Administrative Assistant

IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING APPLICATION DEADLINE:  Please note that the deadline for applications is indicated in local time as per the time zone of the applicant’s location.

This post is a limited-term fixed-term post.

a.    Organizational Setting

The post is located in the WIPO Office in New York (the Office).  The Office represents the Organization before the United Nations system in New York and liaises with the diplomatic and UN community. The Office is responsible for promoting WIPO's engagement with the UN and related stakeholders in New York and Washington D.C and will seek to positively influence developments which may affect the work of the Organization.

b.    Purpose Statement

The Administrative Assistant provides assistance to the Director of the Office and undertakes the administrative work of the Office. The incumbent is required to provide advice on procedural and administrative requirements and recommend operational process improvements in accordance with WIPO's applicable frameworks.  The incumbent is required to liaise extensively with work units at WIPO headquarters and UN Secretariat to initiate requests, obtain clearances, process and follow-up on administrative actions. The incumbent has frequent dealings with permanent missions and other external parties in New York including service providers that support logistical operations.

c.    Reporting Lines

The incumbent works under the supervision of the Director of the Office.

The incumbent will perform the following principal duties:

a.   Undertake and/or coordinate all administrative and logistical work of the Office including efficient filing systems, monitoring and following up on the logistical and procurement needs of the premises and ensuring its good maintenance;

b.   Provide administrative support on HR, procurement and budget related issues including workplan activities budget reports and statistics, program and budget documentation; process administrative actions in the automated systems for finance, travel and HR; check on the status of requests, requisitions, receipts and invoices and initiate follow up with Headquarters and/or UN offices as needed;

c.   Provide secretarial support including, scheduling and arranging appointments and maintaining an up-to-date calendar of activities of the Director; prepare materials and arrangements for the Director's meetings; receiving and supporting visitors and answering general queries on the activities of the Office;

d.   Participate in the organization of meetings and events and lead associated administrative support services including budgetary actions, invitations and distribution of documentation, note-taking, preparation of minutes of meetings and following up on required actions;

e.   Liaise with service providers, including UN Protocol, UNOICT, UNDC and initiate related actions and communications, as needed;

f.    Carry out all operations required for authorizing and effectuating expenditures, including calculations, cost estimates and payments. Control accounts regarding allocations and expenditures; consolidate budget data and maintain related monitoring and reporting systems;

g.   Record and monitor ongoing activities, compile statistics, summarize and present information on activities; update standard management reports and contribute to the preparation of the annual workplan and Program and Budget;

h.   Perform other related duties as required.

Education (Essential)

Completion of secondary education with diploma.

Experience (Essential)

At least eight years of experience in administrative/financial/secretarial office support work.

Experience (Desirable)

Knowledge and experience of the administrative procedures of the UN Secretariat.

Experience with financial, administrative and operational systems.

Experience working with an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.

Language (Essential)

Excellent knowledge of written and spoken English.

Language (Desirable)

Knowledge of other official UN languages.

Job Related Competencies (Essential)

Excellent organizational and time management with the ability to respect deadlines.

Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to maintain effective partnerships, communication and working relations in a multicultural environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity.

Very good drafting skills in English language.

Absolute discretion and a sense of protocol.

High degree of flexibility and initiative.

Ability to work within the applicable rules, regulations and procedures.

Competent user of Microsoft Office applications including Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint and the internet, and the ability to adapt quickly to new ICT tools.

Job Related Competencies (Desirable)

Digital skills for the design of Office communications.

1.    Communicating effectively.

2.    Showing team spirit.

3.    Demonstrating integrity.

4.    Valuing diversity.

5.    Producing results.

6.    Showing service orientation.

7.    Seeing the big picture.

8.    Seeking change and innovation.

9.    Developing yourself and others.

Mobility:  WIPO staff members are international civil servants subject to the authority of the Director General and may be assigned to any activities of the Organization. Accordingly, the selected candidate may be required to move from time to time to new functions.

Annual salary (Net of tax):  60,679 USD 

Please refer to WIPO’s Staff Regulation and Rules for detailed information concerning salaries, benefits and allowances.

Additional Information

* Initial fixed-term appointment of one year, renewable subject to satisfactory performance and other applicable conditions.  The selected candidate's appointment will be subject to an overall term of five years in this position, with normally no possibility of renewal beyond that term.  S/he may, however, apply and be considered for other positions at WIPO.

This is not applicable to WIPO staff members on fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointments, who were recruited following a competition under Staff Regulation 4.10 (“Appointment Boards”).

Dependency allowances

3,727 USD per year for dependent spouse;  2,389 USD per year for each dependent child.

Language allowance

Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish\: 4,117 USD per year for two of these languages, and 2,745 USD per year for one of them.  The allowance is not payable for the mother tongue or the main working language of the staff member.  The grant of this allowance is subject to examination.

General Service posts are generally subject to local recruitment.  Staff in the General Service category is recruited in the host country or within reasonable commuting distance of the Headquarters.

This vacancy announcement may be used to fill other posts at the same grade with similar functions in accordance with Staff Rule 4.9.5.

Applications from qualified women as well as from qualified nationals of unrepresented Member States of WIPO and underrepresented geographical regions are encouraged. Please click on the following links for the list of unrepresented Member States and the list of underrepresented regions and the WIPO Member States in these regions.

The Organization reserves the right to make an appointment at a grade lower than that advertised.

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By completing an application, candidates understand that any willful misrepresentation made on this web site, or on any other documents submitted to WIPO during the application, may result in disqualification from the recruitment process, or termination of employment with WIPO at a later date, if that employment resulted from such willful misrepresentations.

In the event that your candidature is shortlisted, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of your identification and the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WIPO recognizes higher educational qualifications obtained from institutions accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list maintained by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed here\: http\://www.whed.net/. Some higher educational qualifications may not be listed in WHED, and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Additional testing/interviewing may be used as a form of screening.  Initial appointment is subject to satisfactory professional references.

Additional background checks may be required.