National Consultant on Ethnographic Research Tender - 18838512

Procurement Summary

Country: Albania

Summary: National Consultant on Ethnographic Research

Deadline: 08 Dec 2017

Posting Date: 05 Dec 2017

Other Information

Notice Type: Tender

TOT Ref.No.: 18838512

Document Ref. No.:

Competition: ICB

Financier: United Nations Secretariat

Purchaser Ownership: -

Tender Value: Refer Document

CPV Classification

73210000 - Research consultancy services

Purchaser's Detail

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Tender Details

Tenders are invited for National Consultant on Ethnographic Research.
UNDP in partnership with ILO implements the sub-regional project co-funded by Austrian Development Agency titled Promoting Inclusive Labour Market Solutions in the Western Balkans, with an objective to assist public employment services (PES) and centres for social work (CSW) in their efforts to build more inclusive labour markets. For this purpose, the project supports mandated institutions in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia to introduce new and improve existing models, practices and systems for provision of holistic support to people at risk of exclusion from PES-CSW services; better outreach to job seekers and inactive population; more effective information dissemination of labour market information, training and employment opportunities.
Tackling specific labour market barriers of unemployed youth and other vulnerable groups who are unlikely to be reached by standard active labour market policies is central to this project, which is expected to be achieved through three interlinked outputs:
To accomplish these goals, UNDP and Moldova Innovation Lab (MiLab/UNDP Moldova) set up a cooperation to promote human-centred design (HCD) that aligns with the needs of the final beneficiaries and stakeholders as an innovative and effective tool for public sector work in the region, and apply the same methodology in the modernization of an array of employment-related public services in target countries. UNDP seeks to build up the capacities of the public servants from target countries on the engagement with end-beneficiaries.
Human-centred design (HCD) workshop was conducted in Tirana on 9-10 November 2017, as a first-step of a series of activities which will identify, map and attempt to solve existing bottlenecks in service outreach to hard-to-employ groups. The workshop brought together 20 representatives from public sector (e.g. Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, Employment Agency of Albania, National Employment Service, Employment Offices) and NGOs to discuss how existing public services can be reframed through human-centred design thinking. Group discussions/exercises revolved around the selected theme of youth-s lack of access to information in the labour market. This workshop-s report shall be provided to the Consultant as a baseline input for constructing interview guides, list of interviewees and other relevant components of ethnographic research.
Duties and Responsibilities
Consequent to the HCD workshop and completion of its findings report, ethnographic research is expected to be conducted tentatively during the months of December, 2017 - January, 2018.
A local consultant will be hired, and his/her work shall be instrumental in carrying out the field assessments, qualitative data collection, and facilitation of the consultation process. The consultant shall work in close cooperation with and expect guidance and feedback from UNDP Albania, UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub (IRH) and MiLab throughout the preparation, execution and final reporting of the ethnographic research. PES and CSW officials and NGO representatives who attended the mentioned HCD workshop on November 9-10 might be invited to accompany or as an interviewee during the ethnographic research upon the approval of UNDP Country Office in Albania. The consultant is expected to follow the research steps below.
Virtual consultations with UNDP IRH, UNDP CO, MiLab;

Desk review of relevant information sources, preparation of research templates (i.e. observation, interview, focus group discussion guides), arrangement of appointments for interviews/focus-group discussions which shall involve approximately 16-20 persons;

Carry out interviews/focus group discussions with the target group;

Draft Report

During the virtual consultations, the Project Team together with the Consultant will discuss and decide which tools to be used during the ethnographic research. In addition, parties will agree on which specific dimensions of the selected theme (i.e. youth-s lack of access to information in labour market) the ethnographic research shall concentrate on. Following virtual consultations, the Consultant is expected to submit a brief research plan which includes the list of potential interviewees to be contacted, and templates for the selected research tools (i.e. observation template, interview guide, and/or focus group discussion guide). Exemplary templates for the selected research tools will be provided to the Consultant.
The research findings shall be documented with a final report which includes an analysis of bottlenecks in service delivery, priorities/concerns of the stakeholders (e.g. frontline service-providers, groups of end-beneficiaries), potential solutions to tackle the issues raised. Following the ethnographic research exercise, proposed solutions will be discussed and verified through a workshop. During the entire implementation of the research, MiLab will provide technical guidance to the Consultant while national project coordinators will provide assistance in reaching out to selected sample of interviewees.
Deliverables
The contractor is expected to carry out the following deliverables:
Deliverable 1: Completion of the brief research plan (including templates for selected research tools), research outputs (e.g. minutes), and draft report

Deliverable 2: Submission of the final report on research findings.

Duration:
The consultant will be engaged for 15 working days over the period of December, 2017 - January, 2018.
Management arrangements:
The consultant will report to UNDP Albania-s Programme Specialist.
Competencies
Core Values
Integrity:
Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism:
Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Cultural sensitivity and respect for diversity:
Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff;

Additionally, the individual should have an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Corporate Competencies:
Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN-s values and ethical standards;

Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;

Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;

Treats all people fairly without favoritism;

Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Functional Competencies:
Strong interpersonal skills, communication and diplomatic skills, ability to work in team and multi-cultural environments;

Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities;

Ability to engage in group-work including public officials and end beneficiaries;

Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;

Ability to work under pressure and tight deadlines.

Excellent knowledge of social innovation and techniques.

Ability to complete tasks in a timely fashion.

Required Skills and Experience
Education
Minimum Bachelor-s Degree in Social, Economic, or Administrative Sciences.

Work experience
At least 3 years of working experience in projects related to organizational assessments and/or public services reform;

A portfolio of projects dealing with social services and interaction between public sector, technology and design;

Demonstrated experience in using innovative methodologies;

Demonstrated field experience in qualitative research;

Proven track record in preparing questionnaires, observation/interview guides, field reports, synthesizing reports based on fieldwork;

Experience in designing and developing visualizations related to public sector;

Knowledge of the Design Thinking and Qualitative research methods is an asset.

Experience in development contexts is an asset.

Language
Excellent communication and report-writing skills in English
Evaluation Procedure
UNDP applies a fair and transparent selection process that would take into account both the technical qualification of Individual Consultants as well as their financial proposals. The contract will be awarded to the candidate whose offer:
Is deemed technically responsive / compliant / acceptable (only technically responsive applications / candidates will be considered for the financial evaluation)

And has obtained the highest combined technical and financial scores.

Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation - max points: 70
Criteria A: Methodology on how the assessment is going to be carried out - max points: 30
Criteria B: Educational background- max points: 10
Criteria C: Prior experience in working closely with the private sector- max points: 30
Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation - max points: 30.
Application Procedure
Qualified candidates are requested to apply online via this website. The application should contain:
Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application.

Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability-please fill in the attached form...http://www.un.org.al/doc/PSU_%20Individual%20Contract_Letter%20to%20UNDP.docx

Filled P11 form including past experience in similar projects and contact details of referees, please upload the P11 instead of your CV. Download here.

Financial Proposal in ALL* - specifying a total lump sum in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified in this announcement. The attached template may be used - http://www.un.org.al/doc/Financial%20Offer%20template.doc Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into accoun

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