Under the supervision of the Head, Languages Services and in accordance with the OPCW Core Values of Integrity, Professionalism and Respect for Diversity/Gender Equality, the incumbent will be responsible for the following duties and responsibilities;
Editing (55 %)
- Carries out, under own responsibility, the full editing required for all official-series documents issued by the Secretariat, including Notes and reports by it and by the Director-General, decisions of the policy-making organs, the opening statement by the Director-General to each session of those organs, reports of the subsidiary bodies, and a number of major annual reports, including that of the OPCW and the Verification Implementation Report.
- As required, decides whether official-series documents be accepted for editing, the key criterion being conformity with OPCW style (other than as regards formatting) and to established standards of readability, clarity, and grammatical correctness.
- Identifies, and reformulates or deletes, material likely to have adverse consequences for the Secretariat or the OPCW, disambiguates unclear formulations, corrects substantive errors, checks references for both correctness and appropriateness, and generally ensures that edited text is clear, concise, grammatically correct, readable, idiomatic, and rhetorically and politically appropriate.
- Establishes and revises editorial policy and guidelines.
- Management, and supervisory responsibilities (30%)
- As the final authority for editing and translation into the English language in the OPCW, plans, organises, supervises, and monitors editing, translation and revision work and terminology research within the English-language section, including contractual translations and contacts with outside experts and counterparts in other organisations to determine best practices. Allocate work to the section staff, assign staff to specific duties, and control the quality and quantity of output.
- In consultation with the Head of the LSB, reviews and evaluates written material provided by contributors and makes recommendations regarding acceptability for issuance or publication in one or more languages.
- Recommends deadlines for the editing of official-series and other documents.
- Establishes and/or revises procedures for the management of the editing workflow.
- Advice, guidance, training, and standards (15%)
- Provides guidance on editorial matters to staff and, on request, to delegations.
- Provides advice, on request, to linguists on the meaning of passages of edited text.
- Provides training to staff on editorial matters, as required.
- Establishes and/or revises as necessary the editorial standards for the Technical Secretariat (“OPCW style”).
- Establishes and/or revises as necessary, and in consultation with the office of the Secretary to the Policy-Making Organs, aspects of the layout and format of official-series documents.
- Within the established deadlines, reviews and revises texts of the other editor(s), providing supervision as appropriate, and provides related training and guidance to other staff.
- As required, decides whether official-series documents be accepted for editing, the key criterion being conformity with the established OPCW editorial standards and requirements.
- Participates in linguistic research as required.
- Performs other duties as required.
RECRUITING PROFILE:
Education (Qualifications):
- An advanced University degree or equivalent in a relevant discipline (e.g., in languages, humanities, political sciences or law).
- A first level university degree in combination with qualifying experience (minimum seven years) may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.
Experience:
- Minimum of 7 years of work experience of clear relevance to this post, involving the editing, drafting, and/or correction of documents and/or publications, preferably within the United Nations system with an advanced degree (or 9 years with a first level degree).
- Experience in translation/revision into the English language is an asset. Experience in management is an asset.
Skills and Abilities (key competencies):
- An excellent command of written and spoken English, which must be a first language.
- Effective management skills, with good planning and team building capacities.
- Good interpersonal skills and ability to work harmoniously in a multi-cultural environment.
- An understanding of international affairs. Thorough knowledge of the Chemical Weapons Convention and related disarmament and technical issues is desirable.
- Computer literacy, including knowledge and ability to work with Windows-compatible word processing equipment and Share Point.
- Tact, accuracy and respect for confidentiality.
- Ability to work under stress.
Language Requirements: An excellent command of the English Language which must be a first language and a good working knowledge of one of the other official languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, and Spanish) is desirable.
