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Senior Programme Coordinator

Vacancy #:   2886
Unit:   Global Marine and Polar Programme
Organisation:   International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Location:   Headquarters, Gland, Switzerland
Reporting to:   Director – Global Marine and Polar Programme
Work percentage:   100%
Grade:   SP
Expected start date:   01 September 2019
Type of contract:   Max-term (28 months with possibility of renewal)
Closing date:   19 May 2019 (extended)
BACKGROUND
The Senior Programme Coordinator will take a lead role in operationalizing IUCN’s Marine and Polar programme of work, ensuring that it is well-funded, effectively coordinated and fully delivered. In particular, s/he will be responsible for the design, development, resource mobilization, oversight and quality assurance of one or more significant programmatic components as assigned by the Director-GMPP, facilitating effective engagement and involvement of IUCN Regional Offices, other Global Thematic Units, IUCN Expert Commissions and IUCN Members around the delivery of “wholesale initiatives”.

Within IUCN wholesale initiatives are ambitious, large-scale programmatic interventions, usually composed of multiple projects that share a common vision, strategy and theory of change. They are designed to work directly with IUCN members, Commissions and local partners to translate national and international policy ambition into substantive, on-the-ground delivery.

The Senior Programme Coordinator will ensure that IUCN operational and programmatic procedures are fully observed on all projects under his/ her charge and that implementation is accompanied by a robust and institutionally-aligned, monitoring, evaluation and learning system that will contribute to effective and evidence-based knowledge management and uptake.

As a senior member of the Marine team this position will support the Director in defining and periodically reviewing the strategic direction of the programme and will undertake assigned supervision duties of other programme staff. The position is currently based at IUCN’s Head Office duty station in Gland, Switzerland.
JOB DESCRIPTION
Section A – Duties and Responsibilities

1. Programme Implementation and Portfolio Oversight
• Support the Director of GMPP in identifying current and emerging problems and opportunities in marine conservation as well as defining solutions that build on the IUCN’s value proposition.

• Provide vision, direction, strategic focus and operational guidance for assigned components of the Marine programme ensuring that: there is a documented operational framework, internal and external collaborators fully understand the overall Theory of Change as well as their specific role and contribution to it, effective partnering principles are applied and delivery is supported by clear and enforced lines of accountability.

• Provide overall quality assurance, supervision and accountability for the development, implementation and delivery of the “Marine Plastic Pollution” portfolio, meeting regularly with project managers and their teams to ensure cross programme and project alignment coherency in delivery as well as institutional operational consistency.

• Oversee the effective implementation of monitoring, evaluation and learning frameworks for the Marine Plastic Pollution initiative, including the establishment of necessary baselines in consultation with NBS monitoring and learning focal point and according to institutional frameworks established by the Planning Monitoring Evaluation & Risk Unit.

• Support the Director of GMPP in periodically reviewing the medium to long-term stability of the current portfolio, ongoing and closed project performance, obstacles to the effective & timely delivery of ongoing projects, adequacy of project-based cost recovery, forecasted future staffing needs and actively contribute to the implementation of any identified corrective measures.

• As requested by the Director- GMPP and/ or the Global Director-NBS group contribute to periodic strategic programmatic planning and review processes at either the institutional or programme unit level.

2. Project Design, Technical Advice and Quality Assurance
• Ensure institutional standards and procedures for the design and development of Marine projects are put into effect in a timely and operationally efficient manner, including: programmatic alignment; regional, commission and member involvement; coherency and viability of Theory of Change; operational risk management; adequacy of and justification for cost recovery; and provision for effective accountability and results management (monitoring & evaluation).

• Facilitate the application of IUCN environmental and social safeguards as well the mainstreaming of cross cutting issues including: gender equality and women’s empowerment, natural resource governance and climate change into marine project design.

• Ensure the quality and timeliness of donor reporting with respect to the Marine Plastic portfolio component and any other similar initiative that may be assigned over time.

• Provide technical support to IUCN senior management, externals partners and, in particular, other IUCN regional and technical units, including contributing to, reviewing and appraising other projects under development.

• Coordinated with the Director-GMPP and the GEF & GCF Coordination Unit to review, strengthen the development and support the implementation of GEF & GCF projects.

• Lead on the direct management of specific projects as agreed with the Director-GMPP

3. Resource Mobilization, Partner Engagement and Representation
• In close consultation with the Strategic Partnership Unit and Director-GMPP, coordinate across IUCN to leverage intelligence and networks that facilitate and advance IUCN’s interests with respect to resource mobilization and donor engagement, with a particular (but not exclusive) emphasize on Marine Conservation.

• Coordinate and lead fund-raising outreach and proposal development for IUCN’s work on Marine Plastic Pollution

• Foster and build partnerships with governments, multilateral institutions and the private sector that establish clear operational mandates for impact delivery, thereby demonstrating the influence and demand-responsive nature of IUCN’s work to donors and investors.

• In coordination with the Strategic Partnership Unit and Director-GMPP, engage and support donors; identify their needs and goals and align IUCN’s priorities and fundraising efforts accordingly

• Lead, organize and coordinate IUCN’s engagement and inputs on Marine Plastic Pollution to relevant international technical and policy fora, ensuring that the messaging is science-led, evidence based and consistent with IUCN general policy and policy procedures.

4. Programmatic Knowledge and Communications
• In close collaboration with the Principal Scientist – Marine and Polar, ensure that any assigned Marine portfolio component, including Marine Plastic Pollution initiative, is accompanied with a robust and targeted knowledge management system which, inter alia, identifies key audiences and champions, identifies and proactively manages targeted knowledge uptake pathways and establishes a publications timeline and communication plan.
• Work closely with the IUCN’s Global Communications Unit to identify relevant and topical content that can contribute to IUCN corporate communications and thereby reach and engage a broad audience.

5. Staff supervision
• Supervise, mentor, guide and appraise any Marine project staff, interns or consultants as delegated by the Director-GMPP, ensuring that IUCN Human Resource management protocols are fully observed and that staff members have a clear idea of their role, responsibilities and how their performance is assessed

Section B – Competencies

1. Enthusiastic commitment and vision, characterized by:
• A commitment to nature conservation and sustainable development.
• Ability to provide inspiration and strategic direction.

2. Integrity, maturity and trust, as characterized by:
• Unimpeachable integrity as evidenced by behavior, communication style and way of handling ambiguous or difficult situations.
• Proven ability to effectively motivate and collaborate with colleagues and clients.
• Clear commitment to embracing and contributing to a culture of high performance and accountability.
• Demonstrated commitment to working within teams diverse in gender, nationality and background to achieve business results.
• A well-developed sense of self-awareness with an ability to proactively manage one’s own strengths and weaknesses and understand how these influence the performance and motivation of other colleagues.

3. Professional competencies, characterized by:
• A clear proven track record as competent and established authority on marine and polar conservation issues with an established operational network.
• Extensive direct experience with the workings of government regulatory authorities and executive agencies, of how Multilateral Environmental Agreements interfaces with national policy and the role of private sector and non-governmental institutions in national policy implementation.
• Ability and commitment to act in accordance with the core values of integrity, respect for diversity and professionalism as spelled out in IUCN’s Code of Conduct and Professional Ethics.
• Ability to communicate analytical and technical concepts, evidence and outcomes in a manner that is accessible to non-expert audiences.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills

4. Commitment to accountable and high quality delivery
• A clear and unambiguous work ethic that understands the necessity of, and demonstrates willingness to adhere to, institutional procedures and standards
• A clear sense of institutional propriety with respect to accountability and transparency at both the individual and team level
• An enthusiasm for and commitment to understanding and contributing to tangible, equitable and durable change processes in the field of conservation and sustainable development

5. Sound judgment and decision making, characterized by:
• Experience in identifying key issues in a complex situation, and consulting, gathering, and analyzing relevant information before proposing and implementing decisive actions or recommendations.
• Well-organized and logical in thought and action.
• Ability to anticipate, assess and account for political and reputational risk associated with contested or divergent technical issues.
REQUIREMENTS
  • Minimum of 10 years relevant experience in marine conservation within government or international organizations;

• A strong and verifiable programmatic delivery track record with respect to deploying knowledge, evidence and policy influence to facilitating and enabling substantive and demonstrable place-based change;

• At least 4 years’ experience of field-based delivery and project management;

• Impeccable writing skills. A track record of publications and quantitative analysis is desirable though not necessary;

• Demonstrated ability to coordinate and work with a multidisciplinary teams;

• Diplomacy, good networking skills and excellent interpersonal skills. Track record of working effectively in a multicultural and diverse environment with colleagues at all levels;

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English, including ability to communicate complex issues to a wide range of audiences. A second language (French, Spanish) is highly desirable;

• Ability to travel frequently.
SALARY
The gross annual salary for this position is between CHF 123'265 and CHF 154'081, subject to deductions for social security contributions and second-pillar pension, and before tax. While this is an indicative amount effective as of the current date, changes may occur as per IUCN's compensation practices without prior notice. The same applies to other organisations hosted by IUCN.
APPLICATIONS

Applicants are requested to apply online through the HR Management System, by opening the vacancy announcement and pressing the "Apply" button.

Applicants will be asked to create an account and submit their profile information. Applications will not be accepted after the closing date. The vacancy closes at midnight, Swiss time (GMT+1 / GMT+2 during Daylight Saving Time, DST). Please note that only selected applicants will be personally contacted for interviews.

Other job opportunities are published in the IUCN website: https://www.iucn.org/involved/jobs/


About IUCN

IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together.

Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of more than 1,400 Member organisations and around 16,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards.

IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development.

Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being.

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