Senior IT Infrastructure Associate/Senior System Administrator in United Nations World Food Programme

The World Food Program (WFP) is a UN humanitarian organization that provides food aid in the form of cash, certificates or food to war-affected communities. In its activities, WFP is guided by the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality, humanity and independence. Drawing on the dedication and professionalism of our 24,000 staff around the world, the World Food Program (WFP) works in more than 123 countries and territories to deliver life-saving food to people displaced by conflict and destitute by disasters. In addition, WFP helps individuals and communities find radical solutions to the many challenges they face as they build a better future.

 WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of race, color, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

• Vacancy Announcement n°: 833311
• Job Title: Senior IT Operations Associate SC7
• Type of Contract: Service Contract
• Unit / Division: TEC / WFP Ukraine 
• Duty Station: Odesa
• Duration: 12 months
• Closing date: 23 June, midnight (Central European Time)

About WFP 

< p>The World Food Program is the world's largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

< p>At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do, and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values ​​(Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.  

What will you do in this position? 

You will support the delivery of efficient and effective IT services, contributing to innovative solutions that enable staff to deliver assistance to beneficiaries. The job holder will oversee, guide, and coordinate Information and Communication Technology maintenance and support activities for the Odessa region, in close collaboration and under the overall guidance of the Ukraine Country Office (CO). Will participate in and contribute to the implementation of various innovative IT solutions and technology upgrades as required.

Why work with us? 

< p>The war in Ukraine has had drastic consequences, both for people inside the country and for those around the world dependent on its huge grain supplies. It is inflicting untold sufferingon civilians, displace families, and disrupt supply chains and food production. It has caused one of the fastest forced population movements since the Second World War. Close to 6 million Ukrainians are still living as refugees across Europe, and almost 5.1 million are internally displaced. Many have lost their homes and livelihoods. As food production and supply lines are disrupted by fighting, many families in the east and south do not have reliable access to nutritious food.

WFP uses a flexible mix of food and cash assistance to support communities affected by the war wherever they are. This includes working with local partners to distribute food rations in areas near the frontline and providing cash transfers wherever people have access to banks and markets to buy food. Since March 2022, WFP has distributed food and cash assistance equivalent to 2.4 billion meals to families displaced and affected by the war, partnering directly with local responders.

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. 
• WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse and multicultural working environment.
• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of trainings, accreditation, coaching, mentorship and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.
• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.
• WFP offers a competitive benefits package including salary, leave plus a medical insurance.

How can you make a difference?

• In collaboration with the Kyiv-based ETC-Coordinator, engage with key stakeholders, conduct assessments, and identify gaps in the existing telecommunication and IT infrastructure that is used by the humanitarian community, government, and affected community.  Provide support in preparation of project proposals to cover the identified gaps.
• Represent the ETC (Emergency Telecommunications Cluster) at sub-national Inter-Cluster and other related coordination meetings.
• In collaboration with the Kyiv-based project manager, actively contribute technical support to the implementation of the service for communities.
• In collaboration with Kyiv-based ETC Team, maintain, upgrade, or enhance the existing ETC infrastructure, including troubleshooting and providing continuing technical user support i.e., resolving network problems and advising on the use of new techniques.
• Supervise a team of IT support staff to deploy IT equipment, services and provide end user support to the WFP staff in Odesa AOR. 
• Provide training and advice to clients and end users of IT services, understad, and resolve issues and ensure IT policies, procedures, systems and tools are correctly applied to assist WFP staff in conducting their work.
• Oversee the maintenance of systems and hardware by junior technology assistants to ensure technology is running effectively forWFP staff.
• Develop and deploy a variety of documentation and equipment for use by WFP staff to ensure staff have access to the required IT services and products.
• Manage the implementation of new standard applications in order to provide WFP staff with the tools they need to perform effectively.
• Work with groups in IT service delivery and other staff to understand needs and support the development of integrated IT support services. Provide support to users, log and analyze all requests for support in accordance with standard processes, to support staff to deliver their services. Support the development and implementation of plans for the delivery of a full range of IT services and improvements to methods and processes in order to meet operational requirements.
• Follow set emergency response processes and procedures as required to provide support in enabling emergency food assistance needs to be met.

To join us in saving lives, changing lives, you will have:

Education: Completion of secondary school education. A post-secondary certificate in Information Technology, Networking, Computer Science, Telecommunications, Electrical Engineering, or another related functional area.

Experience: Minimum seven (7) years of progressively responsible relevant work experience in Information Technology, Networking, Computer Science, Telecommunications, Electrical Engineering, or another related field. 

Post-secondary education can compensate for some years of experience:

• Four (4) years of work experience in combination with a Master’s Degree; 

• Five (5) years of work experience in combination with a Bachelor’s Degree.

Knowledge & Skills: 

• Good analytical skills, resourcefulness, and initiative.

•  Experience in the end-user support will be an added advantage.

•  Project management and team management skills.

•  Experience working with Computer Networks (LAN/WAN, WLAN). 

•  Motivated to learn new skills in IT, telecommunication systems and infrastructure. 

• Skills in working with Telecommunication Infrastructure such as VHF radios, microwave links and satellite links would be an asset.

• Ability to collaborate and jointly to plan and organize work activities and tasks. 

• Ability to work with minimum supervision under own initiative.

• Tact and ability to work harmoniously with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

• Demonstrated problem-solving skills and provide support to the users.

• Requires the ability to work under pressure and on multiple tasks.

Language: Fluency (level C) in both in English and Ukrainian languages.

How do you apply...

To be considered, you are invited to apply via WFP’s recruitment portal. CV and cover letter must be submitted in English language.

Only those who are short-listed candidates will be contacted for the next steps of our recruitment process. 

We also encourage you to create your candidate profile and set up WFP job alerts to learn more about all the opportunities available to join us and make a difference in the lives of the people we serve.