Senior Administrative Assistant (Temporary – Parental Leave Cover)

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private partnership committed to saving children’s lives and protecting people’s health by increasing equitable use of vaccines in lower-income countries. The Vaccine Alliance brings together implementing country and donor governments, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other private sector partners. Gavi uses innovative finance mechanisms, including co-financing by recipient countries, to secure sustainable funding and adequate supply of quality vaccines. Since 2000, Gavi has contributed to the immunisation of more than 888 million children and the prevention of more than 15 million future deaths.

Over the past months, the crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic has taken hold. In countries with already fragile health systems, this is likely to have a catastrophic impact. Through the ground-breaking COVAX Facility and the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), Gavi is working with the international community to take urgent action in accelerating a COVID-19 vaccine and ensure it becomes available to populations no matter where they live. This is the moment where more resources from diverse and sustainable sources are required, and that available financing must be leveraged strategically and efficiently to unlock the greatest level of impact possible. What is needed now is a comprehensive approach to attract, retain, and multiply the financial and business resources of sovereign donors, the private sector, and other development institutions to strategically support countries, partners, and the Gavi secretariat as it seeks to ensure sustainability in its ambitious immunisation programmes and safeguard global health security through helping put together the world’s response to the global COVID-19 crisis.

Under the oversight of the Managing Director for Resource Mobilisation, Private Sector Partnerships & Innovative Finance (RMPSPIF), the Sovereign & Private Sector Engagement, Donor Relations & Campaigns team leads on (i) driving sovereign and private sector fundraising and engagement, including through blended and innovative financial instruments and ambitious new partnerships, in key industrialised markets with a particular focus on Canada, UK, Europe and the CIS; (ii) building visibility and trust with Gavi through smart donor relations and campaigning with civil society, parliamentarians and influential voices; and (iii) securing and cultivating support and funding for COVAX and COVAX AMC from a range of economies.

Please note this is a temporary role from November 2022 to May 2023.

MAIN DUTIES

• Provides full administrative and secretarial support for the Director and team (including preparing letters, emails and reports and diary management); • Communicates with internal/external contacts including high ranking officials in donor markets, on behalf of the Director, including drafting and editing of standard and specific donor correspondence; • Ensures Director and team members are prepared for major donor engagement including planning logistics, compiling briefings; • Supports the organisation of key donor events and campaigns, such as the mid-term review. Active participation in the Project Management Office in view of the Mid Term Review and other key donors events; • Anticipates and pro-actively plans for future team engagements and needs; • Ensures proper maintenance and retrieval system of team records (paper and electronic), including diligent management of an extensive donor contact database; • Works in close collaboration with Operation team for consultants and interns contracts; • Administers the team’s budget, provides regular reports to Director and thorough follow up of expenditures and budget balance; • Screens and prioritises incoming communications and workflow, determines routing for action, and ensures logging (for official correspondence) and rigorous follow-up; • Supports the Dose Sharing team with dose donations; • Helps the Director and team keep abreast of donor negotiations and tracks donor commitments; • Prepares the Gavi web site updates to reflect donor commitments as necessary; • Builds excellent, harmonious working relationships with colleagues and external contacts; • Supports external meetings and events as may be required; • Helps convene network of assistants across Gavi Secretariat.

Note: The essential functions listed in this section are not exhaustive of the job responsibilities; other duties may be assigned consistently with the department needs.

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS

• Completion of at least two years of university education. Training in secretarial/administrative field highly desirable.

WORK EXPERIENCE

• Significant career in secretarial/administrative field showing of progressively responsible work, including supporting a senior leader/team of a large private or public sector organisation for at least 3 years; • Understanding of, and demonstrated ability to interact and engage with, public and private donors; • Proven ability to quickly adapt to a complex administrative and organisational environment; • Experience working in multiple countries/international environment an asset.

SKILLS/COMPETENCIES

• High performer with a proven track record of operating in a high-pressure environment with tight timelines and often under extreme confidentiality. Experience supporting donor events is a plus; • Discretion to protect sensitive information; • Advanced secretarial and administrative skills, with excellent written and oral communications; • Technology savvy, ability to work across multiple platforms; • Ability to make decisions and operate independently, as well as judgement to know when to seek guidance; • Ability to multitask, tracking and managing many active priorities in parallel; • Judgement to prioritise between multiple important tasks but not drop other tasks; • Very highly organised and structured, good planner, with a high level of attention to detail; • Sophisticated understanding of international travel in order to support travel needs, both internationally and at local level; • Flexibility and willingness to work outside normal business hours as needed during peak periods or during urgent situations. An ethos to do what it takes; • Excellent interpersonal skills, diplomatic abilities, and cultural sensitivity to engage stakeholders in over 100 countries Gavi works with. Understanding of protocol highly desirable; • As an external face of Gavi, ability to generate respect; • Demonstrated team player, with ability to operate in a multi-cultural environment, and establish harmonious and effective working relationships; • Pro-active, with an ability to anticipate and address needs; • A good sense of humour.

LANGUAGES

• Fluency in written and spoken English and French is required; • Additional languages an asset.

CONTACTS

• Gavi secretariat; • Gavi Board members; • Developing and donor country governments; • UN, Multilateral & bilateral agencies; • Civil society organisations.