Administrative Assistant Job United Nations Office at Nairobi

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Org. Setting and Reporting

The United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) is the UN headquarters in Africa and the Director-General of UNON is the representative of the Secretary-General in Kenya. UNON supports programme implementation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and the Resident Coordination System (RCS) globally, as well as other UN offices in Kenya, by providing administrative, security, conference and information services (www.unon.org).

The Administrative Assistant will be located in the Design and Construction Section and will report to the Chief, Design and Construction Section for the UNON Conference Facilities Capital Project, Division of Administrative Services, UNON. Under the general guidance of the Chief, the incumbent will be responsible for supporting the design and construction related planning and execution tasks required for the implementation of the UNON Conference Facility Capital Project, entailing the renovation and upgrade of the existing conference facilities in Nairobi over a 8 year period. The project will be executed in line with the established project scope and key performance indicators, which includes large-scale relocation of the existing conference functions of the organization, while ensuring business continuity of conference operations for major UN Secretariat clients including United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat) running conferences at the UN Nairobi complex throughout the construction. In this context, the incumbent will perform the following duties:

Responsibilities

General Administration
• Undertakes general administrative functions in Umoja such as requisitioning, processing payments, etc.
• Maintains records of Standard Operating Procedures, administrative instructions and other project related documentation.
• Maintains up-to-date records (both paper and electronic).
• Coordinates extensively with internal project management team members, Division team members and other project stakeholders as required. Serves as back up and alternate to other staff on all administrative matters.
• Performs other related administrative duties, as required, e.g., operational travel programme; monitoring accounts and payment to vendors and individual contractors for services; physical space planning; identification of office technology needs and maintenance of equipment, software and systems; organizing and coordinating administrative arrangements for events such as retreats, meetings etc.
• Supports work of oversight bodies as relates to the project (OIOS, Risk management firm etc).
• Drafts routine correspondence.
• Assists in the preparation and processes all UN forms and permissions for contractual and work Unit, Section or Service UN staff, including: UN grounds passes, property passes, swipe-card access and door keys.
• Coordinates with other project team members on administrative matters.

Human Resources Management
• Initiates, processes, monitors, reviews and follows-up on actions related to the Project/Section human resource activities, e.g., recruitment, , job classification reviews, separation of staff members, training etc., ensuring consistency in the application of regulations and procedures. Supports all contractor/consultants’ recruitments, monitors activities/deliverables, processes payments.
• Monitors staffing table and prepare relevant statistical data/charts for purposes of reporting.

Budget and Finance
• Supports the team to monitor status of expenditures and allotments through Umoja.
• Consolidates data and provides support to higher-level staff with respect to budget reviews and inputs to relevant reports and presentations, including to intergovernmental bodies.
• Reviews requisitions for goods and services to ensure (a) correct objects of expenditure have been charged and (b) availability of funds.
• Provides inputs to in the preparation and review of financial and human resource proposals /requirements and budget performance submissions.
• Prepares or customizes financial reports and relevant statistical data/charts from Umoja system generated reports.
• Co-ordinates with other finance and budget staff on related issues during preparation of budget reports.
• Assists with the collection and analysis of data as well as preparation of data presentations and reports for information sharing, responding to queries, knowledge management, planning and decision making.
• Assists with visualizations and updating information material such as web pages or brochures.
• Perform other assigned duties.

Competencies

PROFESSIONALISM: Ability to perform a broad range of administrative functions, e.g., budget/work programme, human resources, database management, etc; ability to apply knowledge of various United Nations administrative, financial and human resources rules and regulations in work situations; the ability to perform analysis, modelling and interpretation of data in support of decision-making; 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.

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.

Education

• Completion of High school diploma or equivalent is required.
• Supplemental training and certification in Administration, budget finance, accounting, human resources is desirable.
• 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. Successful passing of the Administrative Support Assessment Test (ASAT) in English at the United Nations Headquarters (UNHQ), Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Economic and Social Commission for Eastern Asia (ESCWA), United Nations Office at Geneva. (UNOG), United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV), International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) or International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) may be accepted in lieu of the GGST. The GGST is administered to applicants when required before the administration of a written assessment and/or interview.

Work Experience

• A minimum of five (5) years of work experience in administrative services, or related area is required. The minimum years of relevant experience is reduced to by two years for candidates who possess a first level University degree.
• Experience with the use of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System (known as UMOJA within the United Nations) is required.
• Experience in Project management or contract management is desirable.
• Experience in construction or renovation projects is desirable.
• One (1) year or more of experience in data analytics or related area is desirable.

Languages

• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is desirable.
• NOTE: “fluency equals a rating of “fluent” in all four areas (read, write, speak, understand) and ” Knowledge of” equals a rating of ” confident” in two of the four areas.

Assessment

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

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