Senior Admin Assistant, Kuwait

Hardship LevelA (least hardship)

Family TypeFamily

Family TypeFamily

Residential location (if applicable)

GradeGS5

Staff Member / Affiliate TypeGeneral Service

ReasonRegular > Regular Assignment

Remote work acceptedNo

Target Start Date2025-03-01

Deadline for ApplicationsApril 9, 2025

Standard Job Description

Senior Administrative Assistant

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Senior Administrative Assistant will provide administrative support to the office where the position is located.
The Senior Administrative Assistant normally has no direct supervisory functions though it rests upon the supervisor of the post to make time specific arrangements subject to a given situation. The incumbent normally works under the direct supervision of more senior local or international staff, who is required to monitor the performance of the incumbent and provide regular guidance. S/he may liaise with local suppliers and/or officials and/or Implementing Partners (IPs) on routine subject matters under the direction of the supervisor.

All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR's core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.

Duties
- Assist in interpreting and processing of entitlements, issuance of contracts and maintenance of various personnel records and files.
- Attend meetings on day-to-day admin matters; administer the movement of UNHCR staff members and monitor their attendance records, leave plans, overtime and visa requirements.
- Search office files and records relating to a variety of topics for information and reference. Select information and records in specified format or on the basis of general instructions for use by others in preparing reports, correspondence, technical papers, project or programme plans and general reference documents.
- Assist in requisition of office supplies, equipment and arrange for distribution together with the appropriate inventory records.
- Assist in administrative formalities related to travel arrangements and issuance/ renewal of visas, licences, travel arrangements and other similar documents.
- Draft correspondence and reports, as required, on general administrative or specialized tasks which may be of a confidential nature within the assigned area of responsibility; Type correspondence, documents and reports, some of which may be highly confidential.
- Arrange appointments and maintain supervisor's calendar, receive visitors, place and screen telephone calls and answer queries with discretion; Keep lists of names, addresses and telephone numbers of ministers, government officials and members of the diplomatic corps.
- Assist the management to organise and run UNHCR Office and Residential (wherever applicable) compounds.
- Facilitate various official missions of UNHCR staff and other persons of concern to UNHCR.
- Prepare attestations and certificates required by the staff members for signature of senior officer.
- Assist in processing MIP and various other claims by UNHCR staff and other clients of UNHCR.

- Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).
- Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications
Education & Professional Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
For G5 - 2 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 1 year relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Field(s) of Education
Not applicable.

Certificates and/or Licenses
Business Administration, Finance, Office Management, Human Resources, or other related field.
(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Not specified.
Desirable
Completion of UNHCR learning programmes or specific training relevant to functions of the position.

Functional Skills
*IT-Computer Literacy
UN-UN/UNHCR Administrative Rules, Regulations and Procedures
IT-PeopleSoft Applications
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements
For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.
For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination, and abuse of power.
As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.

This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

Desired Candidate Profile Nature of the position: Snr Administrative Assistant (Fixed-Term Appointment)

The post is located within the Country Office Kuwait. UNHCR in Kuwait is part of the UN House and is integrated into BOS of the Kuwait UNCT. The budget, which is managed by the CO Kuwait, stands at an average of some USD 350,000 which represents 15% of the total budget for the MCO Saudi Arabia. There are 12 staff members, 2 international and 10 local.

The CO Kuwait is part of the MCO Saudi Arabia area of budgetary control, which developed and implemented an integrated approach to managing back-office functions, inter alia including pooled regional services in HR, Travel, IT, Budget Management, and potentially procurement.

Under the supervision of the Snr Administrative Associate, and in a matrixed functional arrangement with the Snr Administrative Officer of the MCO Riyadh, the incumbent in addition to being the back-up for core finance and administrative tasks for Snr. Administrative Associate will be primarily responsible for two main workstreams:

1. Operate the supply mode in Cloud ERP and be in charge of procure-to-pay tasks for the Country Operation, including vendor management for FAs, concluded within the BOS. In this role, the s/m will work with the internal team, OMT, and local vendors.

2. Perform Travel expert role for the ABC of MCO Saudi Arabia, including purchasing of tickets and administering travel authorizations for the identified area of coverage. In this role, the incumbent will work with users from different locations and functionally report to the Travel Lead.

While not a leadership role, the incumbent will play an important role in executing technical functions and using new solutions (Cloud ERP, etc).

The incumbent would be expected to have a good command of Office 365 functionalities, in particular Excel, in addition to competencies in resource and financial management.

Candidates should be Kuwaiti national or holding Kuwaiti valid residency.

Language Requirement:
The incumbent needs to have excellent writing and communications skills in English languages. Knowledge of Arabic is desirable.

Required languages (expected Overall ability is at least B2 level):

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Desired languages

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Operational context

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:

Nature of Position:

Living and Working Conditions:

Additional Qualifications

SkillsIT-Computer Literacy, IT-Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), UN-UN/UNHCR Administrative Rules, Regulations and Procedures

Education

CertificationsBusiness Administration - Other, Finance - Other, Human Resources - Other, Office Management - Other

Work Experience

CompetenciesAccountability, Analytical thinking, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous learning, Communication, Organizational awareness, Planning & organizing, Teamwork & collaboration

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Compendium

Additional Information

Functional clearanceThis position doesn't require a functional clearance