DATE:        June 23, 2017 

TO:             All Interested Candidates

FROM:        United States Agency for International Development, Regional Executive Officer for Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova (USAID)

SUBJECT: Job Opportunity Announcement 8, USAID/Moldova

POSITION TITLE:  PROJECT MANAGEMENT ASSISTANT – Economic Growth

POSITION TYPE: FSNPSC – 40 hours per week

POSITION GRADE LEVEL: FSN-7

ENTRY GRADE LEVEL: FSN-6 (Unt­­­il the incumbent will successfully complete all mandatory USAID trainings and reach the full performance level of the position). This is an entry level position.

OFFICE LOCATION: USAID/Moldova, Chisinau

OPENING DATE:  June 23, 2017 

CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: July 7, 2017 at 6:00 PM Chisinau time

APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCESS: Interested applicants should e-mail their current résumé and letter of interest in English and DS-174 to the USAID Human Resources Unit at KyivVacancies@usaid.gov.

The United States Agency for International Development is an equal opportunity employer. 

Note:     Only those applications that are received in the Human Resources Unit before the closing date will be eligible for consideration.  Applications and letters that are inadequate or incomplete will not be considered. Only those applicants who are selected for interviews will be contacted.

Initial screening will be based on the curriculum vitae or résumé and letter of interest. Best qualified applicants who meet minimum requirement will be invited for an interview and test. 

BASIC FUNCTION OF POSITION

This position is located in the USAID/Moldova Mission and reports to the U.S. Direct Hire, FS-01, Office Director. The incumbent is primarily responsible for working on activities within the Economic Growth program area. The Office is charged with management of USAID programs in Moldova, including significant Economic Growth assistance programs. These programs are an important part of the USG program to assist Moldova on its European path, create jobs, increase competitiveness and combat corruption. The incumbent is part of Economic Growth section for USAID/Moldova.

The work of the Project Management Assistant-EG requires teamwork, the exercise of discretion, judgment, and personal responsibility. As a member of a highly visible and active office, the Project Management Assistant requires a willingness and ability to perform a wide range of administrative functions to help ensure programmatic success. The Project Management Assistant is highly flexible and the working conditions are subject to ongoing change(s), while maintaining a professional and respectful conduct towards colleagues. S/he places a premium on the building positive relationships with his/her respective team, with the rest of USAID/Moldova and with key stakeholders both in and outside of USAID. The Project Management Assistant is a team player, able to prioritize and follow up on their own actions with guidance from the USDH supervisor, while also assisting a this supervisor and fellow colleagues to track and respond to incoming requests and routine tasks, filling in gaps as needed to ensure the responsiveness of the team. The Project Management Assistant has a strong sense of responsibility, service-oriented, highly organized, pays close attention to detail, is able to complete administrative tasks with guidance from senior FSN colleagues and the USDH supervisor, and is able to receive and respond to constructive criticism in a professional manner. The Project Management Assistant articulates innovative ideas, presents solutions, and looks to senior FSNs and the USDH for guidance.  Must have excellent computer skills in Microsoft Office applications including Word, Excel, and Power Point.

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Administrative 55%

• Provides daily administrative and operational support for the Economic Growth Office of USAID/Moldova.
• Is responsible for timely update and improvement of the Mission’s filing system, including timely editing of the Files Index and its distribution to the staff. Ensures compliance with the Managing Government Records Directive, from August 24, 2012, for the transition from paper-based manual processes to managing records electronically. Ensures that all project, non-project and subject files are maintained on a constant basis, ensure proper and timely disposition of outdated material per Automated Directives System (ADS) guidance. Creates and maintains official files on projects, programs, ADS rules, regulations, and guidance, as it concerns the workings of the office.
• Provides general support to the Economic Growth team, on correspondence and document follow up, document clearance, scheduling of USDH’s time, making travel and logistical arrangements for the technical officers’ official travel.
• Receives visitors, makes appointments, schedules meetings, keeps an appointment calendar for the team and alerts them of upcoming meetings, arranges and distributes agendas for meetings; makes arrangements for large meetings/roundtables/conferences, including procurement of refreshments for USAID-hosted events.
• Is responsible for submitting office supplies requests on a timely basis, to ensure availability of adequate office supplies for the Economic Growth staff. Provides reception phone coverage for the Mission, as needed.
• Provides secretarial backup support on as-needed basis, during vacations and absences of USAID/Moldova Administrative Assistant staff. Performs other administrative and secretarial duties, as required by the Supervisor.

B. Program Support 45%

• Types cables, memoranda, letters and reports; draft routine, non-technical letters; ensures outgoing correspondence is properly formatted, checks for typographical errors, spelling, grammar and punctuation; works with technical staff to assist with the preparation of regularly scheduled reports, as well as documents, correspondence and reports which are not regularly scheduled; make synopsis of incoming correspondence; translates documents from English into Romanian or vice versa, such as basic letters and invitations; may be required to interpret during non-official conversations.
• Assists in the management of Economic Growth portfolio activities on an as-needed temporary basis, in absence of COR/AORs of no longer than 2 weeks. In addition, the incumbent manages certain activities designated by the supervisor in order to ensure an equitable distribution of workload within the EG sector.
• Assists in the preparation of Acquisition and Assistance Requests and other support documentation for the management and administration of procurements. Assists in reporting on accruals.
• Attends meetings and act as note-taker, including external meetings. Distributes clear notes after meetings in a timely manner.
• Attends the respective team meetings, reports out to the supervisor, and ensures the supervisor’s priorities are shared with other divisions/teams.
• Assists in responding to requests for information and taskers regarding USAID/Moldova Economic Growth programs from within and outside the Agency;
• Assists in the drafting of Economic Growth Team contributions to USAID internal and external reports, and other Office, Bureau, and Agency documents;

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Education: College or University degree required in a relevant field to economics or international development.

Prior Work Experience: At two to three years of administrative experience at a donor, embassy or international organization are required. Knowledge of correspondence formats, file and records management as well as word processing is required. Excellent skills in Microsoft Office applications including: Word, Excel, and Power Point. Testing the competence may be required as part of the selection process.

Post Entry Training: On-the-job training in USAID-specific programs and procedures, COR/AOR training.

Language Proficiency (List both English and host country language(s) proficiency requirements by level (II, III) and specialization (sp/read): Level IV English ability is required, as well as fluency in Romanian.

Job Knowledge: Computer literacy is essential, including competence in word processing and spreadsheet programs. Knowledge of USAID systems is desirable to accelerate attainment of performance requirements. Proficiency in the use of other office equipment, including multi-line telephone systems, scanners, copy and fax machines is required. Current knowledge of the structure, operating principles and practices of western government agencies and private sector organizations is desired. Good knowledge of host country objectives, priorities and resources is desirable. Knowledge of operating entities and personnel in the Government of Moldova and the roles of those entities and higher-level staff members are major pluses, as is similar knowledge of the other countries covered by the Mission. Familiarity with the operation of U.S. federal and/or state development assistance programs and procedures is desirable.

Skills and Abilities: Ability to plan, manage/prioritize and complete tasks assigned from various sources is required. Skills to properly organize and present written or oral reports are required. Ability to coordinate contacts with all high- and mid-level host country and contractor representatives as well as the leaders of non-government organizations and other donors is also required. Ability to work independently with minimum supervision is vital. Ability to understand and to effectively explain USAID roles, objectives and procedures is essential. Ability to type in English is required.

POSITION ELEMENTS:

Supervision Received: The incumbent is expected to work independently, receiving only general guidance from the EG Office Director

Supervision Exercised: none

Available Guidelines: In addition to written or oral instructions from the EG staff, guidelines consist ADS, Mission Orders, and Embassy management notices.

Exercise of Judgment: Professional level of judgment and initiative are required to respond to inter-office and inter-government activities. Sound judgment is required to deal effectively with high- and mid-level host government officials. Judgment to anticipate and identify office needs related to secretarial support is important. Incumbent is also required to use sound judgment in dealing with contractors and members of the general public.

Authority to Make Commitments: none

Nature, Level, and Purpose of Contacts: High- and mid-level host country and contractor representatives as well as the leaders of non-government organizations and other donors.

Time Expected to Reach Full Performance Level: One year.

APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCESS:

Interested candidates in order to apply for this position must submit in English:

• Current résumé or curriculum vitae and a letter of interest;
• Mandatory Universal Application for Employment as a Locally Employed Staff or Family Member (DS-174).

A résumé or curriculum vitae must contain three to five references with current contact information. The Technical evaluation committee shall consider the past performance information obtained from the reference checks in scoring past performance. It is therefore recommended that the applicant alerts the contacts that their names have been submitted and that they are authorized to provide past performance information when requested.

A letter of interest must describe what the applicant understands to be the key responsibilities of the position and highlight the applicant’s qualifications, skills, attributes and past experience to demonstrate suitability for the position and how the applicant meets the requirements of each of the evaluation criteria described above.  The letter of interest may be considered as a writing sample and should not exceed three (3) pages using standard font (12) Times New Roman.