Back Senior Project Manager

Background Information - Job-specific

Water, Environment & Climate (WEC)

UNOPS Water, Environment & Climate (WEC) supports the design and management of multi-stakeholder initiatives by providing services in financial and grant management, procurement, human resources, and project management. The cluster has supported projects in the areas of water resource management, climate change adaptation, mitigation and transparency, energy access and distribution and environmental conservation under the Paris Agreement. The WEC has also supported operations and financial management services, in Vienna, the rest of the ECR region and beyond.The main partners include UN agencies such as UNEP and UNDP, bilateral donors (Nordic countries, Germany and Italy), the Green Climate Fund and several NGOs (such as CIFF and CWF).

Gulf of Mexico Project

The GoM is the ninth largest body of water in the world and the largest semi-enclosed coastal sea in the Western Atlantic.Its eastern, northern, and north-western shores span 2,700 km and touch on five U.S. states (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas); south-western and southern shores span 2,243 km and lie along five Mexican states (Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatan, and the northernmost tip of Quintana Roo). On its southeast quadrant the Gulf is bordered by Cuba.The distinctive geographic and biophysical characteristics of the Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem (GoM-LME) makes it an important global reservoir of biodiversity and one of the most productive of the 66 LMEs in the world. The GoM-LME provides economic wealth, products, food, services, cultural heritage, and energy directly to the countries that share it and contributes to the oceanic biodiversity as a whole. The GoM currently supports approximately 55 million people, 40 in U.S. coastal states and 15 in Mexican ones. Of the numerous rivers draining into the GoM, the Mississippi and Rio Grande rivers in the northern GoM, the Grijalva and Usumacinta rivers in the southern Gulf are the most notable. The GoM-LME is a major asset to its coastal countries in terms of fisheries and seafood processing, tourism, agriculture, oil infrastructure, trade, and shipping.

The UNEP/GEF Project “Implementation of the Strategic Action Program of the Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem” (GEF ID 6952; 2020-2024 – GoM SAP Implementation Project) is a 4-year project specifically aimed at facilitating the implementation of the Mexico/U.S. endorsed Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA – 2011) and Strategic Action Plan (SAP – 2013) for the integrated management of the GoM-LME.

Goal: the goal of the project is to address the three main challenges identified by the SAP, i.e., controlling and reducing pollution; recovering living marine resources; and rehabilitating marine and coastal ecosystems. This will result in improved water quality, rehabilitation of the coastal and marine ecosystems, and avoid depletion of marine resources in the Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem (GoM-LME).

Objective: The project is specifically aimed at facilitating the implementation of the Mexico/U.S. endorsed Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA – 2011) and Strategic Action Plan (SAP – 2013) for the integrated management of the GoM-LME. The Project will achieve this by prioritizing the implementation of coordinated and integrated sustainable ecosystem-based management approaches (EBM) to address the transboundary concerns of countries bordering the GoM. It involves actions around the following four components:

Component 1: Improve water quality

Component 2: Avoid depletion and recover living marine resources (LMR - Fish and shellfish)

Component 3: Conserve and restore the quality of coastal and marine ecosystems through community involvement and enhanced bilateral cooperation

Component 4: Monitoring, Evaluation and, Knowledge Management

The Senior Project Manager is responsible for managing all aspects of the project life cycle as captured in the CEO Endorsement package including the Project Document and UNEP-UNOPS Legal Agreement, in line with UNOPS project management standards and UNEP’s technical requirements.

Therefore, under the direct supervision of UNOPS, and technical guidance of UNEP, the incumbent will be responsible for ensuring that the project delivers the required outputs in a timely manner and on budget, in close coordination with the relevant stakeholders and partners. The incumbent is expected to review and update the work plan for effective implementation of the project, work with stakeholders and partners to ensure efficient project execution, conduct monitoring and evaluation of project activities, and facilitate quarterly reviews and reporting until project closure.

Functional Responsibilities

Senior Project Manager directly impacts on achievement of the Gulf of Mexico project results by adhering to project management methods and strategies, reducing risks, cutting costs and improving success rates. This consequently reinforces the visibility and image of UNOPS as an effective service provider in project services and management and strengthens its competitive position as a partner of choice in sustainable development and project services.

1. Project Delivery and Performance:

Plan and manage the financial aspects of the project’s delivery, including coordinating monitoring of the project’s co-financing.

Ensure that the project is managed and implemented as per UNOPS’s project management standards and requirements, and using its relevant systems and templates, including inter alia creation of a detailed project work plan, regular monitoring of progress, and reporting of achievements and challenges.

Embed sustainability criteria, including social and gender inclusion, environmental and economic aspects into project life span.

Provide financial oversight of budget allocations and expenditures, and preparation of regular financial reports (for the funds held by UNOPS) for UN Environment, in line with the terms of the project agreement, and facilitation of monitoring and reporting of funds held and managed by other project stakeholders.

Prepare quarterly reports to UNEP, and annual financial plans and reports for consideration by the Steering Committee.

In line with UNOPS requirements, preparation of agreements with national executing agencies in the six implementation countries.

Lead the recruitment and/or procurement of goods and services with the project team and in coordination with relevant UNOPS units, and management and oversight of relevant vendors.

Support countries with the formulation of activities in support of SAP implementation, and conduct of assessments and consultations to secure additional public and private funding for relevant activities.

Establish and manage regular communications with all co-financing/executing agencies to ensure the successful project delivery. 2. Management of Substantive Activities:

Develop and oversee detailed annual work plans and budgets in line with UNOPS requirements for endorsement by the Steering Committee.

Facilitate identification of outputs and activities for national implementation, and lead the establishment of project support agreements and other contracts with implementation partners, in collaboration with the relevant UNOPS and UNEP officials, and as per the approved project plan(s).

Provision of oversight and guidance to the execution of project activities through monitoring missions, and based on the established agreements, as required.

Provision of technical advice and support, directly (within the individuals sphere of competence) and indirectly (through other staff of the unit and consultants) to executing agencies, to ensure implementation of the respective contracts.

Closely coordinate with NOAA regarding their input and implementation of components and activities.

Provision of oversight and guidance to the preparation of the relevant technical training materials.

Oversight and monitoring of progress in all components and activities of the project assigned to UNOPS to ensure effective implementation, while also coordinating with and monitoring progress of other relevant project partners.

Organization and convening of regional and sub-regional meetings in the participating countries each year, as per project work plan(s).

Monitoring of overall project implementation, facilitating conduct of the mid-term review, as well as terminal independent evaluation.

3. Regional Cooperation & Collaboration:

Act as Secretary to the Steering Committee, including convening of meetings; preparation and distribution of the relevant background documents in advance; and dissemination of official meeting reports.

Liaising on a regular basis with designated senior Officials, National Focal Points and other relevant bodies and stakeholders in the six participating countries regarding project execution and progress.

Developing and supporting the network of participating individuals and institutions involved in SAP implementation activities at all levels.

Initiating collaborative arrangements with relevant projects in the region, as per UNOPS standards, and as agreed by the Steering Committee.

Oversight of the development and implementation of a communications strategy for SAP implementation, including website, newsletter and issuance of regular press releases.

Oversight of the publication and distribution of all substantive and technical reports resulting from project activities.

Organization and supervision of peer reviews of project outputs

Facilitate identification of opportunities to expand project outcomes and outputs through new partnerships and additional contributions.

4. Management of the SAP Implementation Unit:

Lead the selection and onboarding of the project personnel to be engaged by UNOPS to constitute the Project Coordination Unit (PCU), in coordination with UNEP.

Supervision and guidance of PCU personnel the execution of their duties, as per UNOPS’s HR requirements.

Managing learning, development and performance of project personnel assigned by UNOPS.

Monitoring and evaluation of the performance of personnel assigned to the PCU by UNOPS in line with UNOPS HR requirements, and in coordination with UNEP on technical and substantive elements.

Liaise with NOAA to facilitate the implementation of the activities assigned to the organization by UNEP, including effective provision of operational support for meetings and missions. 5. Liaison with Project Stakeholders:

Liaise regularly with project partners, including UNEP as the implementing agency, SEMARNAT and NOAA as government counter[arts, to ensure the effective implementation of the project, in line with the project agreement between UNOPS and UNEP, and as per UNOPS project management standards.

Liaise with project partners for soliciting inputs in the preparation of project monitoring documents such as annual workplan, progress reports, reports on risks and challenges in line with UNOPS, UNEP and GEF requirements.

lead the establishment and management of a project communication strategy 6. Quality Assurance:

Work with internal stakeholders to ensure projects comply with audit requirements

Work with procurement/purchasing staff to ensure effective interface with suppliers' quality systems

Coordinate quality reviews of project documents and deliverables

Provide quality control for management outputs (project documents, reports, etc.) 7. Knowledge Management and Innovation:

Encourage routine and effective capacity building activities for long-term and sustainable capacity of staff.

Actively interact with other Project Managers and the wider PM community to share case studies, lessons learned and best practices

Contribute to the oversight of lessons learned procedures, ensuring that lessons learnt are shared in a timely and appropriate manner. Participate in the relevant Communities of Practice

Research and logging of lessons learned throughout the project life span.

Provide feedback to Practice Groups on policy, supporting guidance with an aim towards continuous improvement of UNOPS policies.

Education/Experience/Language requirements
Education:
Master’s degree in marine biology, ecology, coastal habitats and marine fisheries, resource management or relevant field is required. A Bachelor’s degree combined with two (depending on the contract) additional years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the master’s degree. Experience:
A minimum of 7 years of progressive working experience in an international and project setting is required. At least 5 years of this experience must involve managing and/or formulating projects, including elements such as financial/budget management, monitoring and evaluation, and stakeholder management is required. Experience in environmental management in Mexico and experience in engaging with Mexican institutions is a strong asset. Demonstrated competence in the management of environment and water related projects is strongly desirable. Demonstrated competence in the management of large multi-country and multi-disciplinary projects, such as GEF-funded projects, is highly desirable. Demonstrated experience in regional and intergovernmental negotiations, networking, and the management of project activities in the Caribbean region is preferred. Demonstrated experience in Caribbean, and familiarity with its geopolitical, cultural, social and economic setting, including international treaties and environmental agreements, highly preferred. Expertise in managing multiple and high-level stakeholders and government partners, including production and dissemination of public awareness materials would be considered an asset. Knowledge of the United Nations system and/or Global Environment Facility, including their administrative processes, is an asset. Language Requirements:
Fluency in written and spoken English AND Spanish is required; Working knowledge of other United Nations languages and/or regional languages is an asset. Contract type, level and duration
Contract type: Local Individual Contract Agreement (LICA)
Contract level: ICS-11/LICA-11
Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – ‘Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

Competencies
Develops and implements sustainable business strategies, thinks long term and externally in order to positively shape the organization. Anticipates and perceives the impact and implications of future decisions and activities on other parts of the organization. Treats all individuals with respect; responds sensitively to differences and encourages others to do the same. Upholds organizational and ethical norms. Maintains high standards of trustworthiness. Role model for diversity and inclusion.
Acts as a positive role model contributing to the team spirit. Collaborates and supports the development of others. For people managers only: Acts as positive leadership role model, motivates, directs and inspires others to succeed, utilizing appropriate leadership styles. Demonstrates understanding of the impact of own role on all partners and always puts the end beneficiary first. Builds and maintains strong external relationships and is a competent partner for others (if relevant to the role). Efficiently establishes an appropriate course of action for self and/or others to accomplish a goal. Actions lead to total task accomplishment through concern for quality in all areas. Sees opportunities and takes the initiative to act on them. Understands that responsible use of resources maximizes our impact on our beneficiaries. Open to change and flexible in a fast paced environment. Effectively adapts own approach to suit changing circumstances or requirements. Reflects on experiences and modifies own behavior. Performance is consistent, even under pressure. Always pursues continuous improvements. Evaluates data and courses of action to reach logical, pragmatic decisions. Takes an unbiased, rational approach with calculated risks. Applies innovation and creativity to problem-solving. Expresses ideas or facts in a clear, concise and open manner. Communication indicates a consideration for the feelings and needs of others. Actively listens and proactively shares knowledge. Handles conflict effectively, by overcoming differences of opinion and finding common ground. Additional Considerations
Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time 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. UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request. Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types 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.