Communications Specialist

Organizational Setting

The Food and Agriculture Organization Liaison Office with the United Nations in New York (FAOLON) was established on 16 March 1956. It replaced the Sub-Office of the North American Regional Office.
Located in the heart of the United Nations (UN), our office:
•     Represents FAO at intergovernmental meetings, notably the UN General Assembly (UNGA), and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC);
•     Represents FAO in UN committees, functional commissions and subsidiary bodies, notably the United Nations Development Group (UNDG);
•     Maintains working relations with all UN organizations and entities in New York and Geneva, as well as their secretariats;
•     Maintains liaisons with intergovernmental, non-governmental and private institutions, including foundations;
•     Handles local public information requests;
•     Provides briefing services to visiting officers.

Our work covers key issues pertaining to international trade, humanitarian affairs and sustainable development.

Reporting Lines

The Communication specialist will work under the overall supervision of the Director, FAO Liaison Office to the United Nations in New York (FAOLON), and direct supervision of the Communications Officer, FAOLON, and under the functional guidance of the Director, Office for Corporate Communication (OCC).

Technical Focus

The incumbent will be required to generate content from technical programmes, policies and program/projects reports and news reports to enhance the visibility of FAO’s work among Member States and the UN system. The incumbent will need to ensure coherence with FAO’s corporate communication policy and operational guidelines for all communication and information outputs. Furthermore, the incumbent will be required to provide technical advice in the design and implementation of communication and outreach products.

Tasks and responsibilities

•     Draft original content and news stories.
•     Update the FAOLON website as needed.
•     Prepare the monthly FAO in New York newsletter.
•     Draft and schedule original content and messaging for the @FAONewYork X account.

•     Manage thematic/regional/country social media channels, (FAO New York X), as per the FAO social media guidelines:
a.    https://www.fao.org/communications/policy/social-media/en/   
b.    All social media assets should be produced must comply with FAO standards, including:
c.    Social Media Branding guidelines: https://www.fao.org/3/cb5044en/cb5044en.pdf 

•     For videos intended for social media, liaise with OCCI to clear the scripts prior to editing. The social media videos should follow the branding guidelines outlined here: https://www.fao.org/3/cb5044en/cb5044en.pdf   
•     Support and/or implement web and social media communication activities for events LON organizes and/or supports, including drafting webstories and creating event webpages.
•     Design save the dates, programmes and other communication products as needed.
•     Support other communication, outreach and advocacy-related activities of the FAO Liaison Office in New York, as needed.
•     Liaison with the Office of Communication (OCC) will be maintained, either directly or through an agreed focal point/coordinator, to ensure compliance with OCC standards, appropriate review and clearance processes. 
•     All communication materials will follow FAO clearance processes and comply with FAO standards, including: 
FAOSTYLE (English: https://www.fao.org/3/cb8081en/cb8081en.pdf ; French: https://www.fao.org/3/AC339FR/ac339fr.pdf ;  Spanish: https://www.fao.org/3/ac339s/ac339s.pdf ;  Arabic: https://www.fao.org/3/ac339a/ac339a.pdf ; Chinese: https://www.fao.org/3/ac339c/ac339c.pdf) ;  
FAO terminology http://www.fao.org/faoterm ; 
FAO Names Of Countries https://www.fao.org/nocs/en ; 
Story guidelines http://intranet.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/occ/Quick_Guides/UPDATED-Digital-Storytelling-Guide-EN-FINAL.pdf ;  
Story template http://intranet.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/occ/Quick_Guides/FAO-Stories-Template-UPDATED.pdf ;  
UN map standards (available to staff); 
FAO Brand and policy book (available to staff).

•     Work in constant contact with the Publishing Group at FAO and ensure that all corporate publishing standards are adhered to in
   publications and documents.
•     Perform other duties as requested.  

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements    

•     University degree in communication, social science, journalism, political science or a field related to the work of the Organization. 
•     Working knowledge of English is required. Working knowledge of another official language of the Organization (Arabic, Chinese, French, Spanish and Russian) would be considered an asset.
•     Minimum one year of experience in the field of communications, design, content creation and web management or other related field 
•     Applicants must be nationals of the United States or residents with a valid work permit.

FAO Core Competencies

•     Results Focus
•     Teamwork
•     Communication
•     Building Effective Relationships
•     Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement