Consultancy: Consultant, Business Support Office (BSO) Senior Manager – Health Section, Immunization Unit, Copenhagen – Req # 537433

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, hope.

 

Consultancy Title: Business Support Office (BSO) Senior Manager

Section/Division/Duty Station: PD/Health Section/Immunization Unit/Copenhagen

Duration: 15 February 2021 to 31 January 2022 (11.5 months)

 

About UNICEF

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world’s leading children’s rights organization would like to hear from you. For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children’s survival, protection and development. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments. UNICEF has over 12,000 staff in more than 145 countries.

BACKGROUND

The UNICEF Strategic Plan 2018-2021 has an output indicator to improve the performance of immunization supply chains. The measurement for UNICEF is to use the Effective Vaccine Management benchmark. This is important as the GAVI Alliance is providing funding to countries to improve their supply chains (e.g. investments into cold-chains, temperature monitoring etc.) and these interventions will lead to improved immunization coverage rates and this improvement will be measured through Effective Vaccine Management benchmark of Gavi’s 68 countries. UNICEF plays a catalytic role in this environment and is a convening partner and is co-chairing the GAVI Immunization Supply Chain Steering Committee (iSC2) that oversees the implementation of the strategy.

In order to provide continuous and effective coordination of partners to deliver the Gavi Alliance Global Immunization Supply Chain Strategy, the iSC2 has agreed that, in order to streamline the coordination and to ensure effective collaboration, continued support is vital. The Business Support Office Senior Manager will provide coordination support to the GAVI Supply Chain Steering Committee (iSC2) as part of the Bridge grant with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. 

UNICEF is expected to coordinate the work across many stakeholders (GAVI, WHO, CEPI, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) and the urgent work on the COVID-19 vaccine introduction will be done in alignment with UNICEF’s HSS approach to strengthen the primary health care systems, the immunization supply chains and to overcome bottlenecks that have been identified through the EVM Assessments. UNICEF has committed to support the urgent preparation of guidance, tools and trainings to introduce the COVID-19 vaccine.

The continuity of UNICEF’s leadership on iSC2 has been crucial to provide solid support in coordinating iSC2 for coherent supply chain programme interventions with global partners.

Terms of Reference / Deliverables

Scope of Work:

Under the supervision of the Immunization Health Specialist, the contractor will focus on:

• Supporting the Immunization Supply Chain strategy by “leading from behind”, positioning themselves in service of iSC2 Gavi Alliance partners and to support the respective co-chairs as a neutral entity
• Facilitating steering committee and working group meetings and calls, coordinated planning and action, and fostering a culture of learning
• Drawing connections across the effort and between the effort’s work and other initiatives in the global health space
• Overseeing the project management and sustainability of the internal coordination infrastructure
• Consolidate on the gains made in the current strategic period
• Complete the development of the Gavi Alliance 2021-2025 iSC strategy and disseminate it
• Report progress of the Gavi Alliance 2015-2020 iSC strategy
• Facilitate the development of the 2021 Gavi supply chain SFA proposal and review of performance of old SFA investments.
• Contributing and supporting the co-chairs and iSC2 to identify information (both qualitative and quantitative) required to make decisions (e.g., grants analysis; EVM analysis)
• Overseeing and engaging, in partnership with Gavi Secretariat and UNICEF, in quality analysis to understand opportunities, translate strategic and implementation implications as needed (e.g., using DISC indicators; Gavi Secretariat grants data)

Qualifications

(1) Education

• University degree in Business, Public Health, Sciences, economics or a relevant field.  Additional qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the university degree.

2) Work experience

• 6-8 years of experience demonstrating the skills/capabilities of delivering results, of which 3-5 years should be at a senior or executive level
• Strong knowledge of GAVI and UNICEF
• Strong project management skills, including the ability to coordinate multiple workstreams and draft and disseminate key communications pieces in a timely manner
• Understanding of the global health architecture and the major relationships between multilateral, bilateral, private funders and normative and implementing agencies
• Dedication to improving access to new, existing and underused vaccines for children living in the world’s poorest countries
• Ability to “lead from behind” – comfortable working in service of iSC2 partners, not as the center of the Gavi Alliance partnership
• Facilitate in quantitative analyses, using excel

3) Competencies

• Experience in demonstrating neutrality/impartiality to ensure participation and input from across partners
• Fluency in English, both written and spoken
• Strong facilitation skills, including managing multiple stakeholders and facilitating diverse groups to consensus
• Strong organizational, planning, and analytical skills
• Core Values
  • Commitment
  • Diversity and Inclusion
  • Integrity
• Core Competencies
  • Communication
  • Drive for Results
• Key Functional Competencies
  • Planning and Organizing
  • Adapting and responding to Change
  • Coping with Pressure and Setbacks

Requirements:

• Completed profile in UNICEF’s e-Recruitment system and provide Personal History Form (P11) Upload copy of academic credentials
• Financial proposal that will include:
• your daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference (can be downloaded here: https://www.unicef.org/about/employ/index_consultancy_assignments.html 
  • travel costs and daily subsistence allowance, if internationally recruited or travel is required as per TOR.
  • Any other estimated costs: visa, health insurance, and living costs as applicable.
  • Indicate your availability
• Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.
• Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

U.S. Visa information:

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4.  

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results. View our competency framework at: Here

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, race, sexual orientation, nationality, culture, appearance, socio-economic status, ability, age, religious and ethnic backgrounds to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.