UN Women: Business Function Specialist – Monitoring and Reporting, New York, USA, P3 TA presso United Nations Development Programme

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 Strategy, Planning, Resources and Effectiveness Division (SPRED) of UN Women is to integrate corporate strategy, resources and performance measurement to improve decision-making to manage for results while increasing transparency and accountability to its governing bodies and stakeholders. The Division formulates corporate strategies aligned to the corporate objectives, ensures internal controls and risk management are fully in place, and that resources from all sources to budget plans and the organization priorities. 

The Strategic Planning Unit (SPU) in SPRED is the custodian of Results-Based Management (RBM) and leads and manages the implementation of the Planning, Monitoring and Reporting (PMR) Policy and associated procedures associated with the Strategic Plan, Strategic Notes, and Work Plans. As the business owner of strategic planning and results management workstream, in close collaboration with Information Systems and Telecommunications (IST), SPU leads the development and enhancement of UN Women’s corporate online platform, the Planning, Reporting and Information System for Management (PRISM), ensuring it remains fit-for-purpose for planning, monitoring, reporting, dashboards, and data visualization.

After the planning modules of Strategic Plan, Strategic Notes and workplans are rolled out during the 4^th quarter of 2025, the remaining monitoring and reporting functionalities as well as search and dashboards functions need to be developed and implemented in 2026. This includes monitoring and reporting functions of Strategic Plan, Strategic Notes and workplans, ensuring the integration with those functions at the project level by working closely with Programme Support and Management Unit (PSMU) and rest of the business process owners. These functions are crucial to allow all Country Offices, Regional Offices and HQ Divisions/Independent Offices to start using PRISM to monitor and report on the implementation of their respective Strategic Notes and Workplans from 2026 under the UN Women Strategic Plan 2026-2029. 

SPU also contributes to broader corporate system integration in close collaboration with other business owners, IST, and end-users, under the overall guidance of the ERP/ICT Board. Strengthening the integration of PRISM into other corporate systems (including Quantum) is a crucial element of UN Women’s corporate transparency agenda, as PRISM provides the main source of data for the UN Women Transparency Portal, showcasing results and financial data against Strategic Notes and the Strategic Plan.

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Programme Specialist – Results Management, with overall direction from the Chief of SPU/SPRED, the Business Function Specialist will manage planned PRISM enhancements to support systematic implementation of the PMR Policy; strengthen monitoring and reporting functions of PRISM; expand the use of data, dashboards, and visualization; and explore the application of AI to improve reporting and decision-making.

The Business Function Specialist works closely with various colleagues across the organization for the development, enhancement and roll-out of PRISM. Those include colleagues from IST (including ERP Project Manager, Change Management Specialist), SPRED (PSMU, SPU, Business Transformation Unit, ERM), Budget and Finances, PRISM regional focal points in Regional Offices, and PRISM System Working Group members.

This temporary appointment position will be for a duration of 364 days.  Whereas an external candidate will be offered a temporary appointment, subject to release agreements, staff members in UN Women may be administered as a temporary assignment and staff members in the UN Common system may be administered under a loan arrangement.

Key Functions and Accountabilities:

Coordinate testing and rollout of PRISM Monitoring, Reporting, Dashboards and Reports under the PMR Policy

• Oversee end-to-end testing of the Monitoring and Reporting module to ensure functionality, accuracy, and usability for end users.
• Validate that dashboards and reporting features reflect business needs, provide meaningful visualization, and align with the PMR Policy and UNSDCF processes.
• Coordinate with IST to ensure smooth integration of project-level data into PRISM dashboards and reports at Strategic Note/Work Plan levels.
• Document issues identified during testing, including risks, assumptions, and gaps, and work with IST to resolve them before rollout.
• Lead the rollout process, including pilot testing, user feedback collection, and refinement of the monitoring and reporting functions.
• Provide clear and regular updates to business owners and end users on progress, risks, and lessons learned during rollout.
• Support the socialization and adoption of PRISM monitoring and reporting features through trainings, workshops, and guidance materials, ensuring broad uptake across HQ and field offices.

Coordinate with IST on the development and delivery of PRISM system enhancements

• Ensure IST technical staff have a full and shared understanding of the monitoring, reporting, dashboard, and data visualization requirements under the PMR Policy.
• Maintain close follow-up with IST on the development of system enhancements, ensuring alignment with agreed requirements and delivery against the planned timeline.
• Lead testing and validation of enhancements to confirm that they meet functional requirements, respond to business use cases, and are user-friendly for both HQ and field contexts.
• Proactively identify risks or issues associated with enhancements, assess their potential impact, and work with IST to make adjustments as necessary.
• Keep business owners and end users regularly informed on progress, risks, and changes, fostering transparency and shared ownership throughout the enhancement process.

Support integration and alignment of PRISM with other corporate systems

•  Contribute to the design and development of UN Women’s corporate system integration, with a particular focus on monitoring, reporting, dashboards, and project-level data linkages across Strategic Plans (SP), Strategic Notes (SN), Work Plans (WP), Quarterly Business Reviews (QBR), Enterprise Risk Management, and project monitoring/reporting.
• Liaise with SPU, other key stakeholders, and end users to prioritize system integration needs, ensuring alignment with corporate priorities, open audit and evaluation recommendations, and end-user requirements.
• Document integration requirements to ensure PRISM functions effectively as the central platform for monitoring and reporting, while remaining interoperable with other corporate systems including UNInfo.
• Advocate for the inclusion of data analytics and AI-enabled functionality in system integration efforts, to strengthen decision-making and forward-looking analysis.
• Provide ongoing advice and support on system integration and enhancements, incorporating lessons learned from previous rollouts to improve future implementation and adoption.

Organizational Learning and Continuous Improvement

• Actively participate in system-related meetings and coordination within SPU, SPRED, and with other business owners, including managing regular PRISM-focused meetings in SPU, and maintaining close communication with Regional Office focal points and the PRISM Working Group.
• Provide inputs to the PPG Workstream in SPU/SPRED, ensuring that system perspectives—especially on monitoring, reporting, and data visualization—inform ongoing corporate processes.
• Support the implementation of management responses and follow-up actions for pending audit and evaluation recommendations, providing timely data and system insights to audit and evaluation coordination teams.
• Share relevant data and information from PRISM to feed into evaluations, audits, and performance reviews, ensuring accuracy, transparency, and consistency in reporting.
• Prepare high-quality background materials, talking points, dashboards, and presentations for senior managers, the ERP/ICT Board, and external stakeholders, highlighting how PRISM strengthens transparency, accountability, and evidence-based decision-making.
• Promote opportunities to leverage AI and advanced analytics within PRISM to support organizational learning, forward-looking analysis, and continuous improvement of monitoring and reporting functions.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

• Strong knowledge of UN Corporate system and understanding of strategic planning at the inter-agency level
• Good understanding of the application of RBM in strategic planning, programming, monitoring, reporting and evaluation
• Good knowledge of knowledge management and learning in the areas of RBM
• Ability to link key institutional processes and policies to promote overall organizational effectiveness
• Ability to go beyond established procedures and practices, introduce new approaches and strategic innovations.
• Team player
• Strong organizational skills
• Strong knowledge of the UN system policy, procedure and guidance related to planning and results management
• Strong analytical skills
• Ability to provide advice and support.

Recruitment Qualifications:

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in in development related disciplines, statistics, economics, business administration, information system, computer science, ICT, or other social science fields.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience at national, regional and/or international levels in results-based planning, monitoring, and/or reporting is required.
• Minimum 2 years of relevant work experience in coordinating business and functional requirements gathering processes in the areas of results-based planning, monitoring and/or reporting for development and/or enhancement of corporate results management systems within the UN system is required.
• Minimum 2 years of experience in using corporate systems such as results management systems and/or Oracle Cloud based ERP systems or similar for results-based planning, monitoring and/or reporting is required.
• Experience working in gender equality and women’s rights at the national, regional and/or international levels is required;
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web-based management systems is required.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge of another official UN language is desirable (French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).

Special Note: In accordance with the UN Staff Regulation 4.5 (b) A temporary appointment does not carry any expectancy, legal or otherwise, of renewal. A temporary appointment shall not be converted to any other type of appointment. This temporary appointment is budgeted for a maximum term of 364 days.

Statements :

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.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.