Jordan Director of UNRWA Operations

UNITED NATIONS RELIEF AND WORKS AGENCY FOR PALESTINE REFUGEES IN THE NEAR EAST UNRWA

UNRWA is the United Nations agency responsible for the protection, care and human development of a population of some 5 million Palestine refugees living in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and the Syrian Arab Republic. UNRWA is committed to assisting Palestine refugees in maintaining a decent standard of living, acquiring appropriate knowledge and skills, enjoying the fullest possible extent of human rights, and leading a long and healthy life. UNRWA is the largest UN operation in the Middle East with more than 29,000 staff. Most of these staff are refugees themselves, working directly to benefit their communities - as teachers, doctors, nurses or social workers. For its international team, UNRWA is seeking to employ a qualified:

Director of UNRWA Operations, Jordan

Vacancy Announcement Number 11-FO-JO-62 Grade D-1 Deadline for Applications 31 January 2012 Duty Station Amman

The Director of UNRWA Operations acts as UNRWA’s representative in Jordan where s/he directs UNRWA’s programmes, operations and resources including education, health, relief and social services, and microfinance rendered for a population of approximately 2 million registered Palestine refugees. S/he is also responsible for all programme support functions (finance, human resources, procurement & logistics, construction & engineering, general administration and public information). The Jordan Field Office employs 7,000 staff and has an annual operational budget of approximately 100 million dollars. Under the overall direction of the Commissioner-General the Director will plan, manage and direct all aspects of UNRWA’s activities in Jordan characterized by a large and complex refugee population which can be affected by regional political and security volatility and resultant insecurity affecting the refugee population and the Agency’s operational environment at large.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities • Manage the health, education, and relief and social services, and microfinance programmes through subordinate staff by: a) Continuously assessing the service needs of the Agency’s refugee beneficiaries within the Agency’s mandate and operational plans, regular adjustment of programme objectives and allocation of resources to meet objectives; b) Monitoring the implementation of, evaluating and taking corrective action on, programmes and projects administered by the Agency and reporting thereon.

• Promote Agency objectives and refugee services by: a) Establishing and maintaining fruitful and conducive relations with the host government, diplomatic missions, other UN Agencies, NGOs and the media; b) Negotiating with the host government and donors on assistance to improve refugees living conditions; c) Briefing officials of donor governments, embassies, local government, NGOs and UN agencies on UNRWA’s programmes and the refugee situation; d) Undertaking a variety of speaking engagements and public appearances with a view to advocating for UNRWA’s programmes and support for the needs of Palestine refugees; e) Coordinating, at the country level, fundraising, public information and public relations activities and following up on fundraising initiatives.

• Efficiently manage the human and financial resources of UNRWA in Jordan: a) Planning and directing all support activities and staff; b) Ensuring efficient application of Agency policies, directives and procedures; c)Motivating, coaching and developing staff, ensuring a safe and supportive work environment for staff at all levels and both genders and ensuring the effective management of staff performance; d) Overseeing the preparation of field budgets and work plans; e) Maintaining continuous and constructive dialogue with staff representatives/staff unions.

• As a member of the Agency’s senior management, act as adviser to the Commissioner-General and contribute to Agency-wide policy, planning work and related discussions on political, social and economic developments in the host country and in UNRWA’s area of operations, and their impact on Agency policies and programmes.

Essential Professional Knowledge and Experience • An advanced university degree in political science, social science, public or business administration, or international relations, supplemented by in-depth knowledge of Middle East geo-political realities and their socio-cultural implications; • At least 15 years of increasingly responsible professional and managerial experience of which at least 10 years should have been in a large governmental or international agency dealing with similar programmes to UNRWA’s, and five years in a senior position. The incumbent must have a high level of skill in management of broad programmes, political decision making and negotiating, as well as a demonstrated tolerance to frequently changing and highly charged situations; • Excellent command of written and spoken English.

Essential Competencies • Professionalism: 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; • Leadership: Strong managerial/leadership skills; demonstrated flexibility in leadership by performing and/or overseeing the analysis of complex human resources, financial, administrative or management policy and programme issues; proven record of building and managing teams and creating an enabling environment, including the ability to effectively lead, supervise, mentor, develop and evaluate staff; tact in negotiating skills; sound judgment and decision-making skills; demonstrated ability to provide leadership and commitment to including a gender dimension in all programme and project activities and to gender balance in staffing; • Planning and Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently; • Managing Performance: Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority; makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member; accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches task to skills; monitors progress against milestones and deadlines; regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff; encourages measured risk-taking and supports creativity and initiative; actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff; appraises performance fairly; • Vision: Identifies strategic issues, opportunities and risks; clearly communicates links between the Organization’s strategy and the work unit’s goals; generates and communicates broad and compelling organizational direction, inspiring others to pursue that same direction; conveys enthusiasm about future possibilities; • Communications: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed; • Technology Awareness: Keeps abreast of available technology; understands applicability and limitations of technology to the work of the office; actively seeks to apply technology to appropriate tasks; shows willingness to learn new technology.

Desirable Qualifications • Knowledge of UNRWA operations and services; • Knowledge of Middle Eastern culture and business practice; • Knowledge of other UN languages, in particular Arabic and French are desirable for dealing with host government/authority officials and refugee population representatives; • Knowledge of other languages is an asset for dealing with delegations from donor countries.

Additional Information The incumbent may be required to work beyond normal working hours and to travel frequently throughout the Agency's area of operations in the Middle East.

Conditions of Service
UNRWA offers an attractive compensation package including annual salary starting at $103,070 net tax free with dependants ($95,270 without dependants), plus post adjustment of 42.7% (subject to change without notice). Other benefits, subject to eligibility, include education grant, dependency allowance, home leave, pension fund, health insurance and 6 weeks annual leave. All UNRWA duty stations (with the exception of Gaza) are family duty stations. Initial contract is for one year, with the possibility of further extensions subject to the availability of funds and the continuing need for the post.

How to Apply To start the application process, applicants are required to register at http://jobs.unrwa.org by creating a personal profile and completing UNRWA Personal History Form. Please note that UNRWA only accepts degrees from accredited educational institutions. Only applications received through http://jobs.unrwa.org will be considered. Due to the large number of applications received for UNRWA vacancies, we are only able to contact applicants short-listed for interview.

UNRWA does not charge a fee at any stage in the recruitment process.

General Information UNRWA encourages applications from qualified and experienced women.

UNRWA welcomes applications from qualified candidates with disabilities.

UNRWA is a United Nations organization whose staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of integrity, neutrality and impartiality. This includes respect for human rights, for diversity, and for non-violent means of dealing with all kinds of conflict. UNRWA staff are expected to uphold these values at all times, both at work and outside. Only persons who fully and unconditionally commit to these values should consider applying for UNRWA jobs. UNRWA is a non-smoking work environment.

How to apply:

How to Apply To start the application process, applicants are required to register at http://jobs.unrwa.org by creating a personal profile and completing UNRWA Personal History Form. Please note that UNRWA only accepts degrees from accredited educational institutions. Only applications received through http://jobs.unrwa.org will be considered. Due to the large number of applications received for UNRWA vacancies, we are only able to contact applicants short-listed for interview.

UNRWA does not charge a fee at any stage in the recruitment process.