Re-advertisement: Operations Manager, P-4, Fixed Term Position, ECAMENA RO, Amman, Jordan, #136958 (for all UNICEF personnel)

This is a re-advertisement, candidates who have already applied do not need to re-apply.

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

The ECAMENA Regional Office leverages expertise and scale across a diverse and rapidly evolving region that is playing an increasingly important role in shaping global agendas on the realization of child rights, human capital, migration, climate, equity, and digital transformation. It supports the achievement of UNICEF’s Strategic Plan results in the context of rising needs and constrained resources. The region encompasses all country typologies, including high-income, middle-income, and low-income contexts, as well as fragile and conflict-affected settings, each with distinct development trajectories and policy drivers. This requires differentiated approaches, agile business models, strategic partnerships, and strengthened risk management. The region is further shaped by ongoing challenges such as conflict, migration, economic volatility, and varying degrees of political openness and reform. At the same time, countries across the region are connected by shared challenges and opportunities, including investment in the early years, addressing learning gaps and equipping adolescents and young people with 21st century skills, the need for resilient national systems, and the imperative to strengthen child rights governance.

In this context, the ECAMENA Regional Office acts in line with the organization’s value proposition for Regional Offices through: (i) strategic leadership and governance; (ii) regional and political representation and engagement; (iii) programme oversight, knowledge, and foresight; (iv) digital transformation and innovation; (v) people-centered management; (vi) financial and risk management; (vii) supply and logistics; (viii) emergency preparedness and response; (ix) communication and strategic advocacy; and (x) partnerships and financing.

The Operations (Budget and Finance) section contributes directly towards Operational and Financial Excellence. The section plays a dual role: internally, it ensures that the ECAMENA Regional Office operational and governance processes and systems function effectively; externally, it provides direct technical assistance, strategic oversight, guidance, and capacity-strengthening support to Country Offices on governance systems, budget, finance, affordability, administrative systems, and the optimization of operational processes. The section’s mandate is organized across three interlinked pillars: (i) governance and strategic operations; (ii) regional financial excellence and fiduciary management; and (iii) administration, sustainability, and UN reform in operations. The section supports the largest region in UNICEF, comprising 39 Country Offices, over 2,700 staff, and an allotment of USD 3.4 billion, and operates across highly diverse office typologies, major institutional and programme budgets, significant humanitarian financial interfaces, sanctions-affected contexts, and a distributed operating model across Amman, Istanbul, Brussels, and Almaty.

Under the supervision of the Deputy Regional Director Operations (D-1), the Operations Manager (P-4) leads the Operations (Budget and Finance) section of the ECAMENA Regional Office, and is accountable for the effective delivery of the section’s mandate across governance and strategic operations, regional financial excellence and fiduciary management, and administration, sustainability, and UN reform in operations. The post serves as the senior technical and operational lead for the section, providing strategic analysis, risk-informed advice, oversight, and practical support to the Regional Office and Country Offices on budget, finance, affordability, fiduciary controls, administrative systems, process optimization, and operational governance. The role manages a distributed multi-duty-station team across Amman, Istanbul, and Almaty and supports the Deputy Regional Director Operations by driving section work planning, direct Country Office advisory support, PBR/TRT and institutional budget processes, FFI related operational change management, sanctions-sensitive financial problem-solving, humanitarian budget and reporting interfaces, common services coordination, and the sustainability and accessibility agenda. The post leads section delivery and technical representation of the function, while the Deputy Regional Director Operations retains overall strategic governance authority for the wider portfolio.

1. Section leadership, governance, and strategic operations
2. Regional financial excellence, affordability, and fiduciary management
3. Programme budget review, Country Office advisory support, and humanitarian and donor financial interface
4. Administration, sustainability, common services, and multi-hub coordination
5. Assurance, compliance oversight, and business process improvement
6. Management of the distributed section team and regional operations community

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  JD - Operations Manager P-4.pdf

Minimum requirements:

• Education: Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in one of the following areas is required: business management, financial management, accounting, public finance, economics, or related operations functions such as supply chain, information technology, international business, project management, or administration; or a full professional accounting designation from an internationally recognized institute or body of accountancy with valid membership in good standing is required. 
  A Bachelor or equivalent (First Level University Degree) in a relevant area combined with 2 additional years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree. This is applicable to internal (FT, Continuing and Permanent) staff only.
• Work Experience: A minimum of 8 years of progressively responsible professional work experience at the national and international levels in operations management, budget and financial management, public finance, administration, fiduciary oversight, or other closely related fields is required.
• Skills: (i) Experience in regional or multi-country operations management, including direct support or oversight to multiple offices, is required. (ii) Experience in strategic financial analysis, budget planning, affordability monitoring, grants management, donor conditions, or fiduciary management is required. (iii) Experience leading or coordinating complex PBR, TRT, institutional budget planning, or comparable operational review and planning processes is required. (iv) Experience leading or managing distributed teams across multiple duty stations is required. (v) Experience providing direct technical advice, oversight, and operational problem-solving to senior management is required. (vi) Experience in change management, organizational restructuring, process simplification, or operational transformation initiatives is required. (vii) Experience in risk management, internal controls, audit follow-up, peer review follow-up, or anti-fraud systems is required. 
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

• Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.
• Experience working in complex financial operating environments, including sanctions-affected contexts, is highly desirable.
• Experience supporting humanitarian budget planning, donor financial conditionality, or grant-funded emergency operations is desirable.
• Experience in working with corporate ERPs and IPSAS or equivalent financial reporting standards is highly desirable.
• Background and familiarity with operations issues across the ECAMENA region is highly desirable. 
• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others
(8) Nurtures, leads and manages people

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates’ willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel. Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service.

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

Advertised: 28 Jul 2026 Jordan Standard Time
Applications close: 04 Aug 2026 Jordan Standard Time

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