A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
| A |
Acting
When a post is vacant, another officer at the same or lower level, may be assigned to the post in an acting capacity. An acting officer assumes the full functions of the post until confirmed, promoted, or reassigned.
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AIIC: Association Internationale des Interprètes de Conférence
The terms of appointment of short-term conference interpreters, whether or not they are members of AIIC, are governed by the provisions of the Agreement between the United Nations Common System Chief Executives Board for Coordination and the Association Internationale des Interprètes de Conférence regulating the conditions of employment of short‐term conference interpreters (1 July 2019).
For the purposes of this Agreement, “short‐term conference interpreters” refers to temporary and freelance interpreters, or any other terms used by the Organizations in accordance with their Staff Regulations and Rules.
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AITC: Association Internationale des Traducteurs de Conférence.
The conditions of employment of temporary or short-term personnel serving as conference translators and in related functions are governed by the provisions of the Agreement between the United Nations System / Chief Executives Board for Coordination and the Association International des Traducteurs de Conférence regulating the conditions of employment of short-term translators and persons serving in related functions (1 January 2013). In this Agreement, the expression translator is understood to mean a translator, précis-writer, report-writer, verbatim reporter, editor, terminologist, reviser of translations, reviser of summary records, reviser of minutes, reviser of reports, reviser of verbatim records or reviser of terminology records.
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Appointment Limitation
Where the appointment of the candidate is limited to service with a specific (Department/Office).
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Assignment
A movement of a staff member serving on a fixed term, permanent or continuing appointment within the UN Secretariat on a temporary basis (e.g., DGC to MONUSCO, UNON to UNOG, or OHR to DOS) where the staff member retains a lien on the post from the releasing Department/parent Office (i.e. 0% post incumbency) unless otherwise agreed by both entities and the candidate, normally for a maximum period of two years.
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| B |
BSAFE
The new online security awareness training.
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Business Unit
Department or Office with delegated authority to which users are assigned to perform human resource transactions.
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| C |
Central Review Body (CRB)
Joint bodies established under Staff rule 4.15 to ensure that candidates have been evaluated on the basis of approved evaluation criteria and that the applicable procedures have been followed in the process of appointing, selecting and promoting staff up to and including the D-1 level, except for advice on the appointment of candidates having successfully passed a competitive examination in accordance with Staff rule 4.16.
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Continuing appointment
Continuing appointment: open-ended appointment granted to those hired through the competitive exams (YPP and Language) after two years under a fixed-term appointment with satisfactory service; subject to the continuing needs of the Organization. Those hired through a competitive selection process in accordance with the Staff Selection System (and cleared by CRBs/FCRBs) may be eligible for review for conversion to continuing appointment after completing at least five years of continuous service on a fixed-term appointment based upon certain eligibility criteria.
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Civilian Pre-deployment Training (CPT) (Peacekeeping Only)
Department or Office with delegated authority to which users are assigned to perform human resource transactions.
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| D |
Designation
The process for confirming that the selected candidate has the requisite qualifications and experience to perform significant functions in the management of financial, human and physical resources assigned to them to provide consistency in the application of the Organization’s regulations, rules, policies and procedures. In line with the implementation of the delegation of authority as part of the Secretary-General’s management reform agenda, this designation process as promulgated in ST/SGB/2005/7 has been abolished effective 1 July 2020. Instead, specific procedures have been introduced in the recruitment process, including complying with the screening of candidates through the reference verification process, to ensure that all selected candidates have the requisite qualifications, experience, skills/training, and competencies to perform significant functions in the management of financial, human and physical resources.
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| E |
Effective date of appointment
The appointment of a staff member shall take effect from the date on which he or she enters into official travel status to assume his or her duties or, if no official travel is involved, from the date on which the staff member reports for duty. (ST/SGB/2018/1, Staff Rule 4.2)
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Equivalent Degree for Grading Purposes
When evaluating academic credentials of staff members and applicants, the United Nations is guided by the “World Higher Education Database (WHED)” published by the International Association of Universities (IAU) in collaboration with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO). This database provides a comprehensive list of higher education institutions sanctioned or accredited by competent national authorities in participating countries (referred to as the “IAU/UNESCO List”). Taking fully into account that the Member States have different education modules, the United Nations references the credential level determined by competent national authorities conferred by an institution in the participating countries provided in the IAU/UNESCO List. This credential level is therefore referenced and used to determine the equivalence of the applicant’s degree (Reference Verification Guidelines). For the IAU/UNESCO credential level and the equivalence used by the United Nations for recruitment purposes, see the Reference Verification Guidelines in inspira.
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| G |
GJP: Generic Job Profile
Classified standard job profile that encompasses a large group of related jobs for which major characteristics of the job are similar in duties and responsibilities, education, work experience, technical skills and essential core competencies.
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GJO: Generic Job Opening
Job openings which are based on generic job profiles, used for the purpose of creating and maintaining viable rosters of qualified and available candidates for immediate and anticipated job openings identified through workforce planning in UN entities with approval to use roster-based recruitment, such as peacekeeping operations, special political missions and other field operations.
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| H |
Head of Entity
The head of a department or an office, including an office away from headquarters, a special political or peacekeeping mission or a regional commission and a resident coordinator.
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Hiring manager
The official responsible for the filling of a vacant position. Hiring managers are accountable to their head of entity to ensure the delivery of mandated activities by effectively and efficiently managing staff and resources placed under their supervision and for discharging the other functions listed in Section 6 of ST/SGB/1997/5 (as amended by ST/SGB/2002/11).
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HR Partner
An HR Partner is a staff member who is responsible for processing all transactions related to personnel administration, entitlements and some aspects of time administration in Umoja.
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| I |
Index number
All staff members have a unique identification number, registered in the Global Index Database. Generating an index number for new staff members is part of the inspira offer management process and should be requested via the Global Index Requestor (see the procedures in the Global Index Number Requestor job aid).
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Initial Appointment
An appointment of Fixed-term (1 year or longer) or temporary appointment (less than 1 year) of an applicant that has never worked in the UN Secretariat.
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inspira
inspira is the IT system that was introduced in March 2010 to support Talent Management. inspira is built on an Oracle PeopleSoft software platform but was adapted by developers to meet the organization’s special needs. inspira integrates processes that were previously supported by different and separate systems into one platform. E.g. Galaxy, Nucleus and e-PAS were replaced by inspira.
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Interagency agreement
Formally: Inter-Organization Agreement Concerning Transfer, Secondment or Loan of Staff Among. The Organizations Applying the United Nations Common System of Salaries and Allowances . This agreement stipulates the terms and conditions for transfers, secondments and loans of staff between the signatory organisations.
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Interagency Loan
The movement of a staff member from one organization to another for a limited period, normally not exceeding one year, during which the staff member will be subject to the administrative supervision of the receiving organization but will continue to be subject to the staff regulations and rules of the releasing organization.
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Interagency Movement
A movement of a UN system staff member to another UN system organization signatory of the Inter-Organizations Agreement concerning Transfer, Secondment or Loan of Staff among the organizations applying the UN Common System of Salaries and Allowances.
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| J |
Job Code
A job code is defined by the following parameters: specific job, family, category, level, functional title and roster type.
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Job Opening
Vacancy announcement issued for one particular position or for a set of job openings for an expected duration of one year or more.
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Job Opening ID
The ID number associated with the vacancy announcement issued for one particular position.
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Job Title
Job title refers to the functional title. The job title is an attribute of a position that corresponds to the functions of the job. Functional titles should stem from a pre-determined list.
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| L |
Letter Code
Letter Codes are assigned to each job offer template. The relevant letter codes are provided as options for the user to select the relevant template when building the job offer for the applicant. For example, FTA Regular is the Letter Code given to an offer letter for a regular Fixed Term Appointment.
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Loan
The movement of a staff member from one organization to another for a limited period, normally not exceeding one year, during which the staff member will be subject to the administrative supervision of the receiving organization but will continue to be subject to the staff regulations and rules of the releasing organization. Example: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to UN Office in Geneva (UNOG), or UN Development Programme (UNDP) to UN Logistics Base (UNLB).
In Offer Management, an option for the user to select when the Onboarding Method is Interagency Movement – the job appointment offered to a UN staff member, who is to be seconded, loaned or transferred to the UN Secretariat.
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Local
A data field option for selecting the Recruitment Location for the applicant. Local is applicable for applicants when the place of recruitment is within commuting distance. The commuting distance at duty stations should be established by the local administrative or human resources offices by taking into account the local conditions at the duty station. In New York, the reasonable commuting distance shall be a 50-mile radius from the United Nations Headquarters premises.
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| M |
Manage Disposition Status
A tool within Offer Management that is available throughout the Offer Management process to enable the users to record rejected, withdrawn and cancelled offers.
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Medical Certificate
Previously known as a physician’s statement. This document is no longer accepted as this has been replaced by other medical forms.
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Medical Clearance
A medical evaluation process conducted to ensure that staff are physically and mentally fit to perform their designated functions without risk to the safety and health of themselves or others, considering their health status, the job demands, and the health risks and health support available at the location in which they are to serve.
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| N |
Non-Local
A data field option for selecting for the Recruitment Location for the applicant. Non-Local is applicable for applicants when the place of recruitment is outside the country of and beyond commuting distance from the duty station. The commuting distance at duty stations should be established by the local administrative or human resources offices by taking into account the local conditions at the duty station.
In New York, the reasonable commuting distance shall be a 50-mile radius from the United Nations Headquarters premises.
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Non-Local within DS
A data field option for selecting for the Recruitment Location for the applicant. Non-Local within DS (duty station) is applicable for applicants when the place of recruitment is within the country of and beyond commuting distance from the duty station. This includes movements between duty stations within the same mission area. The commuting distance at duty stations should be established by the local administrative or human resources offices by taking into account the local conditions at the duty station.
In New York, the reasonable commuting distance shall be a 50-mile radius from the United Nations Headquarters premises.
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| O |
Offer Endorser
The user who verifies and endorses steps 1 to 5 and the grade and step for the applicant..
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Offer of Appointment and Acceptance
When a candidate is selected for a position, an offer of appointment is made, stating the type of appointment offered as well as the applicable salary and entitlements. The generation of the offer of appointment is managed through the Offer Management module in inspira.
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Offer Facilitator
Offer Facilitator (OF) an inspira role that:
For inspira recruitments:
- Reviews the applicant’s confirmation of interest and updated PHP and uploaded documents;
- Submits the job offer request (the recruitment request) to the Offer Manager.
For non- inspira recruitment:
- Initiates the recruitment request via the Offer Management Request menu;
- Confirms the applicant’s interest and requests that the applicant update his/her PHP;
- Submits the job offer request (the recruitment request) to the Offer Manager.
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Offer Manager
The inspira user role that is responsible for the following steps in recruitment cases external to the UN Secretariat:
- Issues the job offer to the applicant
- Requests the applicant’s index number
- Validates the job offer request
- Determines the applicant’s grade and step
- After the Offer Endorser has validated and endorsed steps 1 to 5 and the grade and step, prepares and sends the job offer documents
- Requests Medical Clearance/Certificate of Good Health
- Requests Reference Checks
- Confirms the job offer
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OM: Offer Management
A module of inspira staffing which provides a comprehensive end-to-end recruitment tool for Human Resources practitioners within the UN Secretariat.
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Offer Management Dashboard
A single landing page for onboarding cases where recruitments and selections were processed both inside and outside of inspira. It organizes the Offer Management cases into five categories for easier filtering of cases and provides a tab for reference and learning tools. Within the Offer Management Dashboard, users are provided with tools and functionalities to allow processing of Offer Management cases, transitioning from one step to the next, allowing the tracking and recording of the status of each step within the module.
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Officer-in-Charge
When a post is encumbered and the incumbent is temporarily absent, an Officer-in-Charge is designated to act as the responsible officer during the period of absence. An Officer-in-Charge may in theory be at any level and there is no requirement that the next most senior officer be designated or that the designation is rotated amongst officers of a similar level. Depending on circumstances, an Officer-in-Charge may or may not carry the full responsibilities of the post but would normally have signatory authority. It is understood to be a temporary designation and not an assignment to the post and carries no expectancy of the eventual assignment.
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Onboarding
Process whereby a selected candidate is deployed to a UN Entity on initial appointment or reappointment, and after certain staff movements. It includes the process of determining the grade, issuing the offer of employment, arranging medical clearance and travel and scheduling participation in required training and orientation programmes, among other things.
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Onboarding Method
A data field for selecting the method of onboarding of an applicant for a job opening.
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Onboarding Sub-Method
If the Onboarding Method selected is Secondment from Government or Interagency Movement, the Onboarding Sub Method will become enabled. For Interagency Movement, the user selects the relevant option – Loan, Secondment or Transfer. For Secondment from Government, the user selects the country with whom the secondment agreement is.
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Organizational Unit
Division or section within a department.
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Override
The override function provides a tool for use by the Offer Manager for reassessing and recalculating the grade and step for the applicant.
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| P |
Permanent appointment
Permanent appointments were open-ended appointments that were granted prior to 1 July 2009 to some staff members under the prior set of staff rules. No permanent appointments have been granted after this date. Permanent appointments were given to staff members who held probationary appointments following selection from a competitive examination roster or who were converted from a fixed-term appointment following one of the conversion exercises.
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PHP: Personal History Profile
This document includes the education, work experience, permanent address, permanent residency, email address, and other various personal details of the staff member and is completed by the candidate at the time of application to vacancies in inspira.
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Place of Recruitment
The place of recruitment for staff selected for posts subject to international recruitment is the location of the individual’s most recent residence at the time the offer of appointment is sent and/or pre-recruitment formalities finalized, irrespective of the staff member’s country of nationality recognized by the Secretary-General, place of home leave or where the individual is a permanent resident. In exceptional circumstances, a change in the place of recruitment may be authorized. The place of recruitment for staff selected for posts subject to local recruitment shall be in the country or within commuting distance of the duty station.
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Position Number
A unique number assigned to each position Post Number IMIS number (once Umoja is deployed, the Umoja number).
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Post Number
IMIS number (once Umoja is deployed, the Umoja number).
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Posting Title
The posting title is the title assigned to a post and is reflected in the published job opening. It is used in Offer Management when generating the offers because this is the title that is visible to the applicant upon application.
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Prerequisite
A condition that must be fulfilled before the job offer can be confirmed to the applicant.
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Processing Office
The HR Office facilitating and managing the offer.
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PM: Programme Manager
Programme Manager (PM): official within an organizational unit of the UN Entity who is responsible for assisting the UN Entity management in ensuring the delivery of mandated activities by effectively and efficiently managing staff and resources placed under his or her supervision and for discharging the other functions listed in Section 6 of ST/SGB/1997/5. ST/SGB/2015/3.
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PM: Promotion
A selection of a staff member for a new position at a higher level within the same category. Note that in Umoja, this is a separate PA, while in inspira it is not used as a separate onboarding method.
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Provisional Reference
One of the data field options for selection when the user is processing the reference checks for the applicant. The provisional reference is a temporary reference for the applicant which suffice until the final reference was obtained for the applicant.
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| R |
Reappointment/ Re-employment
A former staff member who receives a new appointment in the United Nations.
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Reassignment
A movement of a staff member within the same department of the UN Secretariat with no lien on the post from the releasing Office/Mission. This method is used in the case of movement of staff members for an indefinite period as a lateral movement but can also include promotions, when an internal candidate is selected for a higher position within the department. Note that in Umoja, the term reassignment is restricted to permanent movements at the same level. Promotions are effected with a different PA(promotion PA), which can be within the same duty station or in a different duty station.
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Receiving organization or entity
Receiving organization or entity: A UN Secretariat Entity or organization accepting the movement of a staff member, from another organization in line with either ST/AI/2010/3, or the Inter-Agency Agreement.
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Recruiter
The Recruiter is a strategic partner who advises the applicant, the hiring manager, the Central Review Bodies and the Head of Department/Office in all steps of the recruitment process in inspira up to the selection stage. For non-inspira recruitments, the recruiter follows-up with the selected candidate to receive their confirmation of interest. In some offices, the recruiter may also be holding the role of an Offer Facilitator.
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Recruitment
Process for generating applications, evaluating applicants, and developing rosters to support staff selection.
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Recruitment Location
The recruitment location refers to the applicant’s location/domicile as of the time of recruitment.
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RV: Reference verification
Onboarding process that involves checking the candidate’s academic qualifications, work experience and personal references.
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Release Details
A component of the applicant’s details which contains data fields regarding the organization to release the applicant for a staff movement: Interagency Movement, Transfer, Assignment, or Reassignment.
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Releasing Office
The office releasing the staff member for an interagency movement, transfer, assignment or reassignment.
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Releasing organization or entity
The Secretariat Entity or UN common system organization which transfers, seconds or loans the applicant for the job opening through an Interagency Movement, Transfer, Assignment or Reassignment in line with either ST/AI/2010/3, or the Inter-Agency Agreement respectively.
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Roster
A pool of assessed candidates reviewed and endorsed by a central review body and approved by the Head of Entity who are available for selection against a vacant position. Roster candidates may be selected without referral to a central review body.
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| S |
Secondment
The movement of a staff member from one organization to another for a fixed period, normally not exceeding two years, during which the staff member will normally be paid by and, except as otherwise provided hereafter, be subject to the staff regulations and rules of the receiving organization, but will retain his or her rights of employment in the releasing organization. The period of secondment may be extended for a further fixed period by agreement among all the parties concerned. Example: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to UN Office in Geneva (UNOG), or UN Development Programme (UNDP) to UN Logistics Base (UNLB). In Offer Management, an option for the user to select when the Onboarding Method is Interagency Movement – the job appointment offered to a UN staff member, who is to be seconded, loaned or transferred to the UN Secretariat.
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Secondment from Government
An appointment of a selected applicant, currently serving in a government entity, for the UN Secretariat on a temporary basis who retains return rights to the government position held prior to joining the UN. The government entity needs to formally release the applicant for a specified period time via a Note Verbale following which the applicant will be appointed in accordance with a tripartite secondment agreement confirming, inter alia, United Nations staff member status and the right to return to the releasing Government or institution. Example: police or military advisors serving on a civilian post in DPPA, DPO or DSS.
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Selection decision
Decision by a head of department/office to select a preferred candidate for a particular position up to and including the D-1 level from a list of qualified candidates who have been reviewed by a central review body. Selection decisions for positions at the D-2 level are made by the Secretary-General following review by the Senior Review Group.
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Signatory
The designated staff member who is going to sign the offer.
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| T |
Temporary Appointment
An appointment for a duration of less than one year (not exceeding 364 days) used to meet specific short-term requirements. It has an expiration date and no expectation of renewal; can be exceptionally extended for a period not exceeding 729 days if surge requirements or operational needs related to field operations or special projects need more time, and cannot be converted to any other type of appointment.
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Transfer (Interagency)
The movement of a staff member from one organization to another under conditions that give the staff member no right to return to the releasing organization. Employment by an organization of a former staff member of another organization, after a break in service not exceeding twelve months, may, with the agreement of the parties concerned, be treated as if it were a transfer. Example: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to UN Office in Geneva (UNOG), or UN Development Programme (UNDP) to UN Logistics Base (UNLB). In Offer Management, an option for the user to select when the Onboarding Method is Interagency Movement – the job appointment offered to a UN staff member, who is to be seconded, loaned or transferred to the UN Secretariat.
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Transfer (Change of department)
A movement of a staff member within the UN Secretariat from one department to another department with no lien on the post from the releasing Department. This can also include promotions when an internal candidate is selected for a higher position within the organization. Note that in Umoja, the term transfer is restricted to permanent movements at the same level. Promotions are effected with a different PA (promotion PA), which can be within the same duty station or in a different duty station.
Transfer (Within UNS)
A movement of a staff member for an indefinite period within the UN Secretariat from one department to another department (e.g., DGC to UNSOM or UNON to UNOG) with no lien on the post from the releasing Department.
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| U |
Umoja
An implementation of SAP Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software, used to perform HR personnel and entitlement transactions, as well as a wide range of other administrative functions.
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UN Secretariat Entities
UN Secretariat Entities: A department or an office, including an office away from Headquarters; a special political or peacekeeping mission; a regional commission; a resident or regional coordinator’s office; or any other unit tasked with programmed activities (from the definition of Head of Entity ST/SGB/2019/2).
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| V |
Vetting
A process of reviewing prospective candidates for any records of disciplinary or other action in relation to cases of misconduct.
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| W |
WAE: When Actually Employed Appointment
A specific type of temporary appointment that allows the Organization to retain the services of individuals for work of an irregular or discontinuous nature, for assignments with uncertain duration or no clearly predefined schedule, and to ensure the availability at short notice of persons with special skills.
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