Senior Planning Officer

The general minimum requirements for working with the OSCE are:

• Excellent physical condition
• Possession of a valid automobile driving license and ability to drive using manual transmission
• Ability to cope with physical hardship and willingness to work extra hours and in an environment with limited infrastructure

The general minimum requirements for working in this field of expertise are:

• Demonstrable organizational skills
• Proven ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing
• Demonstrable interpersonal skills and documented experience in negotiations
• Depending on the field activity's mandate, significant prior experience in relevant fields such as international customs practices and procedures, law enforcement, and military observations and arms control may also be required
• Negotiating experience, preferably in the area of monitoring operations and/or related activities

Furthermore, this level of responsibility requires the following:

Education:

Advanced education/certified training course in a relevant field desirable

Experience:

Minimum 6 years of relevant, diversified and progressively responsible professional experience including at least 3 years at the management level relevant to the actual position

Additionally, this particular post has specific requirements:

Mandatory:

• University degree in international relations, political science or related field or graduate of a national military or police academy at officer level
• Experience in developing and implementing operational, logistics and administrative plans
• Ability to brief complex plans comprehensively, accurately and coherently
• Demonstrated excellent organizational and analytical skills
• Proven management and supervisory experience
• Excellent communication, presentation and team-building skills
• Ability to work with minimum supervision in an environment where rapid response to emergencies is essential
• Ability to cope with physical hardship and willingness to work extra hours and in an environment with limited infrastructure; proven resilience to high stress environments
• Readiness to travel regularly within Ukraine, including Eastern Oblasts
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds whilst maintaining impartiality and objectivity
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English
• Demonstrated ability and willingness to work as a member of a team, with people of different cultural and religious backgrounds, different gender, and diverse political views, while maintaining impartiality and objectivity
• Cultural sensitivity and political judgement
• Flexibility and ability to work under pressure and with limited time frames
• Ability to operate Windows applications, including word processing and email, and excellent PowerPoint presentation skills

Desirable:

• Experience in working in Eastern Europe and/or knowledge of the region
• Experience with the UN common system and/or other international organizations
• Working knowledge of the Ukrainian and/or Russian language(s)

Initial duration of appointment/assignment for this post is until 31 March 2016, subject to a subsequent OSCE Permanent Council Decision to extend the mandate of the Mission.

If applicable, deployment is subject to attendance to and successful completion of pre-deployment training and assessment.

Under the direct supervision of the Chief of Staff, the Senior Planning Officer:

1. Provides advice to Mission components in the development of plans, ensuring coherence with the Mission's overall strategic planning;
2. Provides advice to the senior management on strategic and operational planning policy, procedures, and best practices;
3. Provides recommendations on the design of mechanisms to meet the operational information gathering needs of the Mission;
4. Prepares Mission-wide plans on command and control, operational, technical and expert support, deployments, personal security, logistics and administration;
5. Liaises with relevant departments within the Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMMU) to determine necessary operational, security and logistics support requirements to establish the Monitoring Base (MB);
6. Determines the communications and IT support plan for the establishment of the MB;
7. Completes a training needs analysis and assists the Mission's Training Department in developing training plans and programmes for the expansion of the Mission;
8. Acts as the primary point of contact between the MBs and the SMMU HQ for expansion planning;
9. Prepares and delivers briefings and reports on the establishment of the MB;
10. Establishes points of contact with the national and local authorities and agencies as necessary to fulfil planning efforts;
11. Travels frequently across the Ukraine including  Eastern Oblasts;
12. Performs other duties as assigned.

The OSCE is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages the nomination of qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious, ethnic and social backgrounds.

Candidates should, prior to applying, verify with their respective nominating authority to which extent financial remuneration and/or benefit packages will be offered.

Please apply to your relevant authorities several days prior to the deadline expiration to ensure timely processing of your application. Delayed nominations will not be considered.