Jose Luis Ramirez, Advisor in charge of the Department of Human Resources

Transcription

1 Attachment IV Memorandum Date: 8/18/2017 SADYE/DIS-243/17 To: From: Jose Luis Ramirez, Advisor in charge of the Department of Human Resources Betilde Muñoz-Pogossian, Director, Department of Social Inclusion- OAS Secretariat for Access to Rights and Equity Subject: External Employment Opportunity Nº EO/47/16 Migration Specialist Grade P-03 Introduction The Department of Human Resources published the External Employment Opportunity No. EO/47/16 as part of the competition process for a Migration Specialist position at the P-03 level at the Department of Social Inclusion of the OAS Secretariat for Access to Rights and Equity. For this competition, fifty-two (52) applications were received. The Department of Human Resources conducted a preliminary review assessing education, relevant experience, and language proficiency and indicated that twenty-two (22) candidates fulfilled the requirements for the position. After a review of the applications of the top 22 who fulfilled the requirements, including the incumbent, three applicants were invited for an interview: the incumbent Marcia Bebianno, Paula Lekanda and Miryam Hasan. While the other candidates had relevant education and work experience, the three who were selected had the right combination of educational achievement, relevant practical experience regarding the functions of the position, and research experience and publications. Their profiles were also aligned with the approach of the Organization of American States regarding the issue of migration, namely valuing migration as a phenomenon with positive implications for development while prioritizing a rights-based perspective. Moreover, given that the OAS s role on the issue of migration also requires providing advice and cooperation to Member states on migration policies, emphasis was put on inviting to the interview candidates who had experience in technical cooperation, strategic communication as well as applied research regarding the subject matter. Finally, taking into consideration the OAS role in facilitating hemispheric dialogue regarding migration, equal priority was given to candidates with experience dealing with government officials, and decision makers. Those who were not selected for the interview either did not have this combination of experience, or approached the issue of migration from a security perspective or purely a development approach, among other considerations as explained above. I. Competence Education

2 Name of finalist 1: Miryam Hazan M. Hazan achieved the highest level of education with a Ph.d. in Government from the University of Texas at Austin. She focused her dissertation on migration issues, which is relevant for this position. M. Hazan presented in approximately 30 seminars or forums also on the issue of migration, between 2000 and Additionally, M. Hazan has taken continuing education courses on migration issues by the Organization of International Migration and the Summer Institute for International Migration at the University of California-Los Angeles. Name of finalist 2: Marcia Bebianno M. Bebianno achieved the highest level in education with a Ph.d. in American Studies from the University of Maryland. She also focused her dissertation on migration issues, which is relevant for this position. As shown in her CV, M. Bebianno participated as a presenter in about 10 seminars or forums covering migration issues between 2005 and Name of finalist 2: Paula Lekanda Paula Lekanda holds a Master s degree from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy- Tufts University also focusing her research thesis on migration issues. She also indicated she participated as a presenter in six academic forums and/or training. Based on the information provided in the application and additional inputs received during the interview, the panel granted 30 points each for the incumbent M. Bebianno, and M. Hazan, given that they had a somewhat equivalent educational background. P. Lekanda received 26 points in this category. Relevant Experience Name of finalist 1: Miryam Hazan Between short term assignments and staff positions in the organizations where she worked, M. Hazan has very relevant experience for this position working with key actors in the migration field including the Interamerican Development Bank, the World Bank, the Migration Policy Institute to name the most relevant. She also brings a wealth of research experience designing research projects for these organizations and other academic institutions as well as in engaging in policy dialogue with key actors using the results of her own research. She has also led large in field-research teams to explore and explain the migration phenomenon and has been able to secure political buy-in and funding to conduct her work. She also has management experience supervising these field-research teams. Apart from scholarships to conduct her Ph.d. research, she has also been able to secure funding for projects from organizations such as the Swiss National Science Foundation, and the Tomas Riviera Policy Institute. Additionally, M. Hazan has teaching experience as a lecturer and teaching assistant at Georgetown University, Columbian University, amongst others. Regarding her publications, she is currently working on two book manuscripts and has three book chapters on the subject matter of migration (2015, 2012, 2010). M. Hazan has also published six reports covering issues such as how to address the crises of unaccompanied minors in the US-Mexico border, or how to explain migration and protection needs for 2

3 migrants from the Northern Triangle, and labor migration issues, among others. She also published four journal articles between 2009 and 2012 on relevant subject matters. Her wealth of experience is ample and addresses issues that are relevant to the current hemispheric agenda on migration. Her publications and research projects also show she keeps abreast of current issues regarding migration. Her experience working with the IDB and on migration issues is indeed relevant to the position. Name of finalist 2: Marcia Bebianno The incumbent has migration experience starting in 2001 working with the Smithsonian Center for Latino Initiatives and continued to be linked to jobs that included conducting studies and preparing documents with participatory methodologies. She also worked directly with migrant communities, and joined the OAS in 2009 to develop the Continuous Reporting System on Interamerican Migration in the Americas (SICREMI) project, where she has been since. She also has about 4 years of teaching experience at the University of Maryland. Amongst her publications, M. Bebianno includes the last three editions of the OAS Report International Migration in the Americas (2011, 2013, 2015), and three other articles in academic journals. M. Bebianno has experience with the OAS system and in particular with the OAS flagship publication on migration, the SICREMI report, her main experience was circumscribed to this project alone and did not include additional field-research type of experience so needed for the OAS to better advise Member states on this issue. Her experience working with the OAS and on migration issues is indeed relevant to the position. Name of finalist 3: Paula Lekanda P. Lekanda also has experience relevant to the position but in less complex positions. However, her experience engaging government officials, congressmen and congresswomen, and other key decision makers on relevant topics as well as in communicating the results of research was quite relevant. She also has published articles and book chapters on refugee rights and public policies regarding their treatment by governments. *** In terms of quantity of relevant experience, both the incumbent M. Bebianno and M. Hazan had relatively the same number of years working on migration issues. M. Hazan had the most with 18 years overall working on relevant issues. M. Bebianno had 16 while P. Lekanda had 9. In terms of quality of experience, although M. Hazan does not currently have experience in the OAS system, and in particular in implementing the SICREMI report, the plethora of work experience she has developed (as shown in her CV and in her interview) augurs a productive future with the OAS, potential funding, productive relationships with key partners, and new areas for the OAS to engage, always within where the OAS has a comparative advantage (cooperation and policy dialogue on migration from a human rights and development standpoint). Therefore, based on the information provided in the application and the results of the interviews in which each candidate was able to share more about their experience, lessons learned and potential 3

4 contributions to the OAS, the panel granted the full amount of 50 points to M. Hazan; 48 points for the incumbent M. Bebianno, and 39 points to P. Lekanda. Personal Competencies Regarding personal competencies, the panel evaluated the qualities associated with client orientation, knowledge sharing, teamwork, interpersonal skills, and ability to clearly communicate in the languages required for the post on one hand, as well as abilities managing staff and encouraging innovation, amongst others. In the particular case of the incumbent and for the assigning of the final points in this category, the panel also considered feedback provided by the technical area. Name of finalist 1: Miryam Hazan M. Hazan had an excellent interview. She showed an appreciation for innovation, and approaching the issue of migration from new angles. She asserted that her plan is to become the top regional migration expert in the region, and that she wanted to achieve that with the OAS. She showed passion and commitment for the issue of migration, and the human side of the phenomenon. She was able to show this passion not only through the number of publications in very current issues in the migration field, but also through the interview. Hazan was able to show she would be capable of broadening the scope of the OAS engagement in the region on migration issues. She showed how she has been able to persuade colleagues and supervisors to consider and accept her recommendations, how she has been able to find allies and partners. She showed she would be capable of opening new collaboration opportunities for the OAS. M. Hazan was able to fluently speak in both English and Spanish, and was able to do so effectively. Her personal competencies as demonstrated in the interview were outstanding. Name of finalist 2: Marcia Bebianno M. Bebianno was able to show her expertise dealing with Member states and producing and sharing knowledge through the SICREMI report. In some of her answers, however, she lacked clarity and tended to be circular, to use a term, in communicating ideas. M. Bebianno was able to show her knowledge and expertise but did not show dynamism in approaching the subject matter. When asked questions about engaging with other areas of the OAS and the Department, she lacked proposals in terms of how to link the migration work with other areas of the OAS citing often the work done with the SICREMI report. M. Bebianno did not show proactivity when asked questions about how the OAS could seek funding or which potential areas of cooperation the OAS could engage in, again citing always the work done with the SICREMI report, and the support given to the Commission on Migration (CAM). Regarding past performance, it was noted that although M. Bebianno has satisfactorily achieved the objectives established for her PES, feedback has been given to her regarding the need to engage more constructively with the rest of the team, as well as better aligning the issue of migration with the Organization s objetctives. M. Bebianno was able to fluently speak both English and Spanish. Name of finalist 3: Paula Lekanda P. Lekanda showed an excellent ability to communicate strategically and focusing on key issues. Her answers were always full of knowledge but short and to the point hitting on the the key points that 4

5 needed to be conveyed. In the interview, she gave examples of her capacity to work in teams and share knowledge and the successes achieved as a team. She was dynamic, warm and to the point. Regarding working with others and specifically with other areas of the OAS, she had very good proposals in terms of how to connect the migration work and even described a project currently being designed within the OAS on migration without really knowing this is happening. Her proactivity and dynamism was evident during her interview. She also showed she would be able to engage with member states (clients) regarding the subject matter and taking into consideration discretion and respect for Member states. P. Lekanda was able to fluently speak both English and Spanish, and to communicate in an effective and strategic manner. Her personal competencies as demonstrated in the interview are exceptional. Therefore, based on the information provided in the application, the results of the interviews and previous feedback regarding personal competencies in the case of the internal candidate, the panel granted 20 points to M. Hazan, 20 points to P. Lekanda and 16 points for the incumbent M. Bebianno. III. Efficiency 1. Finalist 1: Miryam Hazan: No evidence of unsatisfactory performance was identified during the process of evaluation. 2. Finalist 2: Marcia Bebianno: No evidence of unsatisfactory performance was identified during the process of evaluation. 3. Finalist 3: Paula Lekanda: No evidence of unsatisfactory performance was identified during the process of evaluation. IV. Integrity 1. Finalist 1: Miryam Hazan: No evidence that questions the integrity of the finalist emerged during the process of evaluation. 2. Finalist 2: Marcia Bebianno: No evidence that questions the integrity of the finalist emerged during the process of evaluation. 3. Finalist 3: Paula Lekanda: No evidence that questions the integrity of the finalist emerged during the process of evaluation. CONCLUSION The final score obtained by the finalists was as following: 1. Miryam Hazan: 100/100 points. 2. Marcia Bebianno: 94/100 points. 3. Paula Lekanda: 85/100 points. After the process of reviewing the documents submitted by all three candidates and the personal interviews following regular procedures, the panel strongly recommends Ms. Miryam Hazan for this 5

6 position. Ms. Hazan was selected based on the relevance of her academic background for this work, her valuable experience in the field, and her in-depth knowledge of the phenomenon of migration. Among the three candidates pre-selected, Ms. Hazan was the one who better demonstrated a strong command of the subject matter, the issues that currently concern the region, and the current and potential role of the OAS on the topic. She showed passion and dynamism for the work on migration, including a special sensitivity for the human rights of migrants. Attachments: - Summary Chart of Evaluation CC: Ideli Salvatti, Secretary for Access to Rights and Equity 6