Ethics Advisor

Contribute to UNOPS’ culture of accountability by providing expert case management and independent analysis of retaliation allegations, ensuring the protection of whistleblowers through rigorous policy application and strategic managerial recommendations.

UNOPS is committed to fostering an organizational culture of ethics and a harmonious and inclusive work environment. The Ethics Office (ETO) is integral to this effort, and has an overall mandate to act as an independent office pursuant to its establishment as per ST/SGB/2007/11. Overall, the role of the ETO is to cultivate and nurture an organizational  culture of ethics, integrity and accountability, and thereby enhance the trust in, and the credibility of UNOPS, both internally and externally.

More specifically, the ETO is responsible for developing standards, training and education on ethics issues, providing independent, impartial and confidential ethics advice to individuals and management in ethics related dilemmas, identifying key ethical risks and developing, implementing and monitoring policies and procedures, for ethical risk management and prevention of unethical behavior as well as safeguarding personnel by providing protection against retaliation.

** IMPORTANT INFORMATION **

Retainer positions are not full-time positions. They constitute a contract whereby the Retainer may be requested to provide a specific output/deliverable within a specified period of time, on short notice. When holding a retainer contract, individuals may receive ad-hoc requests from the UNOPS project teams or country offices, and the quantity of requests will vary depending on the current needs. UNOPS shall have no obligation to obtain any minimum quantity of services from the Individual Contractor during the duration of the retainer ICA. It is possible to have multiple consultancy contracts with or outside UNOPS, as long as it is declared to the UNOPS Ethics Office. 

The organization requires the services of Ethics Advisors that shall be on a retainer contract to help with fluctuations in workload.

The Ethics Advisors will focus on case management of requests for protection against retaliation. 

The Ethics Advisors report to the Director of the Ethics Office.

Please note that the selected candidates who will successfully undergo the assessments will be offered a remote working contract for 1 year (renewable subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance) but proposed a work package only when a specific opportunity arises.

Case management in relation to cases of protection against retaliation under guidance of the Director of the Ethics Office:

• Conduct preliminary (prima facie) reviews of whistleblower protection against retaliation cases, including speaking with reporters and other relevant parties and examining submitted documentation, requiring in-depth understanding of the UNOPS regulations, rules and policies as well as the international administrative legal framework and jurisprudence.
• Recommend and draft requests for measures to safeguard reporters’ interests while the review is ongoing.
• Where the preliminary review results in a determination of no prima facie retaliation, draft a formal memorandum to the reporter outlining the legal reasoning and analysis for the determination.
• Where the preliminary review results in a determination of prima facie retaliation, draft a formal memorandum to the Internal Audit and Investigations Group (IAIG), mandated to undertake the investigation into the retaliation allegation, detailing the allegations and conclusions.
• Upon receipt of the investigation report, make an independent review of the report and related to documentation, make a final determination of the case, and inform the reporter of the outcome.
• Draft recommendations on managerial intervention or corrective measures, where appropriate.
• Ensure and promote consistent ethical advice and compliance with ethics-related policies, especially the ones related to whistleblowing mechanisms and retaliation through the provision of advisory on sensitive cases.
• Consult and liaise with stakeholders, including Senior stakeholders as applicable, during the implementation phase of the revised whistleblower mechanism.
• Contribute to improving standard operating procedures and internal policies related to handling of protection against retaliation requests.