UN WOMEN: RESEARCH SPECIALIST

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.   The Policy Division develops and implements the UN Women corporate programme of work on analysis, research and knowledge management that provides the evidence base for the advice and guidance UN Women provides to development practitioners, the intergovernmental process, the UN system, and to UN Women staff working at country and regional level on issues of gender equality and women’s empowerment. The Division identifies emerging issues and trends, including gaps and challenges, and develops and proposes new strategies for achieving the agreed goals through innovative approaches and lessons learned about what works in practice. It also designs and oversees the training and capacity development programs of UN Women, through the training facility in Santo Domingo. The Research and Data Section in the Policy Division is responsible for leading UN Women’s research and data agenda. Among others, it produces research including UN Women flagship publications including Progress of the World’s Women and The Survey of the Role of Women in Development.   The Research Specialist will work with the team to complete high quality research and analysis, focusing on social policies and politics for the flagship reports and other research outputs. This role entails undertaking a wide range of research and analysis work to input directly into the reports. This in-house research is conducted in conjunction with background paper authors, the project’s internal and external advisory groups and lead/chapter author(s), as well as working on the flagship reports. The Specialist will also lead on other policy-relevant research projects and contribute to the section’s broader work.

Duties and Responsibilities

Carry out extensive policy-relevant research (including quantitative) on the flagship report themes to input into the reports, with a particular focus on the gender dimensions of social policy (i.e. social protection programmes, health and education services, early childhood education and care, elderly care) and keep up-to-date with the social policy literature and policy debates.  Keep up-to-date with the literature and policy debates, especially on social policy, conduct background research, and analyse policy changes for their impact on gender equality; Access and analyse relevant statistics and data sources (especially global and regional ones) on women’s access to social protection and social services, as well as and their outcomes for women’s well-being and autonomy; Compile research, data and case studies relevant to the different chapters of R&D reports to substantiate the reports’ themes and findings, as well as other R&D outputs. Commission and manage background papers, case studies and statistical analysis, particularly on the gender dimensions of social policy, selecting countries and issues in ways that would allow comparative cross-country policy lessons to be drawn from the commissioned studies. Identify country studies and researchers to conduct the work, as well as authors of background papers and other research materials for the analytical parts of the report using comparative methodologies that would allow robust policy lessons to be drawn; Commission authors to carry out research and write background papers, coordinate their work and provide comments on draft papers. Contribute substantively to the framing and writing of the two flagship reports and other R&D publications, as well as to editing and fact-checking. Work with the team to contribute to the production and outreach for the two reports and other research outputs.  Participate in brainstorming meetings and in-house discussions on various aspects of the reports, including honing of the theme and structure of the reports; Interact and support members of the reports’ advisory groups, in order to facilitate their expert inputs; Contribute to proof-reading, data-checking and providing comments on draft chapters and sections of the report as required, including, if possible, proof-reading of translated text in languages other than English; Provide support for regional roundtables and other events to gather information for the report and build interest in its findings.   Contribute to the broader work of the Research and Data section and the broader Policy Division where appropriate, including by advising colleagues in the policy and programme sections on social policy and gender issues, and by inputting to relevant work on the MDGs and post-2015 development agenda. Provide timely and high quality inputs to briefing notes and speeches, as requested.   Impact of Results:   UN Women’s flagship reports and other outputs are based on robust empirical research and policy analysis. The work that the Research Specialist carries out will contribute directly to ensuring high quality and high impact reports are produced in a timely manner.

Competencies

Core Values/Guiding Principles: Integrity: Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct. Professionalism: Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work; Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity: Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity. Core Competencies: Ethics and Values: Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity. Organizational Awareness: Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment. Development and Innovation: Take charge of self-development and take initiative. Work in teams: Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds. Communicating and Information Sharing: Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication;  Self-management and emotional intelligence;  Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others. Conflict Management: Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution. Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:  Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge. Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:  Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making. Functional Competencies: Proven excellent research skills, as shown by publications in relevant peer-reviewed journals; Strong analytical and statistical skills, including the ability to carry out quantitative analysis and familiarity with global databases on gender statistics; Excellent understanding of gender equality and its policy implications, with expertise in at least one of the following social policy/social protection areas: old age pensions, health insurance/services, maternity, child- and elderly-care with strong gender perspective; Proven capacity to do comparative research across countries and/or social policy sectors, with strong gender content; Capacity to self-organize research work and to plan, prioritize and deliver tasks on time;   Ability to set priorities; work under pressure with colleagues at all levels; Ample knowledge and use of computer office tools (word, database, spreadsheets, web content production, filing). Excellent organizational skills; High levels of initiative and motivation; Works well under pressure; Communicates effectively, clearly, sensitively and persuasively across different constituencies; Plans, prioritizes, and delivers quality outputs effectively and on time; Accepts additional responsibilities as required by the demands of service; Ability to deal with confidential matters in a discreet and reliable manner.

Required Skills and Experience

Education: Masters  degree (or equivalent) in social policy, sociology, political science, gender and development or related discipline with strong gender content. Experience: At least five years of relevant work experience on substantive issues of gender equality involving research and policy analysis on gender and social policy; Substantive research outputs and publications, and/or high quality peer reviewed publications a strong asset; Previous experience working on major institutional reports with substantive gender content a strong asset. Languages: Written and oral proficiency in English is required; Fluency in Spanish desirable.  Important Application Information: All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment; Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment; UN Women will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest. Note: In July 2010, the United nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.