Advisor, Partnerships

United Nations Office for Project Services•East Jerusalem, MS

About The Position

The Advisor, Partnerships serves as the senior partnerships lead in the UNOPS Jerusalem Office and is a member of the senior management team. The role manages and guides partnerships officers and related personnel, develops and implements the office’s partnerships strategy, and leads donor and client coordination. It provides situation analyses, donor mapping, and programme development support in collaboration with national governments, UN system entities, donors, and NGOs, while identifying and advancing partnership opportunities in line with UNOPS’ mandate and role in the UN system. The position supports UNOPS humanitarian response, early recovery, and sustainable development work across Gaza and the West Bank. The office portfolio includes infrastructure development, project implementation, procurement, and operational services. In Gaza, UNOPS supports humanitarian enablers including access through the UN 2720 Mechanism and Access Support Unit, humanitarian fuel and energy, and mine action; future work is envisaged to include infrastructure construction and rehabilitation, procurement, and project management. The Advisor leads the development of an integrated partnerships strategy aligned with UNOPS’ Strategic Plan, regional strategy, and Office Plan; builds and maintains relationships with governments, UN agencies, donors, foundations, NGOs, academia, and the private sector; and coordinates partnership positioning, negotiations, project formulation, and inter-agency collaboration. The role also oversees results-based development, monitoring and reporting, tracking systems, knowledge sharing, innovation, and partnership capacity building. The role requires a bachelor’s degree or equivalent with at least nine years of relevant experience, or a master’s degree or equivalent with at least seven years of relevant experience. English fluency is required; intermediate Arabic is desirable. The position is based in East Jerusalem and is a staff fixed-term appointment for 12 months, with possible extension subject to budget availability and satisfactory performance.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in any discipline and at least 9 years of relevant experience, or master’s degree or equivalent in any discipline and at least 7 years of relevant experience.
Relevant experience in international development involving partnership and programme development plans, project development and proposal writing, establishing partnerships with UN agencies, international development organizations, governments, foundations, or private-sector organizations, or related areas.
Fluent English.

Nice To Haves

Experience working in multicultural environments or UN system organizations in a developing country.
Experience in development or humanitarian contexts.
Experience in project and programme management.
Intermediate Arabic.

Responsibilities

Lead development of a comprehensive partnerships strategy aligned with UNOPS’ Strategic Plan, regional strategy, and Office Plan, including analysis of the country and regional context, identification of partners and operational niches, and development of a pipeline of opportunities.
Advise the senior management team on implementation of the partnerships strategy and support project development planning, including prioritization of partners, countries, sectors, and service areas.
Research donor strategies, programming priorities, and political situations to identify funding opportunities aligned with UNOPS’ strategy and mandate.
Promote disciplined project and programme development that balances costs, risks, revenues, and beneficiary impact in accordance with UNOPS’ mandate and pricing policy.
Lead the partnerships team in developing, extending, and maintaining relationships with governments, UN agencies, donors, foundations, NGOs, academia, and the private sector.
Work with the Head of Programme, Head of Support Services, and Project/Programme Management Office to ensure projects are developed in alignment with programme and support services.
Model strong partnership positioning and development standards and coordinate, advise, mentor, and coach partnership and programme personnel.
Coordinate with Communications to align UNOPS’ external positioning with the Office strategy and Partnerships Plan.
Lead or participate in partnership-building meetings and negotiations with donors and clients, pursue mutually beneficial and cost-effective terms, and ensure timely follow-up on agreed actions.
Collaborate with regional and headquarters partnerships colleagues to share good practices and strengthen UNOPS’ partnerships capabilities.
Facilitate meetings between senior management and government representatives and plan high-level meetings with sub-regional and country-level partners, including at conferences and other fora.
Support partners in assessing options for effective project implementation and results while promoting national ownership.
Showcase office capabilities and establish standards for corporate communications materials, capacity statements, and success stories.
Represent UNOPS office leadership in meetings and negotiations with senior government counterparts and partners when delegated.
Participate in inter-agency planning and cluster meetings and contribute to harmonization of UN System policies, practices, and approaches, including implementation of the UNSDCF.
Ensure programmes and projects follow Results-Based Management principles and have appropriate monitoring and evaluation frameworks.
Collaborate with project managers on results frameworks and measurable short- and long-term performance targets.
Ensure accurate, informative, and timely reporting on partnerships development activities.
Lead internal feedback mechanisms and establish systems to track partnerships development and progress.
Guide partnerships officers in assessing stakeholder landscapes, identifying priority themes and opportunities, and preparing concept notes, proposals, knowledge products, and negotiations.
Provide input to project formulation and assess implementation approaches for soundness, sustainability, gender mainstreaming, feasibility, resource availability, and cost implications.
Implement headquarters standards, tools, and templates for partnership and project development.
Contribute to research and application of best practices and innovative approaches in partnership and project development.
Build project managers’ partnership capacity and negotiation skills.
Facilitate knowledge sharing and disseminate lessons learned and best practices.
Provide feedback on systems, tools, and resources to support continuous improvement.