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Congress Logistics Officer

Vacancy #:   2905
Unit:   Union Development Group
Organisation:   International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Location:   Headquarters, Gland, Switzerland
Reporting to:   Congress Manager
Work percentage:   100%
Grade:   P1
Expected start date:   01 February 2019
Type of contract:   Max-term (35 months)
Closing date:   11 November 2018
BACKGROUND
The IUCN World Conservation Congress is a quadrennial event of several thousand participants that brings together the IUCN Members for the four-day Members’ Assembly and is preceded by a four-day Forum with several hundred events open to the general public. The Congress also includes an exhibition open to the general public and feature events in each thematic village focused on showcasing cutting edge solutions, forging new networks and partnerships and creating commitments. The entire Congress will be designed as a sustainable and gender-responsive event.

The next Congress will take place from 11 to 19 June 2020 at the Parc Chanot in Marseille, France.

The Congress overall supervision is under the responsibility of the Congress Preparatory Committee of the IUCN Council. The Congress Unit, part of the Union Development Group is responsible for the detailed preparation, organization and management of the Congress. The Unit is managed by the Congress Manager who is in charge of the day-to day planning and development of the Congress. S/he oversees the work of the staff hired for Congress and ensures that the contributions from different Secretariat Units are coordinated.

While the Congress Unit is the only Unit working full time on the Congress, a much larger team of IUCN staff from offices all over the world will be involved in the planning and preparations of the Congress to deliver a successful Forum and Members’ Assembly. The Congress Logistics Officer is expected to work closely with all of them.
JOB DESCRIPTION
MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:
The Congress Logistics Officer will report to the Congress Manager and be part of the Congress Unit at IUCN Headquarters. S/he will be responsible for delivering part of the overall logistical arrangements before, during and after the World Conservation Congress.

SPECIFIC DUTIES:
The duties involved in providing logistical arrangements for the Congress include:

o Liaise as necessary with the Host Committee and the suppliers such as but not limited to the Professional Congress Organizer (PCO), Parc Chanot, ISO consultant, etc. regarding the management of following logistical aspects:

• Establish and implement the Congress registration process with the PCO including development of the trilingual Congress registration online system and registration management process;
• Liaise with the Host Country Consular services to develop clear visa guidelines for participants and follow up on any visa support requests for speakers, sponsored delegates and staff as well as general participants as necessary;
• Manage accommodation services and ensure services are delivered properly by the PCO including but not limited to selection of hotels, negotiation of rates and conditions, signing of hotel contract, block assignments, trilingual online booking services, block releases, financial reconciliation;
• Ensure a local transportation plan is implemented by PCO, liaise as necessary with local stakeholders including development of a Congress public transportation pass, welcome services, signage in public transport vehicles and at public transport stops, etc;
• Develop and implement a Food & Beverage plan for the Congress with the PCO, ensure the plan is in line with the Congress sustainable policy;
• Develop and coordinate implementation of the overall signage requirements onsite (within the venue and offsite);
• Ensure appointment of a freight company for shipping;
• Coordinate Congress room assignments from official Congress sessions to private meetings and ensure that the IUCN room management system is up to date.
• Coordinate Congress interpretation services with PCO including support of bidding process, scheduling of interpreted sessions, providing background material and speeches for interpreters, and logistical requirements.
• Coordinate all logistical requirements with local stakeholders for offsite events;
• Support the development of the Green Congress policy and ensure the policy is implemented by suppliers and that systems are in place to manage and reduce any negative impact of the Congress, to track and monitor success and to obtain ISO 20121 certification;

o Direct and supervise team members as necessary

o Support the Host Committee in preparing Request for Proposals and contracts as necessary and ensure that services contracted will meet the Congress objectives and timeline and minimize IUCN’s risks and liabilities;

o Ensure timely delivery and exercise quality control of all logistical arrangements before and during the Congress as per work plan and supervise the delivery of services by the sub-contractors;

o Assist the Congress Manager in the coordination of the development of Congress IT applications (Congress Website, Programme, Facility management tool, etc.) and ensure that applications developed by suppliers are integrated with IUCN systems;

o Liaise with Forum Manager and Members’ Assembly Manager and other IUCN staff to ensure that their requirements are being properly met;

o Prepare meetings and site visits linked to congress planning and participate in these and assist in preparing meetings of the Congress Preparatory Committee (CPC), as necessary;

o Provide logistical information for all congress publications and website, according to milestones established;

o Provide a final report with “lessons learnt” regarding the above logistics aspect and ensure adequate post-event follow-up, including production of relevant publications/letters, and

o If and when time permits, provide support to the Congress Manager and the Congress Director in other areas as necessary.

The above TORs contain the main responsibilities and duties of this position. However in an ever evolving organisation such as IUCN staff members are expected to show flexibility in their approach to work and be willing to undertake other tasks that are reasonably allocated to them but which are not part of their regular TORs. Where any task becomes a regular part of staff member’s responsibilities, the TORs should be changed in consultation between the manager, the staff member and the HR Unit. Any one of the three may initiate the consultation.
REQUIREMENTS
  • 5+ years of working experience, ideally in managing event planning of the size of the World Conservation Congress preferably with international associations or organizations.

• Ability to work hands-on and to handle a large number of aspects simultaneously and prioritize efficiently;

• Fluency in English and French, knowledge of Spanish desirable;

• Facility in handling event-related IT software desirable (registration, room management, programme, mobile apps, etc);

• Attention to detail and ability to work under pressure;

• Ability to anticipate risks and to identify and deliver workable solutions

• Ability to travel regularly and availability for being onsite in Marseille at least 2-3 weeks prior to the Congress and until 25 June 2020;

• Team player with can-do attitude and ability to build effective relationships with people of all levels and business areas;
SALARY
The gross annual salary for this position is between CHF 86'330 and CHF 107'913, 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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