Office Associate

Job Description – Office Associate (2303002) Job Description CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST – VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT : 2303002 Office Associate Job Posting : 03/Oct/2023 Closure Date : 17/Oct/2023, 9:59:00 PM Organizational Unit : ESA Job Type : Staff position Type of Requisition : General Service Primary Location : Italy-Rome Duration : Fixed-term: 2 years with possibility of extension Post Number : 0096369 CCOG Code : 2101 IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device 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 Agrifood Economics Division (ESA) conducts economic research and policy analysis and provides evidence-based support to national, regional and global policy processes and initiatives related to monitoring and analysing food and agricultural policies, agribusiness and value chain development, rural transformation and poverty, food security and nutrition information and analysis, resilience, bioeconomy and climate-smart agriculture. The Division also leads the production of two FAO flagship publications: The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) and The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI). ESA Division also hosts the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) Secretariat, the foremost inclusive international and intergovernmental platform for a broad range of committed stakeholders to work together in a coordinated manner and in support of country-led processes towards the elimination of hunger and ensuring food security and nutrition for all. The CFS Secretariat comprises staff and resources from the FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP). The CFS Secretariat provides technical and administrative support to the Committee, its Plenary Session, Bureau and Advisory Group Meetings and its intersessional working groups. The position is located in the CFS Secretariat in ESA at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy. Main Purpose The Office Associate leads and coordinates the office- and management support functions of the Secretariat. He/she ensures the smooth flow of office work and information by setting priorities and organizing the day-to-day work. The job role requires in-depth knowledge and interpretation of office policies, procedures and practices. The incumbent also provides administrative, logistics and documentation support to CFS meetings. Supervision Received/Exercised The Office Associate reports to the CFS Secretary. Work is performed autonomously, showing a high degree of initiative and independent judgment. Supervision received is focused on facilitating service delivery. The incumbent effectively organizes and supervises other office support staff and provides relevant guidance and training. Working Relationships The incumbent maintains a wide range of contacts with managers, staff and counterparts both within and outside the Organization. In close collaboration with the Secretariat Team, the incumbent effectively liaises with CFS members and participants in the Advisory Group, as well as focal points in the Rome-based agencies. Work relations may be on a high organizational level, requiring very good communication skills and experienced handling of issues. Key Functions/Results • Analyse, manage and monitor a large and diversified volume of complex correspondence and documentation, often of confidential and sensitive nature; ensure appropriate routing, reply, prioritization, accuracy, consistency, informal translation and timeliness; bring complex, sensitive or priority issues to the supervisor’s attention; • Provide information and guidance to staff at all levels within the organizational unit; ensure understanding of intent and deadlines; • Arrange appointments and duty travels, maintain supervisor’s calendar and receive visitors; • Organize high-level meetings, finalize agendas and invitations, ensure the production and distribution of documentation, take notes and prepare minutes, and follow up on required actions; • Organize and coordinate the work performed by other office support staff; coordinate activities across the division, including divisional issues, deadlines and other requests; • Establish internal procedures and tracking systems for correspondence and documents; verify that work is done in accordance with corporate standards; monitor work progress; • Respond to written inquiries and draft responses to non-routine questions; coordinate responses to sensitive enquiries on behalf of the supervisor; • Follow up on the preparation of reports, correspondence, briefing notes and other documents; review documents and make changes to their format or style in accordance with standard practices; conduct research and prepare briefing materials for the supervisor; provide informal translations into another official language; • Evaluate ongoing support requirements of the office, adapt service provision to meet changing needs and solve operational problems as required; • Ensure the initiation of a variety of transactions in the Organization’s computerized administrative systems; • Perform other duties as required. Impact Of Work The incumbent’s work impacts directly on the smooth and efficient operations of the Office. He/she plays a lead role in the coordination and provision of the office support services for the successful achievement of the Division’s mandate. CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING Education: Secondary School Education. Experience: Five years of relevant experience in management and office support work. Languages: Working knowledge (proficient – level C) of English and of one of the other official FAO languages (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. Technical Skills • Thorough knowledge of communication and documentation standards. • Thorough knowledge of corporate computerized financial/travel/human resources systems. • Thorough knowledge of the organizational structure, administrative procedures and policies and matters of protocol. Desirable Qualifications And Skills • Extensive experience in meeting organization and preparation in an international context, including knowledge of related administrative procedures. • In-depth knowledge of budget systems, monitoring and reporting of regular and extra-budgetary resources. • Experience applying effective office and work flow management tools and approaches. _______________________________________________________________________________________ FAO staff are expected to adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency _______________________________________________________________________________________ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION • FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing) • Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/ • The length of the appointment for internal FAO candidates will be established in accordance with applicable policies pertaining to extension of appointments • Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances. • 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. • No international benefits will be payable as selected candidates are recruited locally and paid in the local currency of the office location • For additional information visit the FAO employment website: http://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/ HOW TO APPLY • To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. Once completed, please apply and submit your application, with language certificates as attachments. Only language proficiency certificates from UN accredited external providers and/or FAO language official examinations (LPE, ILE, LRT) will be accepted as proof of the level of knowledge of languages indicated in the online applications. FAO reserves the right to request candidates to undertake a language test in the future, as appropriate • Incomplete applications will not be considered • Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications • Incomplete applications will not be considered • Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application • Only applications received through the recruitment portal will be considered • Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile • We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date. If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance: https://fao.service-now.com/csp J-18808-Ljbffr