Engineering Specialist-

Background

• Tier 1: UNDP/ UNCDF/ UNV staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed term (FTA) appointments (defined as "internal" candidates)  
• Tier 2: UNDP/ UNCDF/ UNV staff holding temporary appointments (TA) and personnel on regular PSA contracts 
• Tier 3: All other contract types from UNDP/UNCDF/UNV and other agencies, and other external candidates

1- Office/Unit/Project Description

The UNDP IRAQ Country Office administers and manages common premises and shared services on behalf of the co-located UN agencies, funds, and programs. The Common Premises Unit is established to ensure the efficient, secure, and cost-effective management of all common premises, assets, and services. The unit's objective is to provide high-quality support services to all Participating Agencies, enabling them to focus on their core mandates

2.    Scope of Work 

Strategic O&M Leadership

•    Own the Compound Maintenance Strategy (preventive, corrective, predictive), asset lifecycle plans, and critical spares for buildings and grounds (envelope, finishes), MEP (HVAC/chillers, BMS, power distribution, generators/UPS, lighting), water/wastewater, fire & life safety, vertical transport, and site civil works (roads, drainage, fencing).

•    Establish and run a CMMS (asset registry, PM library, work orders, SLAs, inventory), enabling analytics on MTBF/MTTR and long term renewal planning.

•    Chair weekly O&M review; publish monthly performance dashboards and risk/issue logs for the Common Premises governance.

IT & Network Infrastructure (in partnership with UN ICT)

•    Oversee compound wide IT/Network infrastructure: structured cabling/fiber, switching/routing, Wi Fi, data closets/server room environmental (power, cooling, access, fire suppression), and connectivity resilience.

•    Coordinate with UN ICT on standards, cybersecurity posture, change control, and disaster recovery. Track network uptime, incident response, and vendor performance ; ensure documentation and as built.

Day to Day Operations & Supervision

•    Lead a multi disciplinary team (MEP engineers/technicians, civil/architectural trades, network/ICT technicians, helpdesk, and stores). Plan shifts, conduct toolbox talks, and perform field supervision and QA/QC.

•    Operate a helpdesk/CMMS triage with priority codes (P1–P3), response/restore targets, and user communication templates.

•    Ensure life safety and statutory testing (fire systems, E stops, earthing, lifts, pressure vessels) with full records and corrective action follow up.

HSE, Risk & Business Continuity

•    Implement HSE management (permits to work, lock out/tag out, confined space, hot work, PPE), contractor induction, incident investigations, and near miss learning.

•    Maintain Business Continuity and emergency response for power, water, HVAC, and network (redundancies, fuel strategy, critical spares, black start, load shedding, failover tests) in coordination with UNDSS and agency focal points.

Sustainability & Utilities Management

•    Track and improve energy and water intensity; lead efficiency projects (BMS tuning, LED, VFDs, leak reduction, HVAC sequencing), aligned with UN "Greening the Blue" objectives.

•    Manage waste streams and environmental compliance; maintain refrigerant and hazardous substances registers.

Contracting, Procurement & Financials

•    Draft SOWs/specifications, BoQs, and evaluation criteria; conduct/advise on technical evaluations and contract kick offs; set SLAs and KPIs into contracts.

•    Oversee contractor performance (PPMs done on time, statutory compliance, quality) and certify payments against deliverables.

•    Prepare and manage O&M budgets, forecasts, and cost control; produce variance analysis and savings pipelines. (Builds on and expands budget and evaluation duties in the original ToR.) 

Projects & Small Works

•    Plan and deliver minor capital works/refurbishments (design review, permits, schedule, QA/QC, acceptance, as builts).

•    Apply protective design/blast resistant good practice in refurbishments where applicable. (The original ToR required experience in blast mitigation; for a maintenance head, this is retained as desirable for risk informed upgrades.) 

Stakeholder Management & Reporting

•    Serve as engineering focal point to Participating Agencies, UNDSS, ICT working groups, host government utilities, and service vendors; convene monthly service review boards.

•    Provide monthly/quarterly reports and audit responses with evidence (PPM logs, test certificates, compliance registers), building on the original ToR's emphasis on reporting and audit readiness.

•    Knowledge and capacity building, knowledge sharing

•    Identify capacity building needs and opportunities. Ensure appropriate training, project workshops and other relevant activities are organized and implemented in a consultative manner, involving technical experts and stakeholders that may include the government, private sector, NGOs, donors, and/or academia.

•    Ensure project reports capture results, lessons learned and good practices for possible wider application.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization

3.    Institutional Arrangement

The Engineering Specialist will work under the direct supervision of the Project Manager – Head of CP Unit with matrix reporting to the Operations Specialist - CP.

4. Competencies
 

Core

Achieve Results:
LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact 

Think Innovatively:
LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems 

Learn Continuously:
LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences

Adapt with Agility:
LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands 

Act with Determination: 
LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results

Engage and Partner:
LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration

Enable Diversity and Inclusion :
LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity

People Management :  

UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies 

 

Thematic Area
Name
Definition

Business Direction & Strategy
Systems Thinking
Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgment to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system.

Business Direction & Strategy
Business Acumen
Ability to understand and deal with a business situation in a manner that is likely to lead to a good outcome. Ability to make good judgments and quick decisions within such frameworks Knowledge and understanding of the operational frameworks in the organization

Business Development
Knowledge Generation
Ability to research information and to turn it into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need. Ability to apply existing concepts to new situations, and to develop new concepts to generate workable solutions and new approaches. Knowledge of relevant concepts, conceptual models, and theories that can be useful in addressing new situations.

Partnership Management
Relationship Management
Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain and/or strengthen working relations, trust and mutual understanding

Business Management
Communication
Communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. 

Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels

Business Management
Project Management
Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.

Business Direction and Strategy
Negotiation and Influence
Ability to reach an understanding, persuade others, resolve points of difference, gain advantage in the outcome of dialogue, negotiates mutually acceptable solutions through compromise and creates win-win situations.

5-   Minimum Qualifications of the Successful NPSA

Min. Education requirements
Advanced university degree (master's degree or equivalent) in Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical engineering, Architecture or a related field is required, OR 

A first-level university degree (bachelor's degree) in the above-mentioned fields combined with an additional 2 years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Min. years of relevant work experience 
Minimum 5 years (with master's degree) or 7 years (with bachelor's degree) of progressive relevant experience in engineering, facilities/compound O&M, projects management and design, implementation, progress monitoring and coordination with implementing and oversight parties.

Required skills 
Strong technical leadership across MEP/Civil/Architectural maintenance; vendor and budget management is required.

Experience in designing blast mitigation measures in structures is required

Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section
UN/UNDP or international org experience in crisis affected contexts; PMP/PRINCE2, NEBOSH/IOSH, BICSI/CCNA/ITIL, CEng/PE is desirable.

Experience in supervising works and managing projects is desirable.

Experience in project procurement and supply chain processes/procedures is desirable.

Demonstrated experience running CMMS, service contracts, and KPIs/SLAs in mission critical environments is desirable.

Experience in compound level ICT/Network infrastructure oversight is desirable.

Required Language(s) 
Fluency in English and Arabic is required.

Fluency in Kurdish is desired.

Professional Certificates
Certificate in design-related software including AUTOCAD, Revit, or Adobe Pro is required.

Certificate in Blast Loading is desirable.

The following documents shall be required from the applicants:

a)    Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.

b)    A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) indicating why the candidate considers him-/herself to be suitable for the position.

c)    Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as  reports, presentations, publications, campaigns or other materials.

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

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