Senior Program Assistant

Job #: req22795

Organization: World Bank

Sector: Ethics & Internal Justice Systems

Grade: GD

Term Duration: 3 years 0 months

Recruitment Type: Local Recruitment

Location: Washington, DC,United States

Required Language(s): English

Preferred Language(s): Spanish, French, Chinese

Closing Date: 6/1/2023 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

Description

Working at the World Bank Group provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their most significant development challenges. The Bank is one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries, a unique global partnership of five institutions dedicated to ending extreme poverty, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges. Visit www.worldbank.org.

Maya Angelou once said, “History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.” Such is the ethos of the Race Equity Office (REO). The REO is a new unit in the World Bank Group established to prevent, monitor, and respond to systemic practices and procedures contributing to racial discrimination within the organization.

The establishment of the REO results from a call for internal change with increased organizational responsiveness, support, and guidance to those who believe they have experienced discrimination based on race. We are a small but dedicated unit committed to providing substantive support, service, engagement, and remedy.

The REO is seeking to hire a dynamic and experienced Senior Program Assistant to be a vital member of the REO team, supplying to the Unit’s efforts to enhance creativity, efficiency, and accountability in all administrative tasks of our mission: Contribute to the eradication of racist discriminatory practice, policy, and relationships within the World Bank Group and specific targets in each of the REO programming areas such as engagement, outreach, advocacy, and knowledge production.

Duties and responsibilities

Duties and responsibilities will include, but not be limited to, the following:

•  General administrative assistance to the Race Equity Officer and the Race Equity Office.
•  Provide substantive and timely operational support to the Race Equity Officer on a variety of activities.
•  Provide high-quality administrative and logistical support, including collecting and organizing relevant background material for core and leadership meetings, drafting correspondence, preparing inputs, and proofreading outgoing communications for accuracy.
•  Maintain the reception and front office service for people requesting the services of the REO.
•  Welcome incoming claimants and handle appointment requests in close collaboration with the Race Equity Officer.
•  Provide guidance and answer general queries from staff, managers, and consultants about the REO procedures and any request to facilitate links between colleagues in Country Offices, HQ, and other Bank counterparts.
•  Assist the REO team with the preliminary administrative case intake procedure, reviewing each step to ensure compliance with internal guidelines.
•  Undertake logistical and tech preparatory activities for online and in-person training projects or safe spaces.
•  Draft, proofread, edit, format, and finalize miscellaneous correspondence, checking for grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style as per Bank’s guidelines.
•  Disseminate information on events/meetings/retreats related to the REO.
•  Facilitated issuance requests of IT equipment, telephones, furniture, and related office procurements and reservations.
•  Organize travel arrangements and logistics, working closely with Amex and, as necessary, liaising with country offices and external parties.
•  Process all STC contracts for the unit in close collaboration with the Race Equity Officer on the management of STC/Firm contracts and assist with end-of-year closing requirements, including review and follow-up, ensuring consultant commitments and balances are paid. Contracts are closed accordingly for unit-led tasks, particularly during the last quarter of the fiscal year.
•  Assume quality control responsibility for the input of individual consultants, consulting firms, consultants’ trip requests and trip expenses, goods and service contracts, fee claims, administrative services, and miscellaneous expense reimbursement requests.
•  Support all administrative requests, such as office supplies orders, staff directory changes, email distribution lists, visitor’s passes, videoconferences, and Webex/Teams meetings.
•  Respond and handle a wide range of extensive and diverse inquiries, prioritizing and making timely decisions.
•  Adept handling critical files and confidential material with discretion following the WBG Access to Information policy.
•  Assist with preparing and processing unit documentation in line with the Bank’s standard procedures to allow ease of access and readability to all team members.
•  Assist in updating and maintaining WBDocs, Sharepoint, Executive Suite, and OneDrive repositories for tracking, e-filing, and archiving system, applying the appropriate record retention policies.
•  Handle time recording, the team leaves calendars, etc.
•  Assist in arranging logistics for meetings/seminars, including audio or video conferencing, Webex, catering, and handling any ad-hoc matters as they may arise.
•  Perform any ad hoc task assigned by the team, including providing support to other staff in the unit/department as needed.

Selection Criteria

•  Minimum Education/Experience: Bachelor’s degree with five years of relevant experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
•  Knowledge of Bank policies and procedures and familiarity with the Units objectives and origins.
•  Outstanding interpersonal and intercultural skills, with the ability to effectively interact with internal and external claimants, partners, and staff at all levels.
•  A high degree of flexibility and reliability and a demonstrated capacity to handle various concurrent activities, prioritizing and balancing challenging demands under pressure while maintaining attention to detail.
•  Demonstrated ability to work independently, respond to, and deal effectively in diverse situations with good judgment, discretion, and subtlety in handling confidential and critical matters.
•  Proficiency in advanced functions of standard Bank technology packages, i.e., SAP, Outlook, Excel, Intranet, Canva, etc.
•  Consistent record of high-quality work. Excellent organizational and administrative skills and demonstrated experience in smoothly operating a lively office and related systems, assuming primary responsibility for organizing and coordinating workflow.
•  Excellent communication skills, both written and spoken, in English. Fluency in Spanish, French or Chinese is desirable.
•  Demonstrated excellent interpersonal, organizational, and time management skills.
•  Confirmed ability to work effectively in a team-oriented, fast-paced environment and contribute towards common goals.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

Learn more about working at the World Bank and IFC, including our values and inspiring stories.