Portfolio Analyst, Regional

The UNV Regional Offices (RO) provide oversight and strategic guidance to the UNV Field Units in their respective geographical assignments and are mainly accountable for the placement of UN Volunteers mobilized for UN Agencies, Funds, and Programmes focused on peace, development and humanitarian needs. Furthermore, the Regional Offices represent, and strategically position, UNV and bring UNV’s services and solutions closer to its partners from governments, UN entities, civil society and private sector. 

UNV Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia is one of the six regional offices. The Regional Portfolio Analyst supports the Regional Portfolio Specialist in (a) business development and portfolio management for volunteer mobilization and placement; (b) partnerships building, external relations and coordination; and (c) management and quality assurance, including knowledge and innovation for the region. The priority is to accelerate the mobilization objectives of the region including ensuring of diversification in business operation and sustainable partnerships.
 

Reporting to the Regional Portfolio Specialist, the Regional Portfolio Analyst contributes to the effective management and monitoring of the portfolio countries of the Regional Office, Europe and Central Asia (ROECA). She/he provides technical support for business development and intelligence, relationship management and volunteer mobilization for the countries assigned under her/his supervision. In doing so, she/he remotely manages the countries under her/his portfolio and supports the identification of entry points for UNV’s support and showcasing the value added of volunteers and volunteerism based on UNV’s Strategic Framework. She/he builds and nurtures relationships with UN partners, government counterparts and other key stakeholders to enhance UNV’s role in key programmatic interventions and supports the Regional Portfolio Specialist in overseeing the portfolio team for quality performance and the achievement volunteer mobilization targets.

Key objective: Achieving the acceleration of volunteer mobilization and partner diversification, providing know-how for the promotion of volunteerism and ensuring sustainable collaborations with partners mainly with UN Entities.

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

1. Ensure business development and portfolio management for volunteer mobilization and placement 

• Support the Regional Portfolio Specialist identifying relevant entry points for UNV’s mobilization of volunteers based on the development challenges and priorities under assigned countries.
• Facilitate and, where applicable and required, ensure UNV positioning in relevant strategic forums, United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCF) planning processes, regional response strategies, UN thematic task forces and assessments to identify opportunities for volunteers and volunteers placement.
• Leverage the value added of UNV’s impact on development through its products and services, to identify niches for UNV’s positioning. 
• Support the Regional Portfolio Specialist in overseeing the regional country portfolio with special attention to compliance with volunteer mobilization targets, timely and quality delivery of outputs and accuracy and quality of reporting.
• Ensure quality and accuracy of comprehensive UN Volunteer data, including analysis of political and socio-economic issues and trends. 
• Manage a portfolio of countries as defined by the Regional Portfolio Specialist in accurate forecasting and demand generation, monitoring of assignments and contract extension negotiation (securing funding), mediation in volunteer management cases and compliance with workplans and delegated authority.

• Guide and support UNV ROECA team to develop, strengthen and monitor relationships with the UN partners as well as with VSOs, CSOs, NGOs, universities, community organizations and other partners.
• Guide and support the Regional Portfolio Specialist to develop and sustain ways of working in countries without UNV Field Units to support volunteer mobilization.
• Facilitate the mainstreaming of online volunteers by setting regional and country level targets, monitoring and reporting on results achieved.
• In coordination with UNV Sections, assist the Regional Portfolio Specialist in building partnerships with UN organizations including regional entities and field-based organizations to identify opportunities and promote UNV and volunteer mobilization.
• Participate, as requested, in relevant fora and inter-agency meetings and events including in countries with no field representation to seize opportunities for volunteer mobilization.
• Participate in the development and inclusion of volunteer solutions for UN partners and other stakeholders’ initiatives.
• Provide support and inputs in planning, negotiating, and monitoring partnership and financing agreements and action plans and budgets with existing or new partners.
• Support the Regional Portfolio Specialist in managing interactions with relevant headquarters units for the dissemination of UNV ‘s global agenda and mandate to stakeholders of special relevance in the region.

• Provide support to the Regional Portfolio Specialist in the establishment and monitoring of the RO workplan and budget.
• Support in supervising portfolio team in establishing workplans and monitoring performance.
• Provide guidance on all aspects of volunteer management.
• Contribute to ensuring strategic use and implementation of all UN Volunteer modalities including online volunteering.
• Ensure quality of Descriptions of Assignments in line with corporate policies and parameters guiding the recruitment of UN Volunteers.
• Demonstrate leadership in embracing and implementing Digital Transformation processes.
• Provide guidance to the portfolio team on volunteer solutions; communication, advocacy and outreach to UN partners and other stakeholders, and on results-based management.
• Ensure knowledge is documented, systematized and fed back into volunteer opportunities through contributing to knowledge networks. 
• Contribute to designing new and innovative volunteer solutions to support UN partners.
• Serve as the RO focal point for Volunteer Services Centre in ensuring lessons are drawn from the implementation of (new) Conditions of Service and SOPs, (new) Volunteer Management systems and other experiences to make the business model as efficient as possible.
• Provide sound contributions to internal business simplification initiatives and knowledge networks
• Provide backup roles in absence of the Regional Portfolio Specialist.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: Supervise the portfolio team for the assigned countries including Regional Programme Associate.

Achieve Results

• Scale up solutions and simplifies processes, balances speed and accuracy in doing work.

Think Innovatively

• Offer new ideas/open to new approaches, demonstrate systemic/integrated thinking.

Learn Continuously

• Go outside comfort zone, learn from others and support their learning.

Adapt with Agility

• Adapt processes/approaches to new situations, involve others in change process.

Act with Determination

• Able to persevere and deal with multiple sources of pressure simultaneously.

Engage and Partner

• Is facilitator/integrator, bring people together, build/maintain coalitions/partnerships.

Enable Diversity and Inclusion

• Facilitate conversations to bridge differences, considers in decision making. 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies 

Effective Decision Making

• Take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one's authority, area of expertise and resources and take into consideration potential wider implications.

Knowledge Generation 

• Ability to research information and to turn it into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need. Ability to apply existing concepts to new situations, and to develop new concepts to generate workable solutions and new approaches. Knowledge of relevant concepts, conceptual models, and theories that can be useful in addressing new situations.

Results-based Management 

• Ability to manage the implementation of strategies, programmes, and projects with a focus at improved  performance and demonstrable results. Knowledge and understanding of relevant theories, concepts, methodologies, instruments, and tools. 

Digital Awareness and Literacy 

• Ability to monitor new and emerging technologies, as well as understand their usage, potential, limitations, impact, and added value. Ability to rapidly and readily adopt and use new technologies in professional activities, and to empower others to use them as needed. Knowledge of the usage of digital technologies and emerging trends. 

Relationship Management 

• Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain and/or strengthen working relations, trust and mutual understanding.

System Thinking

• Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Portfolio Management

• Ability to select, prioritise and control the organization's programmes and projects in line with its strategic objectives and capacity.
• Ability to balance the implementation of change initiatives with regular activities for optimal return on investment. 
• Knowledge and understanding of key principles of project, programme, and portfolio management.

People Management 

UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site. 

• Only short-listed applicants will be contacted;
• The successful candidate will hold a UNDP letter of appointment.