Office Assistant

21012101

Staff in the General Service category are recruited locally from the Primary Location area, which is where the office is located.

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination　　
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind.

Organizational Setting

The Fisheries and Aquaculture Division (NFI) is responsible for the economic, social, institutional, governance and policy aspects of FAO's activities related to fisheries and aquaculture and their development, with particular emphasis on human well-being, food security and poverty reduction; post-harvest utilization, marketing and trade with due regard to the protection of the environment, food security and the well-being of fishery communities; collection, compilation, validation, trend analysis and dissemination of the best available and up-to-date fishery statistics and for the syndication of the FAO information on all aspects of world fisheries and aquaculture. The Division is also responsible for FAO's activities related to the management and conservation of the living aquatic resources used by fisheries and aquaculture, including the biodiversity and ecosystem maintenance, with particular emphasis on the most vulnerable and threatened species and habitats; management of responsible fisheries and aquaculture in accordance with management standards and best practices; development of fisheries technology, with due regard to the protection of the environment, food security and the well-being of fishing communities, including the safety of fishers and fishing vessels.

The post is located in the Office of the Director of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division (NFI) at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy.

Main Purpose

The Office Assistant coordinates and performs the full range of office support, management support and administrative tasks, providing for the smooth and efficient running of the Office. He/she ensures quality and consistency of the flow of office work and information in the work unit.

Supervision Received/Exercised

The Office Assistant reports to one or more professional staff and receives guidance from the Director, NFI and one Office Associate. The incumbent operates independently, takes decisions on work priorities and exercises initiative for dealing with cases without precedents. Supervision received is focused on the quality of work outputs. He/she provides guidance and advice to other office support staff.

Working Relationships

The Office Assistant works closely with a wide range of colleagues in the division/region, with central units and external clients, performing and coordinating office and management support services and providing procedural guidance and information.

Key Functions/Results

• Screen requests for appointments with supervisor; maintain supervisor's calendar; confirm mutually convenient schedules and arrange appointments; receive visitors; place and screen telephone calls; respond to queries and correspondence, often of a sensitive, confidential or technical nature.
• Coordinate office support services for meetings, trainings, seminars, committees and special projects and events; attend meetings, prepare minutes, monitor follow-up activities; make arrangements for formal editing, translation, etc., of documents and publications.
• Review, record, distribute and process incoming mail and correspondence; follow-up on pending actions; prepare draft responses to a wide range of correspondence and other communications, often requiring knowledge of technical terminologies and/or detailed office procedures; carry out quality control functions for outgoing documents; proofread texts for adherence to format, grammar, punctuation and style.
• Perform a variety of administrative duties, e.g. contract extensions and requests for temporary staff, leave and attendance recording, budget preparation and follow-up; coordinate with other units to ensure smooth running and expedition of work within the unit.
• Research, compile and organize background information and reference materials from various sources for reports, briefs and speeches; generate a variety of statistical and other reports from various databases.
• Coordinate the work of other office support staff, establish priorities and ensure equitable distribution of work; train new staff to relevant administrative procedures and practices and provide general assistance as required.
• Create and maintain the work unit's filing and reference systems; review the efficiency of office procedures and make recommendations for improvements; update office websites.
• Perform other duties as required.

Impact Of Work

The incumbent's work impacts directly on the smooth and efficient running of the Office. He/she plays a lead role in the provision of office support services for successful achievement of the organizational unit's mandate.

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CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

Education: Secondary School Education.
Experience: Four years of relevant experience in office/ management support work.
Languages: Working knowledge (proficient - level C) of English and of another official language of the Organization (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).
IT Skills: Very good knowledge of the MS Office applications, Internet and office technology equipment.
Residency: General Service Staff are recruited locally. To be eligible for this position, candidates must be nationals of the country of the duty station or possess an existing visa/work permit, and reside within commuting distance of the duty station at the time of the application. "Commuting distance" means the distance within which staff members can travel daily between their place of work and their residence.

Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical Skills

• Very good knowledge of communication and documentation standards.
• Very good knowledge of corporate computerized financial/travel/human resources systems and administrative procedures and policies.
• Very good knowledge of the organizational structure.

Desirable Qualifications and Skills

• Good knowledge of the organizational structure;
• Demonstrated interest and capacity for learning new skills, procedures and tools, and apply these to the benefit of the team(s) he/she works in;
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience in research, compilation and organization of information and reference materials from various sources for reports, mailing lists and other uses of data, using spreadsheets and dedicated database management tools and applications, to develop and maintain an organized and easily used archive;
• Good knowledge of and experience using MS-Teams, SharePoint, Zoom, Skype and other teleconferencing platforms, and organizing meetings using the same;
• Consolidated experience in the organization of meetings and workshops at HQs and in the field, with knowledge of the related procedures and workflow for clearances, authorizations, organization and actual implementation;
• Demonstrated operational knowledge of procedures, requirements and workflow for the procurement of services and goods, including preparation, implementation and closure of Letters of Agreement and other contractual instruments;
• Demonstrated experience with and knowledge of the procedures and tools for the recruitment and administrative management of contracts for Non-Staff Human Resources, including the issuance of Vacancy Announcements and Calls for Expressions of Interest, Quality Assessment Reports, and the use of the corresponding corporate systems like TALEO and GRMS;
• Demonstrated experience with and knowledge of the procedures and tools for organizing and administratively manage Travel of staff, consultants and non-staff travelers;
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience in drafting correspondence and proof-reading (FAO House Style and terminology, correct spelling, grammar, punctuation and syntax), editing and formatting documents using the full capabilities of word processing and/or desktop publishing and page layout designing software.

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