Administrative Assistant

OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE POST

The IOC Project Office for IODE, Oostende, Belgium coordinates the International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange (IODE) programme as well as the coordination of IOC capacity development.

The incumbent will work under the overall authority of the Executive Secretary of the IOC, and direct supervision of the Head of the IOC Project Office for IODE, based in Oostende, Belgium. He/she will provide secretarial and administrative support to the Project Office and work closely with the IOC Operational Support Unit based at UNESCO/IOC Headquarters, Paris.

General Administration:

• Draft and prepare routine correspondence, memoranda and non-substantive reports.
• Maintain confidential and general files and manage file and reference systems.
• Assist in the preparation of budgetary and financial reports, statistics, or projections for head of section’s use.
• Review draft reports, verify overall accuracy and consistency and cross-check consistency of figures.
• Provide guidance and interpretation on HR-related initiatives and administrative rules, regulations and procedures (e.g. recruitment of staff, secondments and interns).
• Schedule and organize inter-sessional meetings, both in person and on-line.
• In collaboration with team members, assess administrative support needs for meetings and events, travel document processing, publication production, consultants and coordinate office support services for the same.

Travel and Meetings:

• Staff Travel: assist and provide guidance in the preparation of travel plans, processing visas, security clearance and other documentation. Initiate travel authorization and make travel arrangements for team staff and relevant IODE and CD experts.
• Meeting travel: assist in the planning and implementation of IODE and CD meetings and other events including meeting room arrangements, participant travel, communication, documentation posting on IODE and CD web sites, etc;

Contracting:

• Verify contractual files and supporting documents, partner roles, responsibilities, deliverables, mandatory reporting and assurance mechanisms, funds transfer modalities and conditions for collaboration;
• Carry out control checks on all contracts and funds reservations to ensure proposed commitment complies with policy, procedures and administrative process details, and steps are followed’
• Request payments after consultation of responsible programme specialist on submission of required deliverables.

Finance:

• Assist and inform t on financial statuses, by using information systems and reporting;
• Record and reconcile accounting transactions;
• Maintain specific accounts, calculate and compile financial data and prepare routine reports;
• Monitor and control commitments and expenditures;
• Keep track of budget levels, contract end dates, and alert the supervisor to avoid potential shortfalls in funds (validating information and identifying any errors or irregularities);

Communication:

• Coordinate and share relevant information with the IODE and/or CD communities as requested by colleagues at the IOC Project Office for IODE using the oceanexpert.org mailing system and other mailing applications;
• Verify and keep up to date the information on the website, iode.org, ioc-cd.org based on input received from staff at the IOC Project Office for IODE
• Manage inputs and perform quality control of the oceanexpert.org contact database system, including contact lists, event details, meeting information, reports and news items;

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Completed secondary, technical or vocational school education.

Work Experience

• At least three (3) years of relevant work experience in programme assistance, and/or administrative support tasks or related tasks.

Languages

• Excellent knowledge (written and spoken) of English.

Skills and Competencies

• Ability to take initiative and provide timely, quality support and services.
• Good interpersonal and communication skills.
• Good IT skills with proficiency in the use of MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point, etc.).
• Ability to work under tight deadlines, to deal with complex and sensitive situations and flexibility to adjust work schedules.
• Good organizational and coordination skills with the ability to take initiative, establish priorities and monitor own work plans.
• Ability to work efficiently in a multi-cultural environment, with team spirit.

Source: https://careers.unesco.org/job/Paris-Administrative-Assistant/803810102/