UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture., coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to Innovate

UNICEF has a 70-year history of innovating for children. We believe that new approaches, partnerships, and technologies that support realizing children’s rights are critical to improving their lives.

The Office of Innovation is a creative, interactive, and agile team in UNICEF. We sit at a unique intersection, where an organization that works on huge global issues meets the start-up thinking, the technology, and the partners that turn this energy into scalable solutions.
The Office of Innovation (OoI) works to catalyze UNICEF and partners’ expertise and resources to solve key challenges facing children and young people, with a view to sourcing, accelerating and scaling the most effective solutions to accelerate progress towards achieving the SDGs. To achieve this the Office of Innovation uses an innovation portfolio management approach and leverages support from a range of stakeholders including from intergovernmental, multilateral, private sector, young people and non-governmental fora (think tank, academia).

Our team

We're an interdisciplinary team around the world tasked with identifying, prototyping, and scaling new technologies and practices. With our partners, we focus on convening and collaborating on new and different solutions, low- and high-tech, by:

• Looking at the 2–5-year horizon to evaluate emerging and trending technologies and to see how UNICEF can work with the private sector on doing better business while improving essential services for children.
• Investing in early-stage solutions that show great potential to positively impact children in the 02-year future including the Venture Fund that invests in open-source technology solutions from start-ups based in UNICEF’s programme countries.
• Identifying proven solutions that can be implemented at national scale in multiple countries – taking the ideas that help thousands in one country, bringing them to dozens of countries across multiple sectors, and impacting the lives of millions of children.

The consultant will be working with the People and Culture and wider Operations team, with supervision from the People and Culture Officer.

We attract top talent, ensure a positive staff experience, and help personnel grow. From recruitment to development, we support and empower our team.

How can you make a difference?

Under the overall guidance of the People and Culture Officer, the Consultant is responsible for providing support towards HR services, including talent management, effective communication, onboarding, offboarding, and data management. The consultant will aim to support established HR practices and help implement human resources processes in accordance with UNICEF procedures and standards, contributing to accurate and timely outcomes where possible.

Your main responsibilities will be:

Talent Management
• Contributing to the execution of candidate sourcing and interview preparation processes for non-staff positions (UNVs, Interns) and stretch assignment functions. Follow-up with hiring managers on completed Job Descriptions and Terms of Reference for non-post positions, subject to supervisor’s review and subsequent advertisement.
• Collecting and evaluating data and statistics pertaining to non-posts and staff for the purposes of reporting and trend analysis.
• Facilitating recruitment logistics and documentation for non-staff roles

Liaison and Communication
• Assist in implementing HR activities linked to the Future Focus Initiative (FFI), including defined process steps related to staff well-being, and communication flow.
• Supporting internal communication between HR and personnel throughout the transition process, including routine follow-up with staff on relevant actions and updates.
• Support the planning and organization of team meetings and collaboration initiatives aimed at strengthening team dynamics and maintaining engagement during periods of change, as guided by the Supervisor or HR Specialist.

Onboarding and Offboarding
• Executing onboarding, and off boarding workflows and ensuring completion across contract types (IP, GS UNVs, Interns, etc.), by following-up processes that include scheduling meetings, tracking checklist completion, preparing and organizing documentation, liaising with relevant teams (e.g. GSSC, IT, Admin), and ensuring timely execution of required actions.
• Coordinate scheduling of monthly operational and quarterly programme induction sessions in collaboration with the supervisor.
• Provide support to staff and non-staff personnel in accessing and using HR platforms such as Agora, Service Gateway, and Achieve.
• Support the preparation and delivery of offboarding materials and briefings for separating personnel, in coordination with HR, GSSC, and relevant Operations focal points. This includes preparing and following up on checklists, sending timely reminders, coordinating the return of equipment, scheduling exit briefings, and ensuring completion of performance evaluations and handover notes.
• Handle the archiving and uploading of onboarding and offboarding documentation, and take responsibility for organizing welcome and farewell messages, when applicable.

Data Management
• Work with the supervisor to analyze and compile data for workforce planning reports, including benchmarks like gender and geographic balance, as well as key recruitment indicators.
• Keep personnel records updated and accurate.
• Maintain current and precise data on the team’s SharePoint sites and the Office Operational support team site.

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  ToR for Junior HR Consultant.pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

Minimum requirements:

• Education: Completion of secondary education, preferably supplemented by technical or university courses related to the field of work.
• Work Experience: A minimum of 6 years of progressively responsible leadership in general Human resources functions.
  • Technical Extensive knowledge of HR principles.
  • Computer literacy and the ability to effectively use standard office software tools as well as good knowledge and skill in using HR systems.
• Skills: 
  • Ability to extract and format data and to solve operational problems.
  •  Ability to organize your own work, set priorities and meet deadlines.
  • Interpersonal and communication.
  • Takes responsibility to respond to internal and external service needs promptly and proactively.
  • Takes initiative to ensure that deadlines, rules, and regulations are met.
  • Use own discretion to address unforeseen situations.
  • Demonstrates a high degree of confidentiality, initiative, and good judgment.
  • Demonstrates courtesy, tact, patience, and ability to work effectively with people of different national and cultural back grounds.
• Language Requirements:Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language is an asset.

Desirables:

• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.
• Experience working for UNICEF is an asset.

How to apply:

• Interested applicants are required to submit a financial proposal with an all-inclusive fee. Please see the financial proposal template.
• Include additional documents (portfolio / link to previous work) to be considered for the position.
• Applications without a financial proposal will not be considered.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:  

As per 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.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. 

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.