Background & Rationale
The goal of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) is to complete the eradication and containment of all wild, vaccine-related and Sabin polioviruses, such that no child ever again suffers paralytic poliomyelitis.
Launched in 1988 after the World Health Assembly passed a resolution to eradicate polio, the GPEI, along with its partners (UNICEF, World Health Organization (WHO), Center for Disease Control (CDC), Rotary, and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation(BMGF)), have helped countries to make huge progress in protecting the global population from this debilitating disease. As a result, global incidence of polio has decreased by 99% since GPEI’s foundation and an estimated 10 million people today are walking who would otherwise have been paralyzed by the disease. Now the task remains to tackle polio in its last few strongholds, essentially Afghanistan and Pakistan, and get rid of the final 1% of polio cases.
UNICEF provides technical Communication for Development (C4D) support to polio programmes in both endemic and new outbreak contexts. Polio will not be eradicated from New York or Geneva. Our teams on the ground are at the frontlines of the eradication efforts and must be equipped with the best information and tools to get the job done, particularly as the goal is within reach as never before.
The UNICEF polio team has been working on an online website to support teams in the field with best practice C4D resources and tools that is accessible, easy to digest and effective in low-connectivity environments. Rhizome TK works is an interactive and engaging toolkit to support UNICEF country teams to develop communication strategies of the highest caliber.
Its first iteration will be launched by February 2016, and will inevitably require adjustments, revisions to both design and to content. A significant development work remains to be done post-launch, in terms of debugging but more importantly in terms of tailoring the website to the needs expressed by the field offices, by developing new features, and making Rhizome TK fit for these very specific contexts.
It is further planned that there will be more linkages made with the Rhizome DB arm of Rhizome where the two pieces can reinforce each other and provide field staff with a complete package of tools.
Lastly, this is also a legacy piece for the polio C4D team, capturing best practices, approaches and tools for the benefit of the programme and specifically for transition and expansion to UNICEF C4D and immunization programmes.
Purpose
Under the direction of the technical lead, the software developer will support the development of Rhizome, UNICEF’s web-based toolkit.
Lead the management of the newly-designed website through the open source Content Management System, including any adjustments needed to meet the needs of users;
Develop new features, identify and fix bugs, improve the user experience, and commit code as directed by the Rhizome project lead;
General maintenance of the website to ensure optimum speed and usability.
Deploy and manage analytics for the website, providing weekly usage reports and support for introduction of new features;
Design Interfaces and features for both the CMS and front-end based on user feedback and testing
Support the interface and compatibility with corresponding Rhizome DB project to move toward a single site, approach etc.
No travel is foreseen in this consultancy.
Expected results: (measurable results)
Daily management of developer tasks (feature development, bug fix, UX improvement, software deployment)
Regular testing of the site to identify any technical and usability issues
To manage, prioritize and implement relevant fixes, new features and improvements to the site based on field testing and feedback, as directed by the Project Manager
Ensure all related hosting and CMS updates and management needs are met and managed;
Improved usability and an increase in the number of active users as measured by regular reporting of site metrics;
Contributes substantially to code development for 25 – 50 percent of known bugs, features, and UX improvements
Synergies identified with the Rhizome DB project and areas for collaboration are taken advantage of to ensure a coherent single site approach.
Timeline will be based on the story points of assigned tasks.
Duty Station
The developer is expected to work out of the NYHQ UNICEF office.
Timeframe
Start date: February 15th, 2016 End date: August 8th, 2016
Deliverables
Duration
(Estimated # of Days)
Deadline
Daily management of developer tasks (feature development, bug fix, UX improvement)
80
August 8th, 2016
Manage, prioritize and implement relevant fixes, social media interaction on site, new features and improvements to the site based on field testing and feedback, as directed by the Project Manager
36
August 8th, 2016
Overall management and maintenance of open source coding, hosting and CMS.
10
August 8, 2016
total
126
Key competences, technical background, and experience required Deadline
● Academic qualification and required level of education: Bachelor degree
● Proficiency with HTML(5), CSS(3), JavaScript, and jQuery libraries
● Experience integrating diverse applications using integration frameworks, web services and APIs.
● Experience working with Cloud providers and products (Amazon, Azure, Rackspace etc.).
● Knowledge of web technologies, protocols, and tools.
● Experience managing Content Management Systems.
● Experience integrating web services and API’s and knowledge of web performance.
● Strong experience working on cross-browser and multi-browser platforms.
● Knowledge of SEO implementation and social media integration best practices.
● Experience with UX design for both web and web for mobile environments.
● Experience with Agile
● Experience with project management software, such as Trello
● Experience with Github or another version control software
● Experience with open source technology
● Minimum 5 years Junior to Mid-Level experience as a professional software developer
● Languages needed: English
● Ability to be a self-starter and to work with minimum supervision
● Experience in a multi-cultural and gender sensitive work environment
● Excellent communication skills, written and verbal, Strong interpersonal skills
● Ability to work with a team as well as independently. Ability to interface, collaborate with technical staff and designers.
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