World Bank Program Assistant Job Vacancy in Washington

Background / General description

Please note that a candidate with open-ended contract will retain the status The Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) is an independent group within the World Bank Group (WBG), led by the Director General, Evaluation (DGE), reporting to the Board of the WBG and independent of WBG Management. IEG is responsible for assessing the development effectiveness of WBG activities. In doing so, it evaluates operations, programs and strategies, makes recommendations from findings, supports evaluation capacity development , and disseminates lessons learned within the WBG and the broader development community. The Office of the Director-General, Evaluation offers a rewarding and unique opportunity to a highly motivated individual seeking to work in fast paced and innovative environment, with considerable room for professional and career development . Note: If the selected candidate is a current Bank Group staff member with a Regular or Open-Ended appointment, s/he will retain his/her Regular or Open-Ended appointment. All others will be offered a 2 year renewable term appointment.

Duties and Accountabilities

The Office of the DGE (IEGDG) is seeking an energetic and pro-active Program Assistant to join a high performing team consisting of nine non-ACS staff and four ACS staff. The Program Assistant will report jointly to the Senior Adviser and Senior Executive Assistant (EA) and will be an integral part of the ACS team. The candidate should have excellent interpersonal skills and a strong commitment to teamwork. The Program Assistant will provide support to, and work closely with, Senior Adviser, Senior EA and other senior staff of the Office of the DGE. Duties and Accountabilities of the Program Assistant will include (but not be limited to) the following:   Provide comprehensive administrative assistance to the Senior Adviser and coordinate the schedule of meetings, appointments and mission travel to ensure effective time management including monitoring and follow-up on issues and priorities for the Senior Adviser and ensuring that relevant documents are available for meetings/trips and that deadlines are met. Provide general research support and draft correspondence on a range of topics as needed.   Provide support to the Senior Adviser in undertaking thematic and sector studies for the respective teams by gathering documentation, assisting in research activities, coordinating evaluation team activities and processing Board packages for transmittal in keeping IEG workflow practices. Maintain up-to-date filing of all official documents.   Screen, prioritize, follow-up and route all incoming/outgoing mail to the Units for action by using the DGE Logging system; managing correspondence; preparing briefing materials as appropriate; and/or ensuring timely submission of such material by other IEG groups.   Manage and triage the Senior Adviser’s correspondence (e-mail and paper) and ensure that timely responses are sent, traffic is appropriately routed to others for comment and input, and systems established for the Senior Adviser to categorize, follow up, and respond.   Assist in preparation of complex documents and in maintenance of bibliographic and document databases. Liaise with consultants.   Assist the Senior Adviser and IEGDG team with partnerships with outside organizations, including maintaining regular links, managing communications.   Provide ad hoc administrative support to the Special Assistant of the DGE and other members of IEGDG.   Assist the Senior EA in the smooth operation of the office support work and related systems within IEGDG.   Assist the Senior EA in organizing events, video and audio conferences, meetings and social functions.   Interact closely and effectively with team members, Senior EA and other ACS in the unit and IEG. Interact effectively and diplomatically with the offices of Board members and WBG senior management.   Handle efficiently internal and external phone queries, and routing to the appropriate person. Handle sensitive and confidential correspondence and information.   Serve as back-up Information Assistant for WB-Docs and Security Warden for the front office group.   Serve as primary back-up for the Senior EA during absence from the office. Responsibilities in this function include full suite of Senior EA activities, including but not limited to managing calendar, e-mail responses and delegating to other IEG staff for response, interactions with WBG senior executives and Board, interactions with key outside partners, etc.   Undertake ad hoc duties as assigned by the Senior EA during absences and/or heavy work periods.

Selection Criteria

  High School Diploma. Minimum Years of Relevant Experience: 5 years (internal candidates) and 7 years (external candidates).   Experience in the full range of World Bank Group office support work, with a high-level of sustained performance. Effective, proven skills in organizing, prioritizing, scheduling, planning, and coordinating workflow. Proven ability to manage and triage managers’ correspondence and scheduling requests and to oversee the resolution of conflicting demands.   Ability to quickly master IEG's business activities and processes to ensure that management decisions are properly carried out and products are delivered in a timely manner.   Good knowledge of World Bank Group senior management and Board organizational structure and of World Bank Group corporate, administrative and/or operational policies and procedures.   Maturity, discretion, respect for privacy, and ability to handle sensitive/confidential issues, correspondence, and information discreetly.   Good judgment, diplomacy, and tact, including the ability to represent the Office of the DGE in a friendly and professional manner with internal/external contacts at all levels.   Exceptional teamwork, maintaining an environment of responsiveness and trust within the front office and with internal and external partners.   High degree of motivation, initiative, flexibility and reliability. Demonstrated ability to anticipate and resolve problems independently, and to function under pressure in a fast-paced environment.   Strong written and verbal communication skills in English.   Advanced knowledge of technology, specifically standard Bank software packages (Notes, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint) and ability to prepare/edit complex documents including long tables and graphs, at times with short notice and tight deadlines.   Ability to work under pressure, handle concurrent activities and establish priorities; willingness to work overtime as well as being flexible with working hours, as the need arises.   Proactive attitude, a self-starter, and team player, with a high degree of motivation, resourcefulness, initiative, flexibility and reliability, and willingness to work with others in meeting IEG work objectives.   Excellent organizational, administrative, and time management skills with a proven ability to work promptly and efficiently under pressure and meet tight deadlines with a minimum of supervision.   Demonstrated ability to handle and prioritize multiple demands, and contribute to a pleasant work environment. Ability for multi-tasking, handle tight deadlines and manage conflicts.

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Closing Date: Thursday, 12 January 2012