Fraud note

Please note that UNDP, as a matter of practice, does not charge any application, processing or training fee at any stage of the recruitment process.

UNDP is currently aware of fictitious vacancy announcements that are being circulated through the internet, the purpose of which is to get people to register for training and send in a fee. If you believe that you have received such a notice, please forward it, and any other related information you have received, to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Since logos, emblems, names and addresses can be easily copied or reproduced, you are advised to take particular care in applying for vacancies, including undertaking all appropriate measures to protect against the unauthorized of any personal information you may have provided as a result of the scam.

Recruitment Principles of UNDP

In all employment processes and the management of personnel, UNDP operates with some fundamental principles:

• Highest standards of competency and integrity
• UNDP independence and objectivity must be safeguarded
• UNDP is a good and fair employer (high standards of employment are applied using whether UNDP or local rules)
• Selection of personnel must be competitive and based on merit
• Gender and National Staff Career Management policies have to be followed

Recruitment Process

As an international public service organization, UNDP needs to make sure it manages human resources operations in a transparent, efficient, and equitable manner. Doing so calls for using various procedures, mechanisms, and resources, such as hiring processes, panels, and committees, to name a few. In an effort to increase UNDP’s internal efficiency and improve the quality of our hiring processes, the following procedures have been established which relate to the recruitment and selection of candidates.

Composition of Hiring Panel

For added transparency, the hiring panel members, proposed by the Human Resources Unit, should be reviewed and approved by the Resident Representative (RR) and/or the Deputy Resident Representative (DRR) well in advance. All panels will normally include:

1. the immediate supervisor and the head of the unit and/or departments.;
2. two other professionals from outside the unit who are graded higher than, or equal to, the post under consideration -- these professionals will need to be reasonably familiar with the requirements of the position and;
3. the HR focal point who generally acts as an advisor. Each panel will elect its own chairperson, who can be any one of the professionals most senior in grade. The immediate supervisor cannot chair the panel. Hiring panel members are responsible for
   1. long-listing applications,
   2. designing and scoring written exams,
   3. candidates and
   4. interviewing short listed candidates.

Proposed staff and supervisors are expected to make time to serve in panels.

Terms of Reference

The immediate supervisor, who is the person to whom the incumbent of the vacant post will report, is responsible for producing the Terms of Reference (ToR) and submitting it to the Human Resources Unit (HRU). The HRU is responsible for reviewing the ToR to not only ensure there is consistency across posts and units but to also verify that statement made regarding competencies; required qualifications and years of experience are relevant and reflect corporate standards. This will be done in consultation with the Organizational Design Unit within the Office of Human Resources, HQ – NY. The final version of ToRs should be approved by Head of Unit and RR/DRR well in advance and prior to the advertisement.

Vacancy Announcement and Advertisement

Once the ToR is finalized, vacancy announcements are posted at UN Job Website, at jobs.un.org.ir, and our website, http://www.undp.org.ir/vacancy and published in minimum two newspapers for a minimum of two weeks.

Creating the “Long-List” and Screening Applicants

Hiring Panel members will create the long list by identifying candidates that meet the basic criteria and competencies as listed in the vacancy announcement. The candidates under the “Long-List” will be invited to take the written exam.

Designing and Scoring Written Exam

Hiring Panel members will design written exam questions including scoring indicators as well as key concepts expected to be in the answers. The breakdown of marks and scores should be determined from the outset, to the extent possible. This will allow exam reviewers to score with accuracy and consistency.

Administration of Written Exam

The HRU will organize and schedule written exams in a timely manner while ensuring total confidentiality.

Compiling a Short-list

Hiring panel members will compile a short-list, taking written test scores into consideration. The short-list should comprise a minimum of two to a maximum of six candidates.

Informing Short Listed Candidates and Scheduling the Interview Session

The HRU will arrange an interview session and inform short listed candidates accordingly.

Conducting Competency-Based Interviews

Conducting competency-based interviews requires a systematic assessment of the degree to which various candidates’ skills match the job criteria. Prior to interview session, the hiring panel members should convene a meeting and discuss the entire interview process. The ToR for the vacant post should be again reviewed and the key competencies and weight factors against which the panel is supposed to evaluate the candidates should be determined. The hiring panel members should also decide on a series of core questions that will help them assess each candidate’s competencies. The same set of questions has to be asked to each candidate to facilitate the comparison. The Chairperson, who will be acting as the facilitator, should discuss with panel the suggested competencies and linked questions and allocate questions to each panel member. To the extent possible, all candidates for a post should be interviewed by the same mode, (e.g. by phone, fact-to-face), irrespective of their location, to foster greater consistency and transparency.

Interview Panel Recommendations

At the end of interview session, the interview score sheet will be used to rank each candidates skill level according to required competencies. Scores should be consolidated, i.e. all panel members should discuss in depth the candidate’s competencies – strengths and weaknesses and agree on a consolidated score and subsequently reach a consensus and make a recommendation to Compliance Review Panel (CRP).. Hiring panel members should base its recommendations solely on the information provided in the interview or documentation presented for review during interview, leaving it to the CRP and the RR to take into account other objective criteria in order to come up with the final decision. The minutes of the interview session will be prepared by the Secretary to the Panel which should be endorsed by all hiring panel members. In the event that panel members fail to agree on making a recommendation for the post concerned or/and on the ranking of endorsed candidates, the varying viewpoints will be submitted for review to CRP. The CRP will make a final recommendation that will be submitted to the Resident Representative for final decision.

Conducting thorough reference checks (written)

The HRU will conduct thorough reference checks for the purposes of accuracy, information, and verification.

Preparing Documentation (CRP Submission)

The HRU will prepare a package including all required documentation already signed by members involved. The package will be then submitted to CRP for further review.

Compliance Review Panel

All appointments shall be reviewed by the CRP. The CRP is responsible to ensure that all procedures have been properly followed and subsequently it should endorse the transparency, objectivity and accuracy of the recruitment process as well as the interview panel recommendation.

Informing Candidates

Once the hiring process is completed and approved by the RR, the HRU will inform all interviewed candidates of the result.

Roster

The name of those candidates, who have been recommended by the Panel and not selected for the current vacant position, will be kept on the roster to be used for future and similar positions.