Portfolio Management Consultant
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
Job Title: Portfolio Management Consultant
Type of Contract: Regular Consultant (CST) Level I
Division: TECR
Duty Station: Rome/HQ
Duration: 11 months
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT:
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world's largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. 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.
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.
As such, the Technology Division (TEC) has embarked in a transformation journey to become a flexible, customer-centric, digital leader and is currently looking for a Portfolio and Project Management Junior Consultant to join the Resource Management branch (TECR) and support the way in driving greater discipline and project management standardization across the TEC function.
The incumbent will apply his/her project and portfolio management skills and techniques to ensure that the TEC project teams have the necessary support and coordination to meet field and other stakeholders’ needs and expectations.
The incumbent will report to the Planning and Control Manager-TECR.
ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:
Within the context described above and in collaboration with relevant colleagues within the branch, the division and externally, the incumbent will be responsible to:
- In coordination with Business Relationship Managers and Programme Managers, review incoming demand and current project mapping and develop a process/model to prioritize projects that create the most value for TEC portfolio.
- Monitor the execution, progress and continued alignment of projects with IT Strategy across TEC portfolio ensuring project teams are supported throughout the delivery.
- Collect records and other deliverables from projects, making sure projects are executed in accordance to planned deliverables meeting current business goals.
- Provide appropriate visibility of TEC portfolio to senior management via ad hoc reports/dashboards to enable informed decision-making and escalating potential risks and issues accordingly.
- Contribute to the development and implementation, when necessary, of frameworks and processes aimed at standardizing and streamlining the project management approach within TEC, such as providing support for implementation of the OKR (Objective and Key Results) model across the entire division.
- Partner with project stakeholders to discuss project dependencies, resource skill sets, resource capacity, and budget requirements and limitations.
- Assist with the transition and implementation of new PPM (Project Portfolio Management) tool across the Division.
- Facilitate a culture of learning through project management training and support to TEC project managers and stakeholders.
- Support planning and project management team as needed with inputs for TEC Corporate reports.
- Any other duties as assigned.
DELIVERABLES:
- Prioritization of TEC Portfolio (identification and ongoing tracking of main projects).
- Definition and implementation of a project management methodology across TEC Division.
- Development of standard tools and documentation across TEC supporting project and portfolio management.
- Creation of ad hoc reports reflecting the progress of the divisional portfolio with increased focus on the value that each project brings.
- If needed, additional corporate divisional reports/dashboards aimed at supporting managerial decision making.
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Education:
- University degree in Business Administration, Economics, Project Management, Information Technology, Finance, or related field.
Experience:
- Minimum 4 years of professional experience (2 years at least of relevant experience in project management), preferably within an IT or a humanitarian context.
- Experience in analysing and translating user requirements into new business processes and applications.
Technical Skills & Knowledge:
- Excellent ability in implementing monitoring activities, data gathering and analysis.
- Theoretical and practical project/fund management knowledge.
- Proficiency in project management software tools.
- Strong analytical and organizational skills.
- Outstanding communicator, verbal and written.
- High proficiency in Microsoft Office (Excel and Power Point); Tableau knowledge.
- Ability to work in a fast-paced environment, multi-task, navigate through multiple priorities and conflicting requests.
- Collaborative hands-on team member and relationship-builder with a facilitative nature and strong business partnering skills towards colleagues and stakeholders.
- Creative and committed.
- Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a high-pressure environment.
- Positive and resilient, passionate about change and driven to exceeding client's expectations through exceptional delivery.
Language:
- Fluency in oral and written English with an intermediate knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) or Portuguese (one of WFP’s working languages) is desirable.
TERMS AND CONDITIONS:
WFP offers a competitive compensation package, which will be determined by the contract type and selected candidate’s qualifications and experience.
Please visit the following websites for detailed information on working with WFP.
http://www.wfp.org Click on: "Our Work" and "Countries" to learn more about WFP's operations.
Deadline for applications: 3 January 2023 at 11:59pm Rome time (CET/CEST)
Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply.
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.
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