United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) Jobs in Nairobi Kenya: Recruitment for Chief,Translation And Editorial Section

THE ORGANIZATION:

The United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) is the UN headquarters in Africa and the representative office of the Secretary-General. UNON supports programme implementation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) globally, as well as other UN offices in Kenya, by providing administrative, conference and information services (www.unon.org). This post is located in the Translation and Editorial Section within the Division of Conference Services (DCS).

POST TITLE:   Chief,Translation And Editorial Section, P5

DEPARTMENT/ OFFICE: United Nations Office at Nairobi

DUTY STATION: NAIROBI

POSTING PERIOD: 11 January 2012-11 March 2012

JOB OPENING NUMBER: 12-CON-UNON-20894-R-NAIROBI

UNITED NATIONS CORE VALUES: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity

Org. Setting and Reporting.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Sunday, 11th of March 2012.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Under the general supervision of the Chief, DCS, the incumbent is responsible for the day-to-day operation as well as the long-term planning of the Translation and Editorial Section; ensuring that all terminology, translation, editing, reporting and text-processing requirements of meetings held at or serviced from Nairobi are met; coordinating language resources at Nairobi with those at UN Headquarters and other UN offices as required; assigning report writers, editors and other necessary staff for meetings held away from Nairobi; identifying the anticipated long-term translation, editing and text processing needs of UNON; ensuring proper staffing of the Section; and providing required training.

Specifically, the incumbent's responsibilities will be as follows:

• Managing, supervising and monitoring the performance of all staff in the Section,
• Carrying out programmatic/management and administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the Section, including preparation of budgets and evaluation of staff performance (PAS),
• Planning and overseeing the daily programming of work and making arrangements that may be necessitated by an emergency or unforeseen demand on the capacity of the Section,
• Bearing in mind the capacity of the Section, making long-term and short-term work projections based on the calendar of conferences,
• Preparing inputs for the work programme of the Division, determining priorities and requesting resources for completion of outputs and their timely delivery,
• Establishing and/or advising on training courses required to ensure staff development at all levels and meet the requirements of the Section,
• Preparing instructions for editors, translators/revisers and internal notes on editorial matters and work procedure,
• Performing other duties as may be assigned by the Chief of the Service.

COMPETENCIES:

Professionalism: 

• Knowledge of a broad range of subjects dealt with the United Nations, i.e. political, social, legal, economic, financial, administrative, scientific and technical,
• Ability to serve as arbitrator on language translation and other technical issues arising in the Section,
• Shows pride in work and in achievements; 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 situation.

Communication: 

• Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Leadership: 

• Serves as a role model that other people want to follow; establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; shows the courage to take unpopular stands; provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.

Managing Performance: 

• Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority; makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member; accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches tasks to skills; monitors progress against milestones and deadlines; regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching of staff, encourages risk-taking and supports the development and career aspirations of staff; appraises performance fairly.

JUDGEMENT/DECISION-MAKING:

• Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; makes tough decisions when necessary.

EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS & EXPERIENCE:

• Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in social sciences, finance, business administration or management, or in a related field,
• A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree,
• Candidates for this position must have passed one of the United Nations Competitive Examinations for Editors, Translators and Verbatim Reporters in any language,
• A minimum of 10 years of experience in editing, translation, verbatim reporting and use of relevant computer software, electronic tools and databases, of which eight preferably should have been in the United Nations, is required. Supervisory or managerial experience is also required.

LANGUAGES:

A perfect command of one of the official languages of the United Nations Secretariat, which must be the candidate's main language, is required. Excellent knowledge of at least two other official languages, as tested by the relevant United Nations Competitive Examination for Editors, Translators, Verbatim Reporters, is also required.

ASSESSMENT METHOD:

• Evaluation of qualified candidates for this position may include a substantive assessment which will be followed by a competency-based interview.

SPECIAL NOTICE:

Staff members are subject to the authority of 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.

All applicants are strongly encouraged to apply online as soon as possible after the job opening has been posted and well before the deadline stated in the job opening. Online applications will be acknowledged where an email has been provided. If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgment within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. In such cases, please resubmit the application if necessary.

UNITED NATIONS CONSIDERATIONS:

"The United Nations shall place 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. (Charter of the United Nations, Chapter 3, article 8). "

NO FEE:

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