Chief Operating Officer, TEC - D1

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.  The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes.  Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

WFP Technology Division (TEC, formerly known as IT) is the digital business engine of the World Food Programme, providing the business with multi-pronged and resilient technical capabilities able to respond with the agility required in humanitarian operations, be they manmade or in a natural disaster setting. TEC Division continues to increase its activities to meet the constantly growing demand from the organization and implement the initiatives related to digital transformation. 

Technology and connectivity are rapidly reaching some of the most vulnerable people and places affected by crisis, but they are also increasingly expanding to the services responding to those same crises. As one of the main humanitarian actors, WFP has the opportunity and the obligation to leverage data and technology to better know and serve those in need by digitally transforming the way it works. Such ambition led to a plan aimed at establishing, integrating, and mainstreaming – in the next two years – the core elements of an end-to-end digital business process.  

The objective is to ensure best deployment of the Executive Director’s digital strategy to ensure that all WFP assistance is digitized and that these business services will also be offered to partners and governments. 

Our Technology Division empowers and enables field operations, by engineering globally and delivering locally. In order to enhance field proximity, support country-level digital assistance efforts and strengthen emergency response and preparedness, we need to reinforce Operations and Services Management by recruiting our Chief Operating Officer (COO), TEC internally called Chief, TEC Operations and Services. 

The COO, TEC will raise the efficiency and effectiveness of IT services provided to those inside and outside the organization; ensure the expansion and development of services offered to the Field during emergencies and steady state operations and streamline existing  operations to improve efficiency. Thanks to your strategic thinking ability, you will nourish the TEC vision and provide an entrepreneurial mindset, team leadership and management to ensure that division directions, strategies and plans are implemented.    

You will report to the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Director, Technology Division (TEC), and will oversee the Service Management (TECM) and Emergency Preparedness and Response (TECF) branches. 

• Co-lead the development and implementation of TEC’s strategies, policies and plans aligned with WFP’s policies and processes to support field operations to meet the mandate of WFP;

• In partnership with the Director, you will ensure budget management and cost efficiency of the operations;

• Participate to the management of change processes for the division ensuing that change initiatives focus upon improving performance and that the divisional team remains engaged and motivated during change processes;

• Lead the development and implementation of standards, guidance and processes within the division, ensuring that effective quality control is in place to monitor adherence;

• Lead monitoring, evaluation and analysis activity to ensure that divisional activity is continually assessed, and the findings used to inform divisional and activity developments;

• Increase awareness and transparency of IT services offered to the field by Field TEC Services (Headquarters, Hubs and Regional Bureaus);

• Align service offerings to meet the ever-changing business needs, requirements and expectations in the field;

• Increase deployment capacity by fast-tracking operational deployments and strengthening capacity for emergencies and steady state operations.;

• Build strong relationships and collaborate cross-functionally to align service activities with wider programmes and activities and ensure a coherent approach that enables efficient delivery;

• Engage with Regional Bureaus and Country Offices globally, to effectively capture and  meet the expectations from operations;

• Actively represent WFP to the wider UN and external agencies (e.g. at international conferences) to contribute to international debate, technical and technological developments,and build support for WFP activity;

• Provide comprehensive reports upon divisional situations and performance for both internal and external audiences to provide required donor information and to inform strategic directions and operational planning;

• Ensure that emergency preparedness activities are monitored, reviewed and updated to ensure an optimal response capacity is in place to enable timely and effective crisis interventions that complement inter-agency activities; 

• Fully incorporate gender perspectives in all areas of work, to ensure equal participation of women and men;

• Act in an assigned emergency response capacity as required to meet emergency food assistance needs;

• Mentor, coach and manage people including the continued development of a cohesive and high performing team to ensure achievement of set objectives;

• Provide technical guidance to lead a pool of diverse specialists (IT Operations, Business Transformation, Digitalization, Telco, Connectivity, Infrastructure/LAN and new technologies);

• Other as required.

• Entrepreneurial approach with a pragmatic and continuous improvement mindset; 

• Ability to think strategically and create vision combined with a can-do and hands-on attitude; 

• Organizational and political savviness with articulated communications and interpersonal skills will be required; 

• Ability to manage, coach and motivate diverse teams and deliver effectively through others to achieve results; ability to lead and inspire others; 

• Excellent financial management skills and commercial acumen, with the ability to leverage external partnerships to optimize resources for WFP; 

• Broad knowledge of ITIL disciplines;

• High calibre negotiation and motivational skills, with the ability to influence at senior levels within and beyond the organisation; 

• Ability to assimilate and analyze complex issues using independent judgment and anticipate potential strategic impact; be able to make complex decisions in a changing environment;  

• Ability to create simple messages from complex data sets and present concisely, tailoring messages to the needs of the specific audience; 

• Broad understanding of business principals and processes and the ability to quickly assimilate UN/WFP specific processes and systems.    

Education

• Advanced university degree in Economics, Computer Science, International development, Social sciences or other relevant area, or First University degree with additional relevant experience and advanced training/courses.  

Language

• Fluency (level C) in English language; 

• Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language: Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish, and/or WFP’s working language, Portuguese.  

Mobility is the essence of WFP and continues to be a core contractual requirement. These positions are rotational which means that you shall be subject to the regular reassignment process to any other location on a period of 2 to 4 years unless the position is reclassified as non-rotational.

The selected candidate will be employed on a fixed-term as well as a rotational contract with a probationary period of one year. Depending on the duty station, the position may be eligible for Rest and Recuperation (R&R) scheme.

WFP offers an attractive compensation and benefits package, including basic salary, post adjustment, relocation entitlement, travel and shipment allowances, 30 days’ annual leave, home leave, an education grant for dependent children, pension plan and medical insurance. For more details please https://icsc.un.org/

August 9, 2020

LEARN MORE ABOUT US: https://insight.wfp.org/

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes.  Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles.

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance.

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.