The Human Resources and Database Management intern supports the work of the Leadership Support Section (LSS) within the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. More specifically, the intern provides support to succession planning of senior mission leadership and other human resources initiatives, as well as the management of LEAD (the online pool of potential senior candidates).

LSS supports the leadership life-cycle of senior leadership in UN field missions. This includes monitoring the leadership landscape, identifying leadership requirements, conducting outreach to new potential candidates and recording senior leadership appointments for Peacekeeping Operations and Special Political Missions to improve senior-level vacancy management, and supporting the recruitment process of potential candidates for these field positions. In support of the Secretary-General’s pledge to advance gender parity, priority is given to increase outreach efforts with a view of expanding the pool of qualified women candidates for senior leadership positions. In 2018, the Section migrated its database of leadership profiles from excel to an online platform called ‘Lead’ in Salesforce to support these its core activities. Although substantial progress has been made in the area of data clean-up and uploading new profiles in this database, this continues to remain a top priority for the section especially considering new data input. The intern is expected to support this process. In parallel the intern will be asked to support other tasks within the team which, considering the nature of the Section, are related to leadership, women and leadership as well as Human Resources. Therefore, a natural interest in this field is desirable.

The envisioned start date for the internship is January 2021 but the Section maintains a rolling internship programme and is thus looking for interns available to start throughout the year. The duration of the internship is three months minimum with the potential of an extension for an additional three months. The intern will work five days per week under the supervision of a staff member of the Section. The internship is unpaid and full-time.

Under the supervision of the Programme Officer, the intern will carry out the following duties:

•Support the maintenance of the database of potential candidates for senior leadership positions, include new profiles, and support the development of the database where possible. This centralized mechanism supports all aspects of the work of the Section and is therefore vital for the Section’s mandate. Information contained in this database must be treated with the utmost level of confidentiality;

•Support other regular outreach activities, including the preparation of presentations for meetings with UN entities, Member States and regional organizations as well as conduct open search for new profiles especially of potential candidates from under-represented regions to support the Section’s work on advancing geographic diversity;

•Support the conducting of due diligence checks on potential candidates for senior leadership positions using open sources;

•Collect data on leadership trends in the field and support the preparation of internal reports;

•Prepare mission and country profiles with background documentation for upcoming vacancies and/or change of mandate and present highlights to the Section Chief or Programme Officer;

•Monitor the leadership landscape within the UN, regional organizations and Member States with a view of providing updated information to the Section;

•Attend webinars and other information sessions within DPPA-DPO on HR issues including women in leadership. The intern is expected to share useful insights on key issues to increase learning of both the team and one-self as well as contribute to gender parity related events supported by the Section;

•Provide support to ongoing projects administered by the Section upon availability and request;

•Support knowledge tracking of new HR policies as well as review and analyse HR and other related documents which may include online research on HR topics. Occasionally the intern will be asked to support the preparation and execution of internal HR briefings which are organised to ensure the team’s knowledge on various topics;

•Support colleagues in the preparation of background documents, leadership profile slates and other information for various purposes including as meetings on and with senior leadership, training programmes and onboarding of designates;

•Other relevant tasks as required by the supervisor.

Professionalism: 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.

Planning and organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.

Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others' ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Technology Awareness: Keeps abreast of available technology; understands applicability and limitation of technology to the work of the office; actively seeks to apply technology to appropriate tasks; shows willingness to learn new technology.

To qualify for an internship with the United Nations Internship Programme, the following conditions must be met:

1.Applicants at the time of application must meet one of the following requirements:

(a)be enrolled in, or have completed, a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher);

(b)be enrolled in, or have completed, the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum bachelor’s level or equivalent); or

(c)have graduated with a university degree (as defined above) and, if selected, must commence the internship within a one-year period of graduation;

2. The field of study must be related to the type of internship you are applying for, for this internship students from human resources management, law, political science, international relations, social sciences or a related field are preferred.

3. Knowledge of Microsoft Office 365 is desired.

4. Knowledge in managing data using excel, PowerBI or other software to manage, collate and present data effectively is highly desirable.

5. Have demonstrated keen interest in the work of the United Nations and have a personal commitment to the ideals of the United Nations Charter.

6. Have a demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs, which include willingness to try and understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.

No working experience is required to apply for the United Nations Internship Programme. Your training, education, advance course work or skills should benefit the United Nations during your internship.

Applicants are not required to have professional work experience for participation in the programme. However, past exposure to operating in multicultural environments would be an asset. Experience and/or knowledge in human resources and database management system (such as Salesforce) and online research would also be a strong asset.

Knowledge of or experience in Human Resources Management or related fields is highly desirable.

Knowledge of or experience in Database Management, including online research and presentation skills is highly desirable.

Fluency in spoken and written English is required for the internship. Knowledge of an additional official UN language is an asset (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish).

The recruitment process may include a written assessment followed by a virtual interview and reference checks.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, applicants may be requested to undertake the internship remotely in view of current circumstances and constraints regarding visa issuance, international travel and access to UN premises. Applicants must be willing and prepared to undertake the internship remotely for a part or the entirety of the internship. Kindly note that depending on where you are based, certain visa requirements could still apply.

The duration of the internship is initially for three months, with the possibility of extension up to six months.

A completed online application is required. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. Only candidates who meet the requirements as defined in this vacancy will be contacted to undergo the written assessment.

The cover note is mandatory and must include:

•Degree Programme (title of the degree you are pursuing);

•Graduation Date (expected completion of graduation from the programme);

•List your top three areas of interest and explain how your interests, skills and knowledge match the United Nations Internship Programme, in particular, in the Leadership Support Section.

•Explain your motivation and why you are the best candidate for this specific internship, highlighting any experience you may have in human resources, conducting research, working with database management systems and handling confidential information;

•Elaborate what you wish to learn, develop or gain from this internship within the Leadership Support Section;

•List your IT skills and programmes that you are proficient in;

•Indicate your availability: when you could start, how long you are available for (in months or seasons) and a confirmation that you are available full-time during that period.

Please note that interns are hired on a rolling basis throughout the year, therefore start and end dates are flexible.