URBACT III PROGRAMME. Job Announcement. 8 th July 2016

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1 URBACT III PROGRAMME Job Announcement 8 th July 2016 Head of Unit - Capitalisation and Communication A/ CONTEXT 1. GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE URBACT III OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME URBACT is a European Territorial Cooperation programme (ETC), financed by the European Regional Development Fund and national contributions of 28 Member and 2 Partner States (Switzerland and Norway). It is a European exchange programme promoting sustainable and integrated urban development in line with the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy. URBACT enables European cities to work together to develop effective and sustainable solutions to major urban challenges. The total budget eligible budget of URBACT III is 96.3 M. The URBACT III programme is structured around 4 specific objectives: 1) To improve the capacity of cities to manage sustainable urban policies and practices in an integrated and participatory way. 2) To improve the design of sustainable urban strategies and action plans in cities 3) To improve the implementation of integrated strategies and action plans for sustainable urban development. 4) To ensure that practitioners and decision-makers at all levels (EU, national, regional and local) have increased access to URBACT thematic knowledge and share know-how on all aspects of sustainable urban development in order to improve urban policies The URBACT III programme promotes capacity building to enable practitioners and decision-makers in European cities to improve the design and implementation of urban development policies and to find solutions to the urban challenges they face. The programme is about sharing know-how, learning, networking and exchanging good practices for a more sustainable urban development in Europe. 1

2 The activities of the URBACT III programme are organised around 3 main strands: Transnational networking: To support cities with the design and implementation of integrated urban strategies, building on mutual learning and the transfer of good practices. Capacity building: To enhance the capacity of urban players to develop integrated and participatory approaches to the design and delivery of urban policies. Capitalisation & Communication: To build and share knowledge, practices and recommendations and inform the design and delivery of sustainable urban policies at local, regional, national and EU level. 2. THE CAPITALISATION & COMMUNICATION UNIT IN THE URBACT SECRETARIAT The daily implementation of the URBACT programme is carried out by its Joint Secretariat under the responsibility of its Managing Authority (French General Secretariat for Territorial Equality) and in line with the decisions taken by the Monitoring Committee. The Joint Secretariat is composed of three units. The Joint Secretariat is looking for someone to lead the newly created capitalisation & communication unit. This unit will have the responsibility to strengthen the coordination between capitalisation and communication/dissemination activities in order to facilitate access for practitioners and decision makers at all level to knowledge and know-how on integrated and sustainable urban development. It will be responsible therefore for the implementation of the specific objective 4 of the programme. Three main types of activities are included in this unit all of which are strongly interlinked: a/ Capitalisation activities Capitalisation activities support successful delivery of networking and capacity-building activities to be developed by the programme (both in terms of thematic content and methods). They also contribute to priorities defined at European level in relation to urban development (eg. Urban Agenda for the EU). Capitalisation activities include as potential tools studies, thematic clustering to capitalize on results coming from URBACT networks thematic seminars, thematic publications, etc. Programme level experts are supporting the programme with the development and the delivery of capitalisation activities at programme level. b/ Communication activities The URBACT III Communication strategy was elaborated to support the URBACT programme in achieving its overall operational objectives and publicising funding opportunities widely to potential beneficiaries and all interested parties. It more especially aims to increase access of practitioners and decision-makers at all levels (EU, national, regional and local) to URBACT thematic knowledge and share know-how on all aspects of sustainable urban development in order to improve urban policies. C/ Partnerships and National URBACT Points (NUPs) With the development of new strategic partnerships and the establishment of National URBACT Points, the URBACT Programme expects to create a multiplier effect that will benefit and complement the capitalisation & communication strategies. 2

3 The partnerships concern European and international institutions operating in the area of sustainable urban development. National URBACT Points are being established in most of the EU countries, Norway and Switzerland. They are in charge of communicating on URBACT activities and disseminating URBACT results at national level in local language. 3. LANGUAGES The official language of the Programme is English. However, taking into account that France supplies the management of the Programme, the URBACT III programme shall also use French as a working language. B/ TASKS 1. General description of the position As Head of Unit - Capitalisation and Communication the retained candidate shall lead one of the three units of the Joint Secretariat and will be responsible for capitalisation and communication activities of the programme. One of the key objectives of this position will be to foster synergies between the three pillars of his/her unit (capitalisation/communication/partnerships & NUPs). In order to do so, the retained candidate relies on two experienced officers (one is currently responsible for communication activities and the other for Partnerships and NUPs) as well as on a junior officer to be recruited. An efficient coordination with the two other units responsible respectively for networking/capacity building activities and for administrative and coordination activities (contracts, tender, HR, budget etc.) will be a cornerstone of success. The Head of Unit Capitalisation and Communication shall: Report to the Programme Director Line Manage 2-3 staff (allocation of tasks, planning, setting of objectives, dayto-day guidance, annual evaluation). 2. Capitalisation Tasks The retained candidate has to develop from the start all activities. He/She is responsible for the design and for the implementation of the capitalisation strategy of the programme. 2.1 Design of the capitalisation strategy and work plan The retained candidate will have to design the capitalisation strategy and work plan of the URBACT III programme based on the topics addressed by the approved URBACT networks, topics/ policy challenges that have not been explored so far and that would benefit to European cities and the European framework (Urban Agenda for the EU etc.) and priorities in terms of urban development. 3

4 Main features of the capitalisation strategy: - Scaling up innovation and good practices coming from the ground, especially from URBACT networks, based on integrated and participatory approach. - Designing and disseminating capitalisation content for a stronger impact on the URBACT target audience (external audience of urban players) - Mixing mid-term contributions (studies, etc.) and short term on demand contributions (blogs, articles, experts interventions, seminars, policy labs, etc.) - Taking into account the European framework. 2.2 Implementation of the capitalisation strategy and work plan The retained candidate is responsible for implementing the capitalisation strategy using the different tools; it includes amongst others the following tasks: - Drafting ToR for external service providers, assessing proposals, etc. - Coordinating thematic experts and service providers involved in studies, etc. - Approving invoices and monitoring the budget allocated to capitalisation - Assessing thematic content and outputs - Coordinating URBACT publications like URBACT Project Results building on networks results, capitalisation reports (assessment of content, coordination of service providers like graphic designers, printers, etc., proofreading, etc.) - Organising thematic seminars, policy labs, other capitalisation events (incl. preparation and delivery) - Coordinating the activity of the Programme Experts in collaboration with other units: defining tasks of the programme experts, setting up and assessing their work-plan, coordinating activities and assessment of their outputs, organising Programme experts meetings three times a year, monitoring time allocation and budget, etc. 3. Communication The retained candidate will lead the strategic orientations of the communication activities. She/he will follow-up on the delivery of communication activities, making sure that the overall objectives are reached and the timeline for delivery is being respected. She/he will assess the results of the communication activities in terms of content, budget and respect of the timing. She/he will support when necessary staff to deliver operational tasks of communication. 4. Partnerships and NUPs The retained candidate will lead the strategic orientations of Partnerships and NUPs activities. It includes the identification along the course of the Programme of the Partnerships to be developed as well as possible synergies with capitalisation and communication activities. 4

5 Concerning the NUPs, the retained candidate will concentrate on the adequate delivering and on assessment of activities. She/he will support when necessary staff to deliver operational tasks of Partnerships and NUPs 5. Programme Implementation The selected candidate will coordinate: - Preparation, implementation and follow up of decisions of the URBACT III Monitoring Committee related to all the units activities; - Monitoring of the Programme indicators related to the units work (result indicators, output indicators at programme level, performance review information, etc.); - Preparation of information for the Annual Implementation Reports linked to the units activities in accordance with European Commission requirements; - Contribution to the Programme Monitoring Committee s preparation on all issues related to capitalisation, communication, partnership and NUPs. C/ BASIC REQUIREMENTS Adequate degree in a field related to urban development Minimum of 10 years demonstrated experience on urban policies, research and capitalisation works, integrated and participatory approaches. Good knowledge of EU territorial and urban policy Background on communication activities with literacy in social media and digital communication Strong interpersonal skills to manage an experienced team as well as excellent coordinating and leadership skills High level of proficiency and fluency (spoken interaction and spoken production) in English and French; Excellent drafting and editing skills in English Flexible approach to work; prepared to travel; ability to respect tight deadlines and work irregular hours Any other tasks that may be deemed fit for the position. D/ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Confidentiality Candidates are reminded that the selection process is confidential. All enquiries or requests for information or documentation in relation to the selection should be 5

6 addressed to the address referred below. Candidates are asked to report any potential change of contact information in writing without delay. Equal Opportunities Equal opportunities policy without distinction on the grounds of sex, origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation will be applied. Salary The position is foreseen on a full-time basis. The contract will be under French law. The salary shall be fixed according to the professional experience of the candidate and should be around gross per month. Working place The working place will be Saint Denis (France): URBACT Secretariat Commissariat Général à l Egalité des Territoires 5 rue Pleyel St Denis Contract s starting date and duration Working at the Joint Secretariat should start from November depending on the personal situation of the selected candidate. The contract is an open-ended contract with a 3- month trial period, renewable once. Submission of Applications Interested candidates are invited to send their applications in English, including a Curriculum Vitae (Europass format), and a cover letter outlining their relevant experience, what motivates them for the job and why they are suitable for the position. Supporting documents such as diplomas or reference might be requested on demand. Applications should be sent by to Emmanuel Moulin, Programme Director e.moulin@urbact.eu and Thierry Picquart, Head of Unit Administration and Coordination t.picquart@urbact.eu Applications closing date and recruitment process o Closing date for applications: 19 September 2016 midnight. o Skype interviews with short-listed candidates should be held on 26 and 27 September 2016 (the actual date of the skype interview will be confirmed for those who are short-listed for this step) o Face to face interviews should be held on Monday 10 or 14 October 2016 (the actual date of the interview will be confirmed for those who are short-listed for the face to face interview) 6