discrepancies in line with rules and guidelines.
• Ensures contractor compliance with quality assurance requirements.
• Processes the payment of contractors’ invoices and monitor payments.
• Prepares and processes all UN forms and permissions for contractual and work Unit, Section or Service UN staff, including: UN grounds passes, property passes, UN parking permits, swipe-card access and door keys.

Data analysis

• Acquires data from primary or secondary data sources and maintain databases.
• Assists with the preparation of financial reports and analysis.
• Assists with the preparation of reports that provide accurate and timely financial and statistical information.
• Assembles spreadsheets and draw charts and graphs used to illustrate reports.

Other duties:

• Drafts routine correspondence.
• Maintains electronic files of rules, regulations, administrative instructions and other related documentation.
• Performs any other duties as required.

Competencies

• PROFESSIONALISM: Ability to perform a broad range of administrative functions, e.g., human resources, database management, etc. Ability to explore and extrapolate data retrieved from multiple sources and demonstrate capability to analyse and provide inferences; Ability to manage large staffing tables; Ability to apply knowledge of various administrative, financial and human resources rules and regulations in work situations. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work.

• TEAMWORK: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

• CLIENT ORIENTATION: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent.

Work Experience

A minimum of five years of experience in human resources or administration is required.

Experience in working with ERP systems like SAP Umoja or similar is required.

Experience in acquiring data from a variety of data sources and maintaining databases is desirable.

Experience in contract administration is desirable.

Experience in working in an international organization is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is desirable.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

This position is subject to local recruitment pursuant to staff rule 4.4 of the United Nations Staff Rules. Applicants for positions in the General Service and related categories must be authorized to work for the United Nations in the duty station where the position is located. Eligible applicants selected from outside the duty station are responsible for any expenses in connection with their relocation to the duty station. Staff members subject to local recruitment are not eligible for allowances or benefits exclusively applicable to international recruitment.

Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.

Passing the Global General Service Test (GGST) is a prerequisite for recruitment consideration in the General Services and related categories in the United Nations Secretariat. Applicants who have not passed the GGST at the time of application may be invited for the test after submitting an application. Having passed the Administrative Support Assessment Test in English at the United Nations Headquarters, Economic Commission for Africa, Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, United Nations Office at Geneva, United Nations Office at Vienna, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda or International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia; may be accepted in lieu of the GGST.

Applicants, who successfully go through a competitive recruitment process and are recommended for selection and/or inclusion in the roster of pre-approved candidates for subsequent job openings at the same level and with similar functions, may have their application information and roster status shared with other UN Organizations. Such applicants may be contacted by other UN Organizations for similar job openings, subject to the confirmation of their interest. Placement on the roster is no guarantee of a future selection.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.