Director, Crisis Response Division

Org. Setting and ReportingThis position is located in the Crisis Response Division (CRD) of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). OCHA’s mission is to ensure principled, timely, and coherent humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors, to alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies; support the rights and needs of affected people; promote preparedness and risk-informed planning; and facilitate sustainable solutions. The Division plays a central role in advancing the Humanitarian Reset, ensuring that OCHA’s operational response is agile, country-focused, and aligned with Reset priorities. Through simplified structures, strengthened HQ–country connectivity, and clarified operational accountabilities, the Division drives effective, risk-aware, and coherent humanitarian action in crises. The Director of the Division works under the strategic guidance of the Under-Secretary-General/Emergency Relief Coordinator (USG/ERC) and the direct supervision of the Assistant Secretary-General/Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator (ASG/DERC), providing leadership on country operations, crisis response, and system-wide coordination. ResponsibilitiesWithin delegated authority, the Crisis Response function within OCHA, working collaboratively with other function leads. S/he will provide primary support on operations to the ERC, Humanitarian Coordinators (HCs), and Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Principals. Working with a team, s/he will ensure effective HQ-country coordination, providing real-time, authoritative perspectives, insights, situational awareness, and facts from field-based OCHA leadership. The Director will provide oversight of the OCHA Heads of Offices and maintain responsibility for operations in the field. Specifically, the Director will be responsible for the following: • Directs and manages Crisis Response Division. Provides strategic and technical leadership across OCHA to ensure: effective, principled, and timely humanitarian operations in the field enabling assistance to reach affected people with maximum impact. Leads advocacy and negotiation on access, protection, and system-wide humanitarian priorities, ensuring consistent, evidence-based messaging on the rights and needs of affected people. • Contributes to the formulation of division’s strategies and policies. Participates in interdivisional and inter-agency forums, prepares policy guidance, and acts in an advisory capacity to the USG/ERC and ASG/DERC. Provides real-time, accurate field analysis to inform leadership advocacy and decision making, including anticipatory analysis and forward-looking risk identification aligned with the Humanitarian Reset. • Provides day-to-day operational and management oversight and supports to OCHA’s field offices to ensure effective and timely response in crisis situations. • Formulates and implement the Division’s work programme . Establishes priorities, and allocates resources and ensures their timely delivery. Ensures Division’s work programme meets objectives laid out in alignment with the OCHA Strategic Plan and Results Framework. • Leads the development of coherent, risk-informed, and context-appropriate strategies for crisis-affected countries, including the development of transitions and exit strategies, as necessary. Ensures full organizational alignment and provides leadership during the response to major, acute crises. In support of the USG/ERC and ASG/DERC, as well as independently as a senior member of OCHA’s leadership team, engages in public advocacy on behalf of the humanitarian community on the rights and needs of affected people; makes recommendations to the USG on negotiations required with parties and neighboring countries over access to victims and beneficiaries. • Oversees the management of activities undertaken by the Division, ensuring that programmed activities are carried out in a timely fashion and co-ordinates work in the different areas both within the Division and throughout all of OCHA, and with other organizations of the United Nations System, donors and agencies as appropriate. Oversees and aligns organizational priorities across OCHA’s field offices for coordinated support for the delivery of humanitarian assistance in complex emergencies, natural disasters, and protracted crises. Coordinates with other OCHA Divisions at headquarters to consistently bring the best of OCHA’s skillsets to the field, and ensures timely and accurate flow of information up and down the organization. • Co-ordinates and oversees the preparation of reports for presentation to intergovernmental bodies such as the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budget Questions, Committee for Programme Coordination, Economic and Social Council, the General Assembly and other policy-making organs, as appropriate. • Reports to intergovernmental bodies on budget/programme performance or on programmatic/substantive issues, as appropriate, particularly those presented in biannual and/or annual reports. At the request of the USG/ERC and/or ASG/DERC, represents OCHA at governmental meetings concerned with humanitarian aid. • Ensures high-quality outputs , produces clear, data reports that meet organizational standards. Develops system-wide messages, advocacy products, and coordinated outreach strategies aligned with corporate priorities and the Humanitarian Reset. Advocates and provides real-time facts from the field for resource mobilization to support consolidated humanitarian response plans, flash appeals, and other financing plans and regular funding updates. • Undertakes or oversees the programmatic/administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the Office/Division, including preparation of budgets, assigning and monitoring of performance parameters and critical indicators, reporting on budget/programme performance, preparation of inputs for results-based budgeting, evaluation of staff performance (PAS), interviews of candidates for job openings and evaluation of candidates. • Working closely with the Humanitarian Sector Division, to ensure streamlined, standardized, and fit-for-purpose reporting and information products consistent with Reset simplification efforts. • Oversees the recruitment of staff for Office/Division taking due account geographical and gender balance and other institutional values. • Manages, guides, develops and trains staff under his/her supervision; foster teamwork and communication among staff in the office/Division and across organizational boundaries. • Chairs meetings, seminars, etc., on substantive-related issues; represents the Organization at international, regional, inter-agency meetings, seminars and conference; provides programmatic/substantive expertise on an issue, or holds programmatic/substantive and organizational discussions with representatives of other institutions. Engages in private diplomacy to secure access to affected people. Monitors and provides evidence-based reporting on humanitarian access constraint, engages in private diplomacy to secure access to affected people and. ensures effective coordination with political, peacekeeping and development actors, particularly during transitions. Supports the USG/ERC and ASG/DERC to deliver briefings to the Security Council, push advocacy efforts on implementation of Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, and advise the Secretary General, as appropriate. • Perform other related duties as requested by the senior management of the Organization. Competencies• Professionalism: Knowledge of the substantive field of work in general and of specific areas being supervised. Shows ability to produce reports and papers on technical issues and to review and edit the work of others. Shows ability to apply UN rules, regulations, policies and guidelines in work situations. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. • Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable. • Leadership: Serves as a role model that other people want to follow: empowers others to translate vision into results; is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives; establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; drives for change and improvements; does not accept the status quo; shows the courage to take unpopular stands. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing. • Vision: Identifies strategic issues, opportunities and risks; clearly communicates links between the Organization’s strategy and the work unit’s goals; generates and communicates broad and compelling organizational direction, inspiring others to pursue that same direction; conveys enthusiasm about future possibilities. • Judgement/Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary. EducationAn advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in administration, international affairs, social or natural sciences or related area is required. A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. Job - Specific QualificationNot available. Work ExperienceOver fifteen years of progressively responsible experience in humanitarian assistance, emergency preparedness, disaster or crisis management, or related area is required. Experience in managing complex operational responses and field coordination in emergencies, including advising senior leadership on operational contexts, is required. At least seven (7) years of senior management experience at the international level, including leading and managing large cross-functional teams comprised of persons from diverse professional and cultural backgrounds, and complex financial and human resources, is required. Experience in strategic operational response, and implementing system-wide initiatives, including leading reform or transformation efforts, is required. At least five (5) years of experience at the international level with the United Nations organization, or other comparable international organization is desirable. LanguagesEnglish and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this job opening, English is required. French is desirable. The table below shows the minimum required level for each skill in these languages, according to the UN Language Framework (please consult https://languages.un.org for details).