Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Senior Human Resources Officer supports the UNHCR¿s People Strategy and contributes to the implementation of the 2018 independent Human Resources review, which resulted in the establishment of HR strategic priorities and the reconfiguration and transformation of the Division of Human Resources (DHR) from a largely transactional model into a strategic business partner for field operations and senior management. Having the right people in the right place at the right time is at the core of enabling UNHCR to protect and respond to persons of concern. By attracting, retaining and developing a talented, diverse and agile workforce while nurturing a culture of excellence, respect and wellbeing for all, UNHCR¿s Human Resources acts as a strategic partner to the organization enabling a people-centric culture.
The Senior Human Resources Officer contributes to the development of a HR customer service-oriented culture that values proactivity, continuous improvement, innovation and high performance. By translating operational needs into workforce action and individual development needs, the Senior Human Resources Officer plays a critical role in partnering with management and the workforce. The main areas of work of the Senior Human Resources Officer include the implementation of HR policies, staff administration, workforce planning, recruitment, and talent development with inclusion, diversity and gender as a cross-cutting issue. S/he will also support the implementation of the staff health and counselling plans and in fostering an inclusive and respectful working environment. The incumbent maintains employee confidence and protects the organization and its workforce by keeping human resource information confidential.
The Senior Human Resources Officer is usually supervised by the Representative, Deputy or Assistant Representative responsible for HR in a Country Operation, or the most senior HR staff in a Regional Bureau. She/he supervises HR Professional and General Service staff.
The incumbent maintains a direct working relationship with a number of functions across the Division of Human Resources (DHR). For positions in Bureaux or Country Operations, the incumbent also works closely with the Senior HR Partner, the Senior Medical Officer and Senior Staff counsellor for his/her region.
He/she also maintains contact and close cooperation with other UN agencies in the region or country and represent UNHCR in the working groups/task forces within country/regional UN inter-agency mechanisms.
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All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR¿s core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.
Duties
Strategic workforce advice and operational support:
– Engage with management to understand priorities, and provide advice and solutions on all aspects of HR in line with delegated HR authorities.
– Sponsor HR initiatives that support organizational culture change such as good people management practices, and promoting gender, inclusion and diversity.
– Lead HR operational activities to ensure timely provision of HR solutions, prioritizing according to the needs and risks.
Assignments and Talent Acquisition:
– Oversee the process of recruitment, assignment and reassignment of locally-recruited staff and affiliate workforce, ensuring compliance with UNHCR rules and procedures, and providing advice to managers where required.
– Set up and run (Regional) Assignments Committee.
– Take a proactive approach to risk management in the areas of recruitment, ensuring the issues are identified, addressed and reported and, where appropriate, escalated.
Advice to managers and staff, and contribution to an inclusive work environment:
– Build dialog and outreach with staff to provide support with their queries; and also promote dialog between staff and management to help find solutions to HR-related issues.
– Be proactive in identifying issues, themes and patterns affecting the workforce¿s health and welfare, including sexual harassment and abuse of authority.
– Ensure that on-boarding, induction, re-integration into the workplace and off-boarding support, is provided to colleagues; Induction programmes should include information on Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) and Sexual Harassment, Code of Conduct as well as workforce¿s rights and obligations.
HR policies and inter-agency:
– Ensure compliance with UNHCR¿s Human Resources policies and procedures and the UN staff rules, regulations and UNHCR administrative instructions.
– Participate in a network among HR staff members in the region in order to harmonize implementation of HR policies and initiatives, collect field insights to inform the development of DHR policies and activities; identify and share HR best practices, also through contacts with other UN agencies.
Duty of Care:
– Contribute to establishing and maintaining a medical evacuation plan with senior management, Field safety and the Senior Medical Officer.
– Support the development and implementation of a Duty of Care strategy. Identify and assess issues related to duty of care including physical, mental health and safety of UNHCR¿s workforce. Promote work/life balance and flexible working arrangements with managers and staff.
For positions in Regional Bureaux only:
– In the absence of a Senior Talent Development Officer in the Bureau:
– Implement a talent sourcing and development strategy for UNHCR workforce in the region, in line with UNHCR¿s needs and staff members¿ career planning.
– Equip HR teams and Managers in the region with skills on people management and tools related to talent development, career guidance and performance management.
– Perform other related duties as required.
Minimum Qualifications
Education & Professional Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
For P4/NOD – 9 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 8 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 7 years relevant experience with Doctorate degree
Field(s) of Education
Human Resources Management; Human Resource Development;
Personnel Administration; Business Administration; or other relevant field.
(Field(s) of Education marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Certificates and/or Licenses
Not specified
Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Experience working in Human Resources. UNHCR HR certification is a plus. Sound knowledge of general HR policies, processes and systems. Managerial experience.
Desirable
Proven ability to identify and implement successful business related HR interventions. Experience in some of the following areas: workforce planning, organizational design, recruitment, HR policy or talent development. Experience in HR information technology systems and tools. Experience in field humanitarian operations and/or emergency settings. Experience working with the United Nations. Experience working in a multi-cultural setting.
Functional Skills
HR-Local mass recruitment
HR-Coordination and Oversight of Workforce Mobility
HR-Inclusion, Diversity and Gender strategy design and implementation
HR-HR data and people analytics
HR-HR Business Partnering
HR-Employee Relationship Management
HR-Talent Development and Nurturing
RM-Risk Management
SO-Critical Thinking and problem solving
SO-Learning Agility
SO-Situational Judgement
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Language Requirements
For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.
For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.
All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.
As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.
This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.
Desired Candidate Profile
The candidate should have very strong managerial and leadership skills to be able to support the Snr. Admin Coordinator in ensuring appropriate HR structure is maintained, trained and led to fulfill the overall operational and strategic priorities of the Bangladesh operation.
Required languages (expected Overall ability is at least B2 level):
Desired languages
Operational context
Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:
To view occupational safety and health considerations for this duty station, please visit this link:
Nature of Position:
In an operation that evolved from an emergency situation to a more stable operation with staffing budget of over USD$ 24 million in 2022 with nearly 400 staff, the Snr HR Officer (SHRO) ensures that HR services are to provided in a client-oriented manner (while ensuring consistent ratio and harmonized condition of service among the existing workforce: UNHCR, UNOPS and other affiliates). SHRO is a key member of the Snr. Mgmt Team, working under the direct supervision of the Senior Administrative Coordinator and leads a team of a HR Officer, Asst HRO, Snr HR Assc, HR Assc and Snr HR Asst. The ideal candidate should have solid UNHCR experience in HR management both in the field and HQs. S/he needs to be motivated, hardworking, able to juggle competing priorities. S/he should also possess excellent communication skills and negotiating capacity. SHRO implements the UNHCR’s People Strategy across the operation, and serves as a strategic business partner for the Snr Mgmt. S/he ensures integrity, transparency, fairness and professionalism in all HR matters. S/he provides guidance to managers and staff at large on complex HR matters, liaises and consults with relevant HQs Departments on policy level discussions, clarifications and confirmations. S/he must possess solid experience for international recruitments given the high staff turnover due to 2 years SAL. S/he provides HR policy informative session and supports snr mgmt. with succession planning and talent identification. SHRO needs to have a good understanding of HR dashboards and will be responsible for tracking of various staffing trends in the operation and presenting to the snr mgmt. to ensure diversity in the international recruitment and improving the gender balance of national workforce. S/he will be coordinating all staffing review processes and provide guidance to the snr. mgmt. to ensure that the operation is rightly staff to effectively implement the operational strategies. S/he needs strong experience with national and AWF recruitments and should have demonstrated experience with the role of ex-officio for the Local Assignment Committee. S/he is closely involved in addressing issues of staff relations and grievances, conflict management., counselling, providing advice on support and complaint mechanisms, as well as ensuring that staff welfare is attended at all level within the operation, maintaining highest level of confidentiality and compliance with the prevailing rules and regulations.
Living and Working Conditions:
Cox’s Bazar is a category D family duty station with a 2-year Standard Assignment Length (SAL). Educational facilities are limited, and international schools from primary to secondary school are currently available in Dhaka only. Health services are limited in Cox’s Bazar, but more reliable facilities are available in Dhaka. Malaria and dengue risks exist throughout the year. Vaccination against Japanese Encephalitis and diphtheria are recommended. Cox’s Bazar is a principal tourist destination within Bangladesh, due to its location at the Bay of Bengal and its long beach. Infrastructure and shopping options in Cox’s Bazar – a small city of just 250,000 persons is very basic. International staff reside in privately rented apartments, or serviced apartments all of which provide basic standards. The Rest and Recuperation (R&R) cycle in Cox’s Bazar is 8 weeks. The current R&R locations are (1) Dubai, UAE, (2) Istanbul, Turkey, and (3) Doha, Qatar. Cox`s Bazar is connected by several daily flights to Dhaka, albeit only during daylight hours. Banks/ATM machines are available in Cox’s Bazar and credit/debit cards are accepted. Foreign currency can be exchanged in banks and exchange houses. Staff who intend to be joined by family members, in particular young children, should contact HR for more information, as educational and medical facilities are not adequate. The security level system in Bangladesh is level 3 moderate. Although security is generally acceptable, given the current situation in the area, no movement on highways at night is allowed. Walking and jogging in the streets as earmarked is permitted. Crowded local markets should be avoided. Security Clearance is required and can be requested via TRIP at https://dss.un.org. Requests for clearance should be submitted 7 days prior travel.
Additional Qualifications
Skills
Education
BA: Administration (Required), BA: Human Resources Management (Required), BA: Law (Required)
Certifications
Work Experience
Competencies
Accountability, Analytical thinking, Change capability & adaptability, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous learning, Communication, Empowering & building trust, Judgement & decision making, Leadership, Managing performance, Managing resource, Organizational awareness, Planning & organizing, Strategic planning & visions, Teamwork & collaboration
UNHCR Salary Calculator
Compendium
March 2023 Compendium – Part B
Additional Information
Functional clearance
This position requires Functional Clearance
How to apply
CLICK HERE TO APPLY
The UNHCR workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages and opinions. UNHCR seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. Applications are encouraged from all qualified candidates without distinction on grounds of race, colour, sex, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity.
Please note that UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, travelling, processing, training or any other fees).
Closing date of receipt of applications: 20 April 2023 (midnight Geneva time)
