Programme Management Specialist

Functional Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Deputy Fund Director with a secondary reporting line to the PMO unit and other Access teams, and in accordance with UNOPS policies, procedures and practices, the Programme Management Specialist will be responsible for the following:

1. Provide process support
2. Provide support to project implementation
3. Project management and maturity improvement

1. Provide process support

• Help the Fund Management Office, in close collaboration with the Programme Management Office and the Support Services Unit, to find approaches, initiate actions, and implement solutions that (i) move things forward and (ii) are fully aligned with UNOPS rules and guidelines
• Help the FMO take forward issues related to (i) donor requests, (ii) procurement, (iii) finance, (iv) grant-making and grant-management, (v) Human Resources, (vi) transport, (vii) security, and (viii) other areas of work, as relevant;
• Liaise with the UNOPS HQ as required;
• Provide support to the Senior Management Team, to the Heads of Finance and Procurement, and the Fund Board Liaison Officer, and help bring them together around required processes and actions;
• Respond to corporate requirements and/or calls for information from HQ, the regional office, or the UNOPS Country Director;
• Help Access to Health Fund staff understand and use UNOPS tools and improve their capacity in relation to UNOPS processes;
• Identify programme and project management related training needs and support access and engagement of Access to Health staff to capacity building initiatives for UNOPS staff including support on-the-job training to the Access to Health team;
• Build capacity within the Access to Health program and strategy team to manage grant making and procurement processes: contribute to the dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for planning and knowledge building; ensure that local capacities are built at every level.

2. Provide support to individual units

• Provide guidance to the Board Liaison Officer in action tracking and ensuring implementation of Fund decisions, compiling and reporting on KPIs, and preparing materials for and responding to donor requests;
• Solid contribution to the Board Liaison Officer with the identification and management of risks, including risk management through the OneUNOPS systems and with the Fund Board.
• Support the PMO Finance unit by monitoring budgets, cash flow and reporting on expense obligations to ensure that deliverables are met in liaison with PMO; alert the Senior Management Team on any financial shortfalls and over/under-expenditures, propose budget revision and initiate corrective action when necessary.
• Provide advice as appropriate on procurement and grant making processes related to Call for Proposals/bids, Selection processes and procedures related to signing of contracts and compliance

3. Project management and maturity improvement

• Under the overall lead of the UNOPS Myanmar Project Management Office (PMO), support Access to Health engagement and operationalization of P3M3/programme management maturity improvement roadmap, processes and best practices
• Lead or co-lead work in areas requiring special attention or turnaround, initiate and lead/support adjustments when required; manage assigned work packages and take responsibility for progress.
• Identify the programme and project management related training needs assessment and support access and engagement of Access to Health Fund staff to capacity building initiatives for UNOPS staff.
• Contribute to the dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for planning and knowledge building; ensure that local capacities are built at every level.

4. Other

• Develop and maintain Access-wide dashboards and information analysis as needed by the Senior Management team or Fund Board
• Support the Senior Management team in the management of activities across the teams, including support to development and implementation of strategies, policies, annual work planning, standard operating procedures, briefings and working papers.
• Manage events, meetings, consultants and technical experts as needed by the Senior Management Team
• Lead or co-lead work in areas requiring special attention or turnaround, initiate and lead/support adjustments when required; manage assigned work packages and take responsibility for progress.
• Assist in the Fund Director and Deputy Director with any other tasks as needed

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education

• A Master’s Degree in Project Management, Law, Finance, Business Administration, Political Science, Development, Communications, Economics or other relevant discipline is required.
• A combination of Bachelor’s degree with an additional 2 years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the education requirements outlined above.

Experience

• A minimum of at least 5 years of relevant and progressive professional experience, specifically in the field of Project Management with experience of successful implementation and/or oversight of programmes and projects is required.
• Knowledge of UNOPS’ project management tools, UNOPS financial and procurement rules and regulations, and financial management tools, and establishing best practices in Project/ Programme Management is desirable.
• Experience in programme management or grants management is desirable.
• Strong experience with data analysis, management reporting and project management tools and information management systems is desirable.
• Previous experience of working within a complex programme environment is desirable.
• Prior experience working with donors/ multi-donor funds is desirable.

Language

• Fluency in English is required.