Chief, Performance Management Branch P5

(RMPP)

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world's largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. We are seeking to fill the position of Chief, Performance Management Branch (RMPP) at the P5 level, based at our Headquarters office in Rome, Italy.

Background:

The Performance Management and Monitoring Division (RMP) in WFP was created to strengthen WFP’s capacity to implement the Strategic Plan, to measure our impact on alleviating hunger through food assistance, and to advance results-based performance and accountability across the organization. RMP coordinates and supports the implementation and roll-out of the Strategic Plan throughout the organization. RMP is also tasked with identifying measures of success, and to report on progress, results and lessons learned: to demonstrate the impact of WFP’s food assistance on the lives of the beneficiaries.

Key functional responsibilities of RMP are:

  • Embedding performance and risk management: RMP has corporate responsibility to embed integrated performance and risk management in WFP to inform decision making in a decentralized environment and to foster learning. In so doing RMP builds on the lessons learned and best practices of previous results-based management and risk management experiences.
  • Providing normative guidance for operational monitoring and field reviews:RMP is responsible for establishing and maintaining standards, guidelines and a system for operational monitoring; development of tools and guidance for Reviews in accordance with WFPs corporate performance management system as well as in line with the corporate monitoring strategy.
  • Leading and supporting performance reporting: Coordination of all efforts towards demonstrating WFP’s organizational performance through its Annual Performance Reports; further, the coordination of management responses to the recommendations of evaluations provides RMP the opportunity to track the application of lessons learned in strategic planning process as well as programme design and implementation status. RMP also provides an overview of trends in global food aid deliveries by governments, non-governmental organizations and WFP through its annual report to all partners of the international food aid information system.

RMP operates in support of CO/RBs through a needs-based approach; it engages and promotes dialogue to sensitize internal stakeholders on performance management and accountability issues. RMP is fulfilling its mandate in an inclusive and consultative manner to promote learning lessons from implementation, influencing project design and implementation, management of programmes, as well as standards and systems development.

Under the general supervision and guidance of the Division Director, the Chief Performance Management Branch will be responsible for the following key duties:

Strategic and Operational Performance Management:

  • Lead WFP's organisational performance management strategically and operationally through:
  • Overseeing enhancements and implementation of relevant result frameworks, policies and directives, indicators, tools, training modules, systems and guidance;
  • Support, oversee and further develop office-level performance management functions, such as annual performance planning and review, for all offices in WFP.
  • Further advancing strategic initiatives in the area of performance management, such as:
  • Performance-informed budgeting;
  • Value for money initiatives;
  • Organizational change initiatives improving enterprise performance and accountability;
  • Gender equality and women's empowerment in WFP's work;
  • Leadership of task forces addressing donor concerns;
  • Coordination of donor-driven assessments of WFP;
  • Corporate-level results monitoring, linking organisational, country level, project, office with individual performance management;
  • Lead and contribute to strategic initiatives and partnerships to ensure WFP's continued leadership role in performance management and reporting within the humanitarian community, including:
  • Preparation of donor-specific results frameworks;
  • Inter-agency initiatives, such as QCPR, World Humanitarian Summit or post-2015 agenda;
  • Represent WFP at the Inter-Agency level for performance management and reporting related activities;
  • Advise senior management on all performance management and reporting related issues.

Performance Reporting

  • Lead WFP corporate performance reporting:
  • Preparation of WFP's Annual Performance Report (APR) and Standard Project Reports (SPRs) to ensure timely and high quality results reporting to WFP donors and stakeholders and introduce continuous enhancement in WFP's ability to demonstrate economy, efficiency and effectiveness as well as WFP’s ability to report progress against recommendations from the QCPR process;
  • Enhance and streamline corporate and project reporting; coordinate responses to ad-hoc reporting requests from all sources;
  • Oversee the preparation for management responses to centralized evaluations and their presentation to the Executive Board, in consultation with the relevant managers; ensure accountability for the implementation of evaluation recommendations and oversee use of tracking system and reporting of implementation status. Further enhance quality and effectiveness of management responses to evaluations;
  • Oversee the implementation and enhancements to food aid flows reporting, the International Food Aid Information System, the FAIS website, and the reporting to donors in support of the Food Assistance Convention;
  • Provide briefings to External Auditors, the Audit Committee and the Executive Board.

Performance Management and Reporting System

  • Contribute as business lead to the development and roll-out of relevant IT tools for organisational performance management and performance reporting;
  • Contribute to the development and stabilization of PRM systems (PROMIS & SPRING);
  • Support RBs to implement PROMIS and SPRING in their regions and gather technical and user feedback to improve performance management and reporting tools.

Manage RMPP processes and teams

  • Provide management and technical leadership to staff under supervision;
  • Lead and mentor team members, and guide and supervise them in conducting allocated tasks;
  • Support RMP Director in performance management and reporting functions to LG, EMG and EB;
  • Advise RMP Director and senior management on all performance management and reporting issues;
  • Provide an analysis of performance management trends and related global risks and advise on their application in WFP;
  • Lead and coordinate WFP-wide performance management events.

Qualifications & Experience Required

Education:

  • Advanced university degree in Social Sciences, Business Administration, Management Sciences, Operations Research, Statistics, or equivalent discipline.

Experience:

  • At least 11 years (4 of which will be on an international scope) of progressively responsible professional experience in results-based management or enterprise performance management, programme development or strategic planning, or organizational budgeting in public and/or private sector environment.

Technical Skills & Knowledge:

  • Knowledge of strategic planning and risk management approaches, performance planning principles and practices, monitoring and evaluation standards, performance based budgeting, developing and managing information systems including information/data management;
  • Knowledge of industry best practices on organizational performance metrics, performance reporting, quantitative and qualitative survey methods, target setting methods, data quality assurance and analysis and validation methodologies.
  • Knowledge of developing normative guidance, training manuals and materials and strong knowledge of training and facilitation methods.
  • Must have a demonstrated ability to exercise sound, independent, professional judgment;
  • Ability to work constructively with internal and external clients;
  • Proven capacity to leverage knowledge of internal and external best practices and partnerships;
  • Proven ability to lead teams, support and mentor staff;
  • Excellent analytical and communication skills (written, oral and presentation);
  • Recognised inter-personal skills; demonstrated ability to oversee complex corporate reporting processes at regional or corporate level;
  • Evidence of applied participatory and consultative approaches.

Competencies:

  • High level of conceptual and analytical capacity and faculty in the preparation of programmes, policies and procedures.
  • Demonstrated ability of building and managing a team and creating enabling work environment.
  • Ability to provide technical guidance and support to decentralised technical staff in regional and country offices as well as at Headquarters.
  • Excellent drafting ability and communication skills, both oral and written; ability to conduct presentations clearly and concisely.
  • Ability to advice senior management on highly complex and sensitive issues; demonstrated capacity for intellectual leadership and ability to integrate knowledge with broader strategic, policy and operational objectives and translate into a result oriented work programme/project.
  • Strong negotiating skills and ability to influence others and reach agreement on difficult issues. Ability to successfully anticipate, resolve arising issues by providing solid recommendations.
  • Resourcefulness, initiative, tact and ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Language:

  • Fluency in oral and written Englishwith an intermediate knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) or Portuguese (one of WFP’s working languages).

Terms and Conditions

Selected candidate will be employed on a fixed-term contract with a probationary period of one year. He/she will be required to travel abroad sometime to remote and difficult locations.

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 visit icsc.un.org

Application Procedures:

Go to:

Step 1:Register and create your online CV.

Step 2: Click on “Description” to read the position requirements and “Apply” to submit your application.

NOTE: You must complete Step 1 and 2 in order for your application to be considered for this vacancy.

Deadline for applications: 4 November 2014

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status. Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are encouraged to apply.

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.

REF: 14-0015654

Fighting Hunger Worldwide

1