Head of Unit, Investment and Actuarial Services

Head of Unit, Investment and Actuarial Services (Job Number:  16173)
Application Closing Date: 12-06-2023, 11:59:00 PM

The OECD’s mission – Better Policies for Better Lives – promotes policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world. It provides a unique forum in which governments work together to share experiences on what drives economic, social and environmental change, seeking solutions to common problems.

The International Service for Remunerations and Pensions (ISRP) is a Service committed to provide studies on remuneration and pension policies of International Civil Servants and to operate the administration of pensions for the Co-ordinated Organisations (OECD, NATO, the European Space Agency, the Council of Europe, the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites) and other International Organisations. The ISRP performs actuarial studies and administers pension reserve funds for several International Organisations. These funds are dedicated to cover pension commitments.

The ISRP is administratively attached to the OECD.

The ISRP is recruiting a Head of Investment and Actuarial Services Unit (IAS) to manage and supervise the actuarial work and studies as well as the entire fund administration operation. In an externalised financial management environment, the selected candidate will be responsible for collaborating with outside providers, reporting to the supervisory authorities, and providing secretariat services to the fund supervision committees, as well as providing actuarial expertise to the management of the International Organisations. The selected candidate will report to the Head of the ISRP.

Main Responsibilities

Management and Co-ordination

• Support the Head of ISRP in hiring and staffing decisions for the IAS Unit. Provide guidance on performance management and the professional development of staff, emphasising the share of information and alignment with the objectives set out by the management of the International Organisations.  
• Prepare the work program and the annual budget of the funds and carry out regular assessments of the management and administration costs of the funds.
• Carry out quality controls on the level of services provided by the Unit.
• As a member of the management team of the ISRP, provides input in the ISRP budget as well as in the general management of the ISRP team.
• Ensure effective co-ordination, collaboration, and co-operation with International Organizations.

Technical leadership and advice

• Supervise and manage the creation and update of the technical tools: actuarial models of pension schemes, asset/liability management model, stochastic modelling, mortality tables and databases necessary to conduct actuarial studies and Strategic Asset Alocations (SAA).
• Co-ordinate interactions with a network of outside associates including custodian banks, fund managers and financial experts.
• Oversee the preparation of calls for tender, the selection of providers and the follow-up of contracts with the procurement and the Legal Directorate when necessary.
• Report regularly on the position of funds, returns on investment and the performance of asset managers, in liaison with outside providers.
• Oversee the accounting of financial transactions (back office), the preparation of financial statements and the relations with the auditors.
• Review and draft actuarial reports, i.e. recurrent reports such as the end-year valuation of the long term liabilities or the calculation of the contributions to the pension schemes and adhoc actuarial studies.
• Review and draft financial statements on post retirement benefit in compliance with international accounting standards.
• Keep abreast of new technical developments in the investment and actuarial fields. Ensure that technical interventions and decisions are well founded and take into account the specific nature of the ISRP’s strategic objectives
• Carry out quality controls on the services rendered by all outside providers.

Analysis and Risk management

• Build a holistic risk management approach for the funds considering both investments and cashflow needs.
• Supervise the risk analysis of the investment operations as well as the drafting of the documents related to the administration of the funds.
• Supervise and manage the update process of the International Civil Servants Life Table.

Committee support

• Supervise the secretariat of the fund management boards of the organisations which use ISRP services.
• Prepare meeting agendas, review draft minutes and ensure that procedures are followed according to the rules of the committees.
• Participate to the drafting of documents to be presented to the various committees.

Representation and Liaison

• Represent the ISRP when required through participation in professional associations with the view to maintain close contacts with the financial and actuarial environments.
• Establish and maintain professional contacts through regular collaboration with the co-ordinated organisations and other international organisations.

Candidate’s profile

Academic Background

• An advanced university degree in actuarial science, finance engineering or in a related field. 

Professional Background

• At least eight  years of experience as Actuary or Financial Analyst.
• Relevant experience in managing and motivating a high performing team of financial analysts or actuaries.
• Excellent knowledge of the legal and accounting principles governing pension schemes.
• Excellent knowledge of financial market issues.
• Membership of a professional association of actuaries would be an advantage.

Tools

• Strong command of IT tools, including statistical analysis tools and Visual Basic.

Languages

• Fluency in one of the two OECD official languages (English and French) and a knowledge of, or a willingness to learn, the other.
• Knowledge of a third language would be an advantage.

Core Competencies

• Please refer to the OECD Core Competencies and the level 4 indicators.

Contract Duration

Fixed term appointment: two years (renewable).

What the OECD offers 

• Monthly base salary starting from EUR 9 567 net of French income taxes plus allowances based on eligibility.
• Click here to learn more about what we offer and why the OECD is a great place to work.
• Click here to browse our People Management Guidebook and learn more about all aspects relating to people at the OECD, our workplace environment and many other policies supporting staff in their daily life.

Selection Process

• Please note that our Rules and Regulations stipulate that the mandatory retirement age is 65.

The OECD is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes the applications of all qualified candidates [who are nationals of OECD member countries]*, irrespective of their racial or ethnic origin, opinions or beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, health or disabilities.

The OECD promotes an optimal use of resources in order to improve its efficiency and effectiveness. Staff members are encouraged to actively contribute to this goal.