Organizational Setting
In line with FAOโs mandate to strengthen organizational resilience and ensure continuity of critical operations, the Organization is enhancing its Business Continuity Management (BCM) framework as part of the broader Organizational Resilience Management System (ORMS). This effort is overseen by the Logistics Services Division (CSL), in collaboration with the Corporate Services Department (CS), the Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER), and other concerned business units. To support this corporate initiative, FAO seeks a specialist with proven expertise in Business Continuity Management and Business Continuity Planning (BCP) to provide strategic guidance, technical advice, and operational support. The specialist actively engage in and/or provide task-based assistance to the engagement and coordination activities related to both internal and external stakeholders, working closely with BCM focal points across headquarters divisions, regional and country offices, and inter-agency partners, to strengthen continuity arrangements at corporate, divisional, and decentralized levels
Reporting Lines
Under the overall supervision of the Senior Programme Officer and in close coordination with ORMS Core Element Owners, the Chair of Crisis Management Team, various Business and Policy Owners, the FAOโs Internal Network .
Technical Focus
Design, implementation and enhancement of Business Continuity Management (BCM) processes, including Business Impact Analysis (BIA), Maintain, Exercise and Review (ME&R) regime, and operational risk management related to business continuity, fully aligned with FAOโs Operational Resilience Management System (ORMS).
Tasks and responsibilities
โข ย ย ย ย Provide strategic advice and technical expertise to senior management on the design, implementation and enhancement of FAOโs Business Continuity Management framework, ensuring alignment with United Nations standards and the Organizational Resilience Management System.Support the process of harmonization of Business Continuity Plans and quality assurance of the content at corporate, divisional and office levels.
โข ย ย ย ย Lead the process of Business Impact Analyses to identify and prioritize time-critical activities, interdependencies and resource requirements.
โข ย ย ย ย Develop standardized Business Impact Analysis tools and facilitate process-mapping workshops.
โข ย ย ย ย Report the consolidated results of Business Impact Analyses into management reports and dashboards to inform continuity strategies and recovery priorities.
โข ย ย ย ย Support the process of strengthened second line of defense: the monitoring, exercising and review mechanisms to assess the maturity of Business Continuity Management, define performance indicators, and integrate lessons learned from disruptions and simulation exercises.
โข ย ย ย ย Identify and assess operational risks to the continuity and recovery of time-critical activities, and recommend targeted mitigation and control strategies, including redundancy and interdependencies.ย
โข ย ย ย ย Support the activities for strengthened policy compliance for effective business continuity managementย
โข ย ย ย ย Lead the process of integrating risk assessments related to continuity into Business Impact Analyses, Business Continuity planning and recovery strategies, coordinating with Enterprise Risk Management to ensure complementarity and avoid duplication.
โข ย ย ย ย Participate in developing the content and facilitation of both internal and interagency trainings, workshops, briefings and knowledge materials to build staff capacity in Business Continuity Management, Business Impact Analysis, monitoring and review, and operational risk management for continuity.
โข ย ย ย ย Lead the efforts to strengthen internal capacity of the internal network and other focal points in document lessons learned and good practices to support institutional knowledge sharing
โข ย ย ย ย Lead the process of ME&R to test business continuity capabilities of the selected offices thorugh live simulations and stress tests
โข ย ย ย ย Participate in the interagency working groups and support progress reporting for both internal and UN-wide bodies
โข ย ย ย ย Perform other related duties as required.
CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING
Minimum Requirements
โข ย ย ย ย Advanced university degree from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO ย in Risk Management, Business Administration, Business Continuity Management, Organizational Resilience or a related field.
โข ย ย ย ย 5 years relevant working experience in Business Continuity Management, Business Continuity Planning or Risk Management for continuityย
โข ย ย ย ย Working knowledge (level C) of English.
โข ย ย ย ย Working knowledge of a second FAO language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).
FAO Core Competencies
โข ย ย ย ย Results Focus
โข ย ย ย ย Teamwork
โข ย ย ย ย Communication
โข ย ย ย ย Building Effective Relationships
โข ย ย ย ย Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement
Technical/Functional Skills
โข ย ย ย ย Demonstrated experience in conducting Business Impact Analyses and developing Maintain, Exercise and Review frameworks.
โข ย ย ย ย Extent and relevance of experience in operational risk management focused on business and operational continuity ย management.
โข ย ย ย ย Familiarity with UN or international organizational operational and administrative contexts.
โข ย ย ย ย Extent of experience and expertise in policy development and implementation
โข ย ย ย ย Strong analytical, and strategic thinking
โข ย ย ย ย Strong interpersonal skills in the diverse environment
โข ย ย ย ย Experience in coordination of strategic topics and proven ability to interact with high level officials
โข ย ย ย ย Outstanding facilitation and drafting skills for policy development and technical documents.
Selection criteria
โข ย ย ย ย Hands on experience in organizational resilience management framework,ย
โข ย ย ย ย Experience in the UN system organizations is an asset
โข ย ย ย ย Extensive experience in capacity development activitiesย
โข ย ย ย ย International experience in both development and emergency contexts
โข ย ย ย ย Fluency in additional UN official language