Mediation and Conflict Resolution Officer, P-2, Office of the Ombudsman for UN Funds and Programmes, Panama City, Panama
Job no: 563887
Position type: Fixed Term Appointment
Location: Panama Division/Equivalent: Executive Group
School/Unit: Executive Director’s Office
Department/Office: Off of Executive Director
Categories: Partnerships
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, dedication
The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.
The Office of the Ombudsman supports five UN Funds and Programmes (UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNOPS, and UN Women), as an independent, confidential, neutral and informal dispute resolution resource to provide a safe setting in which all personnel feel comfortable to bring forward their workplace concerns.
How can you make a difference?
Under the supervision of the Mediation Specialist the Mediation and Conflict Resolution Officer assists and provides support to overall mediation activities, data collection and analysis.
The efficiency and effectiveness of support provided by the incumbent ensures that a strong mediation function is provided to the office, which in turns affects the timeliness and the quality of Ombudsman and Mediation Services offered.
The Mediation and Conflict Resolution Officer will reinforce the Office services capacity through the efficient management of administrative and operations processes as well as through effective participation and support in conflict-resolution services.
Key Functions, accountabilities and related duties/tasks
1. Mediation
- Support the Mediation Specialist in the management of mediation cases, including in-take, scheduling of mediation meetings and sessions, status tracking and follow-up of pending actions.
- Support the Mediation Specialist in development of mediation strategy, workplan, and budget.
- Assist in the preparation of mediation agreements, and in drafting settlement agreements and other documents necessary for the process.
- Conduct follow-up with parties to mediation as pertinent.
- Provide information on the mediation process and requirements as appropriate.
- Contribute to the development of tools and procedures for data gathering and case analysis.
- Participate and assist the Mediation Specialist in the identification of trends.
- Assist Mediation Specialist in the implementation of mediation outreach and training activities, including assisting in delivering training, creating materials, drafting instructions and communications for participants.
- Travel to field offices to assist Mediation Specialist in training workshops, as requested.
- Assist Mediation Specialist to plan and monitor the use of mediation services resources, including by creating reports, charts, quality assurance materials, etc..
- Manage administration and procurement processes to select, train, and support on-call mediation consultants.
- Manage the invoicing and daily administration of the services of the on-call mediators and members of the International Advisory Board of the Mediation Unit.
- Monitor, administer, and support the budget of the Mediation Unit.
- Assist Mediation Specialist to develop and maintain roster of external mediators.
- Provide administrative support to Mediation Specialist as needed.
- Conduct pre-mediation meetings as assigned.
2. Conflict Resolution
- Provides support in the offering of conflict-resolution services as requested and backstops Mediation Specialist during absences and as needed during peak times.
- Participate in drafting periodic activity reports for the Office of the Ombudsman.
- Follow and analyze developments pertaining to the overall United Nations Administration of Justice, focusing particularly on matters, policies and actions affecting participating funds and programmes.
- Participate in meetings to identify and interpret trends.
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…
- Education: A first-level degree in law, alternative dispute resolution, organizational behavior, or conflict resolution, is required.
- Experience: A minimum of two (2) years of progressively responsible experience in conflict management, alternative dispute resolution, or other relevant field is required. Experience in a field relating to workplace conflict resolution is a strong asset. Experience in conflict resolution training is an asset. Full proficiency in automated systems such as MS Word, Excel, etc.
- Language: Fluency in English is required. Good communication skills in Spanish are an asset. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, or Russian) language is an asset.
For every Child, you demonstrate…
UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values
UNICEF competencies required for this post are…
(1) Builds and maintains partnerships (2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (3) Drive to achieve results for impact (4) Innovates and embraces change (5) Manages ambiguity and complexity (6) Thinks and acts strategically (7) Works collaboratively with others.
During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.
UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. 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 is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.
Remarks:
THIS POST IS PART OF THE HEADQUARTERS EFFICIENCIES INITIATIVE (HQEI) AND IS SUBJECT TO RELOCATION TO ANOTHER HQ LOCATION IN THE NEAR FUTURE.
Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.
UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.
Advertised: Jul 11 2023 Eastern Daylight Time
Application close: Aug 15 2023 Eastern Daylight Time
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- Closes Aug 15 2023Mediation and Conflict Resolution Officer, P-2, Office of the Ombudsman for UN Funds and Programmes, Panama City, Panama in Panama
The Office of the Ombudsman supports five UN Funds and Programmes (UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNOPS, and UN Women), as an independent, confidential, neutral and informal dispute resolution resource to provide a safe setting in which all personnel feel comfortable to bring forward their workplace concerns. The efficiency and effectiveness of support provided by the incumbent ensures that a strong mediation function is provided to the office, which in turns affects the timeliness and the quality of Ombudsman and Mediation Services offered. The Mediation and Conflict Resolution Officer will reinforce the Office services capacity through the efficient management of administrative and operations processes as well as through effective participation and support in conflict-resolution services.