Meetings Services Assistant 227 views

Org. Setting and Reporting

This position is located in the Meetings Management Section, Central Planning and Coordination Service (CPCS), Division of Conference Management (DCM), United Nations Office at Geneva.

Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Senior Meetings Services Assistant, the Meetings Services Assistant will be responsible for the following duties:

MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES SERVICING:
– Assists in the planning and coordination of meetings to be held at UNOG and liaises with substantive secretariats, other clients and all UNOG services involved.
– Ascertains the correctness and completeness of all parameters of a meeting (number of participants, conference room(s) assigned, interpretation requirements, number of parallel meetings to be held requiring interpretation services, working languages, summary record coverage, sound recording requirements, voting equipment and signs needed, etc.).
– Plans and allocates conference facilities, coordinates the provision of the required services so that meetings can be convened according to schedule; ensures that all logistical arrangements are made in advance for the efficient conduct of conferences and meetings; responds to conference facilities and servicing queries from delegations, Permanent Missions, Secretariats and other users.
– Plans and organizes ad-hoc or unforeseen meetings.
– Provides the staff of the Section with the information required to draft correspondence to clients on arrangements for meetings.
– Drafts correspondence to clients.

CLIENT ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT:
– Acts as a central point of contact for meetings management by providing assistance and advice in response to queries from delegations, secretariats and other clients regarding Indico, g-Meets, One-Stop-Shop (OSS), Web calendar and other tools. Guides clients through the different steps of the process. In case of complex technical issues, uses standard escalation procedures to request solution. Tracks and follows-up on outstanding requests and provides a response to clients once the issue is resolved. Facilitates smooth processing in order to meet clients’ expectations.
– Provides guidance to clients on the use of the g-Meets system, with a focus on the submission of electronic requests for meetings. Provides training to new users and assists in managing lists of authorized users in Geneva and their access rights.
– Serves as clients’ focal point for new software tools introduced in the Section, including access to the Digital Recording Portal. Provides broad support, responds to information requests and inquiries and provides clients with the appropriate responses.

REPORTING AND OTHER DUTIES:
– Assists the G-6 Meetings Services Assistant in the following and acts as his/her replacement when required.
– Issues requests for the installation of necessary equipment and furniture in meeting rooms and offices.
– Provides the Executive Office with details concerning the actual use of services, rooms and offices at the Palais des Nations for extra-budgetary billing.
– Monitors the automated daily programme of meetings and amends source data regarding servicing requirements, room allocations and other details of meetings/conferences in the g-Meets system.
– Based on information in the g-Meets system, prepares statistical reports of meetings held and serviced by DCM including their utilization factor for submission to DGACM, as well as any other statistical reports on conference services and room occupancy requested by the Division and/or Committee on Conferences.
– Replaces, as needed, senior staff in the Meetings Coordination and Planning Unit.
– Provides guidance/training, as needed, to temporary assistants and junior staff.
– Performs other duties as required.

Competencies

PROFESSIONALISM:
Knowledge of the Organization’s conference policies, procedures and practices; ability to research, select, organize and summarize information required for the preparation of meetings; shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; 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 situations. Commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work.

TEAMWORK:
Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

CREATIVITY:
Actively seeks to improve programmes or services; offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs; promotes and persuades others to consider new ideas; takes calculated risks on new and unusual ideas; thinks “outside the box”; takes an interest in new ideas and new ways of doing things; is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches.

CLIENT ORIENTATION:
Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent. Training in user support would be desirable.

Work Experience

A minimum of five (5) years of experience in conference/event management, user support or related area is required.
Out of these, at least three (3) years at the United Nations is desirable.
Experience in end-user/helpdesk technical support is desirable.
Experience in conference/event management is desirable.
Experience with other Meetings Management systems would be also desirable.
Experience with Indico would be an asset.
Experience with g-Meets systems would be an asset.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written English or French with knowledge of the other is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is an advantage.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

This position is subject to local recruitment pursuant to staff rule 4.4 of the United Nations Staff Rules. All staff in the General Service and related categories shall be recruited in the country or within commuting distance of each office, irrespective of their nationality and of the length of time they may have been in the country. A staff member subject to local recruitment shall not be eligible for the allowances or benefits exclusively applicable to international recruitment.

Passing the United Nations Administrative Assessment Support Test (ASAT) at Headquarters, ECA, ESCWA, UNOG, UNOV, ICTR, ICTY or the Global General Services Test (GGST) is a prerequisite for recruitment consideration in the General Service category in the United Nations Secretariat.

Staff members are subject to the authority of the 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.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places 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. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

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