Accounting Assistant

The United Nations Secretary-General is responsible for the investment of the assets of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund (UNJSPF). The Secretary-General has delegated this responsibility to the Representative of the Secretary-General for the investment of the assets of the UNJSPF (RSG). The RSG is, in turn, assisted in this function by the Office of Investment Management (OIM). OIM manages a $80+ billion multi-asset class, global investment portfolio, about 85% of which is actively managed in-house. Asset classes under management comprise global equities, fixed income, foreign exchange, private equity, real estate, infrastructure, timber and commodities. OIM’s staff are all based in New York, but come from over 30 countries. For more information please visit OIM’s website at https://oim.unjspf.org/.

This position is located in the Middle Office of the Operations Section. The incumbent will report to an Accountant.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Accounting Assistant (Investment Operations Assistant-Middle Office) will be responsible for the following duties:

• Scrutinizes source documents for completeness, accuracy and validity of broker confirmations.
• Investigates erroneous or unmatched trade details and takes appropriate corrective actions.
• Communicates with brokers, private fund managers and/or counterparties regarding missing documentation or any other issues related to discrepancies in trade details and amounts.
• Reconciles and reviews end-of-day trades and ensure proper clearance procedures have been followed.
• Ensures quality control over trade capture and validation in the trade order management system vis-à-vis the central trade matching system for global equities and fixed income securities
• Ensures manual confirmation and validation of trade details for trades not enabled in the central trade matching system.
• Initiates/Prepares on-boarding of new brokers in the trade order management system and the central trade matching system.
• Consolidates and compiles data on trade volume, straight-through processing rate, manually-adjusted trades for performance monitoring.
• Prepares worksheets and assists with the preparation of key performance indicators and/or key risk indicators.
• Audits and monitors changes to various reference and static data related to investments including, but not limited to, market calendar and market fees, etc., to ensure correctness and completeness of information in the trade order management system and the central trade matching system and adherence to relevant market requirements, standards or practices.
• Contributes to the implementation and enhancements of the trade order management system and the central trade matching system used in the matching of investment transactions including user acceptance tests.
• Provides guidance and training to colleagues as required.
• Supervises other General Service staff as required.
• Drafts/prepares memoranda and/or email communication to brokers, counterparties, global custodians.
• Responds to queries from staff members and third parties.
• Performs other duties as may be required, including preparation of on-boarding of new brokers in the trade management and the central trade matching systems

Competencies

• Professionalism: Knowledge of global financial markets, cash management and investment operations, procedures, standards and practices. Ability to extract, interpret, and analyze a wide variety of data and to resolve data discrepancies and other problems. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work.
• Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.
• Planning & Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent.

Work Experience

A minimum of seven years of work experience in accounting, finance, investment operations or related area is required.

Experience using post-trade matching platforms, such as OMGEO or equivalent is desirable.

Experience using Bloomberg AIM, or other trade order management systems, is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is desirable.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

• The selected candidate is expected to start as soon as possible.
• Appointment at the United Nations is subject to mandatory adherence to the United Nations Financial disclosure Programme. An appointment to the Office of Investment Management (OIM) of the UNJSPF additionally requires compliance with the rules and regulations pertaining to OIM’s Code of Ethics, Personal Securities, Gift and Hospitality policies.
• This position is subject to local recruitment pursuant to staff rule 4.4 of the United Nations Staff Rules. All staff in the General Service and related categories shall be recruited in the country or within commuting distance of each office, irrespective of their nationality and of the length of time they may have been in the country. A staff member subject to local recruitment shall not be eligible for the allowances or benefits exclusively applicable to international recruitment.
• Passing the Global General Service Test (GGST) is a prerequisite for recruitment consideration in the General Services and related categories in the United Nations Secretariat. Applicants who have not passed the GGST at the time of application may be invited for the test after submitting an application. Staff members who were granted a fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointment as a result of having passed a predecessor test recognized by the Office of Human Resources Management, and who have continuously held such appointments, are not required to take the new test.
• Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.