JOB DESCRIPTION

Org. Setting and Reporting
This position is located in the Office of the Director, Statistics Division (SD) of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). The Division undertakes substantial activities to advance the United Nations global geospatial information management agenda and to support the normative and implementation work of the Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management including implementing recommendations of the Committee approved by the Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly. The Division strengthens the capacity of Member States with regard to the production and use of high-quality, timely, disaggregated, open data and national statistics and geospatial information as a basis on which to inform policy and decision-making for the 2030 Agenda and for other United Nations policy agendas and to review progress at the national and international levels. The Senior Advisor on Geospatial Information reports to the Director, Statistics Division.

Responsibilities
Within delegated authority, the Senior Advisor on Geospatial Information is responsible for the following: • Provides leadership including substantive and managerial supervision for establishing and operationalizing United Nations global geospatial centres away from Headquarters. • Provides leadership to strengthen effective global coordination and governance arrangements for the United Nations global geospatial centres as required by the United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management, and related managerial supervision and operational coordination. • Advises and supports the Director and leads the: i) accelerated efforts for the establishment of a United Nations office away from headquarters, as approved, to advance the global geospatial information management agenda. This office is the United Nations Global Geospatial Ecosystem Centre of Excellence; ii) liaison with relevant offices, divisions and departments of the United Nations and the focal entity(s) of the hosting country in establishing this office away from Headquarters; iii) preparatory work related to the staffing and initial operationalization of the Centre of Excellence; and iv) reporting on the progress and status of the Centre of Excellence including to the Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management, as appropriate. • Advises and supports the Director from an integrated geospatial information “lens” vis-à-vis strategic and operational considerations in support of the normative and implementation work of the Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management. • Represents the Director, and or the Division, at international, regional and national meetings including intra- and inter-agency activities. • Provides substantive input in the preparation of position papers and reports for presentation to intergovernmental bodies, administrative budgetary programmes and other policy-making organs, as appropriate. • Collaborates with management to prioritize organization and geospatial information needs. • Elaborates and manages geospatial information management strategies, plans and approaches that respond to the strategic objectives and institutional mission within the organization related to the establishment and operations of offices away from headquarters established for global geospatial information management. • Co-ordinates and consults with management and relevant stakeholders to develop, strategies, policies, analytical models and innovative technology implementation. Ensures partnerships are adequate sand appropriate. • Participates in international, regional or national meetings and provides programmatic/substantive expertise on an issue or hold programmatic/substantive and organizational discussions with representatives of other institutions including the United Nations Committee of Experts of Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM). • Performs related duties, as assigned.

Competencies
• Professionalism: Knowledge of the mandates of the United Nations Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management, the establishment of offices away from headquarters, the operationalization of these offices, and capacity development programmes. Ability to produce reports and papers on technical issues and to review and edit the work of others. Ability to apply UN rules, regulations, policies and guidelines in work situations. 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. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work. • Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honors commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable. • Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client. • Building Trust: Provides an environment in which others can talk and act without fear of repercussion; manages in a deliberate and predictable way; operates with transparency; has no hidden agenda; places confidences in colleagues, staff members and clients; gives proper credit to theirs; follows through on agreed upon actions; treats sensitive or confidential information appropriately. • Judgement/Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary.

Education
Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in survey and mapping, geoinformatics (geomatics), geospatial information, land administration or related field. A first-level university degree in combination with two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. Successful completion of both degree and non-degree programs in data analytics, business analytics or data science programs is an advantage.

Job – Specific Qualification
Not available.

Work Experience
A minimum of ten years of progressively responsible experience in geospatial information management, survey and mapping, stakeholder management or related area is required. At least five years of working experience with intergovernmental mechanisms and processes implementing the recommendations and decisions is required. Experience in negotiating, preparing, establishing, and operationalizing global geospatial information centres as United Nations offices away from headquarters is required.

Languages
English and French are the working languages of the UN Secretariat. For this position, fluency in English, both oral and written, is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage.

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

Special Notice
• This is a Project-funded post. The post is temporarily available for six months with a possibility of an extension. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment. • While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post. • Subject to the funding source of the position, the eligibility for this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station. • This temporary job opening may be limited to “internal candidates,” who have been recruited through a competitive examination administered according to staff rule 4.16 or staff selection process including the review of a central review body established according to staff rule 4.15. • Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply.Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation. • Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as “retirement.” Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

United Nations Considerations
According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions. Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile of the inspira account-holder homepage. The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application. Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements