Programme Associate – UNDP jobs in the USA

Within the GPN, the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan.  BPPS’s staff provides technical advice to Country Offices; advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora including public-private dialogues, government, and civil society dialogues, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas.  BPPS works closely with UNDP’s Crisis Bureau (CB) to support emergency and crisis response.  BPPS ensures that issues of risk are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. BPPS assists UNDP and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links results-based management and performance monitoring with more effective and new ways of working.  BPPS supports UNDP and partners to be more innovative, knowledge and data driven including in its programme support efforts.

UNDP’s 2022-2025 Strategic Plan highlighting our continued commitment to eradicating poverty, accompanying countries in their pathways towards the SDGs and working towards the Paris Agreement. As part of the Global Policy Network in the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, UNDP’s Nature, Climate, Energy, and Chemicals and Waste (NCE&W) Hubs promote and scale up integrated whole-of-governance approaches and nature-based solutions that reduce poverty and inequalities, strengthen livelihoods and inclusive growth, mitigate conflict, forced migration and displacement, and promote more resilient governance systems that advance linked peace and security agendas.

BPPS’ Hubs on Nature, Climate, Energy and Waste, with the support of the Vertical Fund Programme Support, Oversight and Compliance Unit, work with governments, civil society, and private sector partners to integrate nature, climate, energy and waste related concerns into national and sector planning and inclusive growth policies, support country obligations under Multilateral Environmental Agreements, and oversee the implementation of the UN’s largest portfolio of in-country programming nature, climate change, energy and waste. This multi-billion-dollar portfolio encompasses:

• Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services including forests;
• Sustainable land Management and Desertification including food and commodity systems;
• Water and Ocean Governance including SIDS;
• Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation;
• Renewable and Modern Energy;
• Extractive Industries;
• Chemicals and Waste Management;
• Environmental Governance and Green/Circular Economy; and
• Sustainable Consumption and Production approaches
• Assist with the management of the VF portfolio and pipeline, including tracking and monitoring of key deadlines

This work advances cross-cutting themes on innovative finance, digital transformation, capacity development, human rights, gender equality, health, technology, and South-South learning.

In addition to UNDP’s bilateral partnerships on natural capital, environment and climate, UNDP is an accredited multilateral implementing agency of the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Multilateral Fund (MLF), and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which includes the Global Environment Facility Trust Fund (GEF Trust Fund); the Nagoya Protocol Implementation Fund (NPIF); the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF); and the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF)). As part of UNDP’s partnership with these vertical funds, UNDP provides countries specialized integrated technical services for eligibility assessment, programme formulation, capacity development, policy advice, technical assistance, training and technology transfer, mobilization of co-financing, implementation oversight, results management and evaluation, performance-based payments, and knowledge management services.

The Vertical Fund Programme Support, Oversight, and Compliance hub consists of a Directorate, Corporate Policy & Systems team, Safeguards and Risk team, Results-based Management team, and Management & Programme Support team.  Support to the VF hub is provided by Programme Associates.

Position Purpose:

The Programme Associate will work under the direct supervision of the Principal Advisor for Environmental Law & Policy. The Programme Associate will facilitate the effective management of the VF Hub portfolio by providing high-quality programme support for the VF Corporate Policy & Systems, Safeguards and Risk, and Results-based Management teams, including administrative, operational, and travel-related support.

The Programme Associate will work in close collaboration with the VF hub teams in HQ and coordinate with other teams/bureaus, where required, to address programme-related and operations-related issues and to ensure consistent and high-quality service delivery.

UNDP adopts a portfolio approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages across interventions to achieve its strategic goals. Therefore, UNDP personnel are expected to work across units, functions, teams, and projects in multidisciplinary teams in order to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Programme Support and Knowledge Management

• Provide support to the various initiatives overseen by the VF policy unit, including Development Services Agreements and the partnerships with national and regional entities
• Support the tracking of VF evaluations in PIMS+
• Support the maintenance and expansion of the ‘Evaluation (Nature, Climate, Energy)’ sub-profile in the GPN roster, and other profiles/sub-profiles, as needed
• Attend internal team meetings, take meeting minutes, and provide summaries on highlights and action items
• Manage the VF hub website, and relevant pages of the PIMS+ workspace and Teams pages, and keep colleagues informed and involved as appropriate.  Track user metrics and adjust content in order to meet internal and external users’ needs
• Maintain tools, templates, induction packages, training packages and other knowledge products related to vertical fund programming procedures, processes, and requirements
• Assists in the drafting of TORs, identification and recruitment/procurement of consultants and interns
• Provide the VF hub with Knowledge Management and learning support as needed
• Provide contributions to the VF hub business plans, annual performance reports, and other internal newsletters

Administrative Support and Operations 

• Coordinate and plan all aspects of the missions for the VF Hub policy unit and other teams under the VF Hub as requested by the supervisor.  This includes: formulating mission travel plans, obtaining management approval, verifying travel budget, obtaining travel authorization, submitting completed travel settlement forms and maintaining files;
• Liaise with the Travel Unit/American Express Global Business Travel on travel authorizations and issuance of tickets;
• Process travel transactions, handle claims, refunds and settlements in UNall and Quantum;
• Reconcile with Travel Unit travel transactions to ensure all exceptions are reviewed and resolved;
• Assist with travel arrangements for global staff retreats/workshops;
• Act as primary level 1 approver on travel requests in UNall and support travel arrangers in resolving travel-related issues in Quantum;
• Provide administrative support to conferences, workshops, retreats upon assignment;
• Oversee logistics, documentation, preparation/review of budget and authorization of expenses;
• Track spending against individual budgets within the VF Hub
• Initiate and contribute to the planning and finalization of annual Hub budgets including travel, procurement, etc.;
• Identify activities to be charged in Quantum, ensure budget clearances prior to payments, and generate management reports;
• Initiate procurement requests for contracts, verify requests for payments, and ensure preparation of various consultant performance evaluations

Core Competencies CoreBehaviouralCompetencies.pdf (undp.org)

Achieve Results:

• Level 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline

Think Innovatively:

• Level 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements

Learn Continuously

• Level 1: Open-minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback

Adapt with Agility 

• Level 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible

Act with Determination               

• Level 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident

Engage and Partner

• Level 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships

Enable Diversity and Inclusion

• Level 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Business Development: Knowledge Generation

• Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for content, or responsive to a stated need.

Business Management: Project Management

• Ability to plan, organize, prioritize, control resources, procedures, and protocols to achieve specific goals.

Business Management: Monitoring

• Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback on the consistency or discrepancy between planned and actual activities and programme performance and results.

Business Management: Communication

• Ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience.
• Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media, and other appropriate channels.

Procurement: Sourcing

• Ability to find, evaluate and engage suppliers of goods and services.

Finance: Budget Management

• Ability to support budgetary aspects of work planning process; drawing and management of team budgets.

Digital and Innovation: Data Analysis

• Ability to extract, analyze and visualize data (including Real-Time Data) to form meaningful insights and aid effective decision-making.