Pricing Agent (Individual) Application Deadline : 29 May 2023
Type of Contract : Contract for Pricing Agent
Expected Starting Date of the selected candidate : 01 July 2023
Duration of the Contract : 1 month
Expected Duration of Assignment : 2 weeks to 1 month

Background:

The International Civil Servant Commission (ICSC) of UNITED NATIONS conducts a place-to-place survey at all UN duty stations on a periodic basis. A place-to-place survey involves price data collection activities performed by a pricing agent in retail outlets patronized by the UN staff members. It is carried out at least once every four years in all field locations where staff of the UN system are stationed. ICSC has scheduled a place-to-place survey for United Arab Emirates in July 2023. Therefore, ICSC is seeking to hire a pricing agent to collect prices for a given list of commodities and services from the local market.

Duties and Responsibilities:

On behalf of the ICSC and under the overall and direct supervision of the Survey Coordinator, the pricing agent will be responsible for the following duties:

• Review before the beginning of the survey and follow as much as possible all the documents made available directly or via the survey support microsite (https://unicsc.org/COLSurveys/default.asp), including particularly the \xe2\x80\x9cInstructions for the Pricing Agent\xe2\x80\x9d and \xe2\x80\x9cInstructions for the Pricing Agent - Target Brands\xe2\x80\x9d

• Strategically plan and collect prices from the list of stores/outlets (with complete addresses) provided by the Survey Coordinator

• Ensure that collected prices are conform to the approved list of outlets and strictly adhere to item specifications

• Review of items to be priced to accurately reflect the local market condition and document any variances and observations in the Pricing Forms

• Record in a legible and complete manner of the price data in both the Pricing Agent Pricing Forms and Prescription Medication Pricing Form

• Complete the Pricing Agent Questionnaire on the general market conditions as well as the pricing activities provided to you by the Survey Coordinator

• Submit both copies of the Pricing Form and the completed questionnaire on local market conditions to the Survey Coordinator in a timely manner

• Remain available to respond to queries and requests for clarifications from the ICSC or the Survey Coordinator regarding specific price quotations or generally about the survey

Required Skills and Experience:

The following are the qualifications of a \xe2\x80\x9cgood\xe2\x80\x9d Pricing Agent. He or she:

• Is an independent person with no past or present work experience with any of the organizations of the United Nations Common System and is not an immediate relative of a UN staff member (child, parent, spouse, etc.).
• Has international shopping experience with knowledge of the local market.
• Is preferably an expatriate who has lived at the duty station for at least one year.
• Has the ability to get around the duty station to visit the outlets by either public transportation or his/her own means of transport if necessary.
• Is conversant with English to ensure proper interpretation of item specifications as provided on the pricing forms.
• Is able to communicate effectively (preferably in the official language of the duty station) because the job requires interaction with outlet owners and workers.
• Possesses a High School Diploma or equivalent.
• Having experience in the field of statistics, economics, project management, auditing, accounting and/or finance is an additional asset
• Is available to complete the job within the given time frame.

Remuneration:

AED 15,420 will be paid upon the completion of the task.

World Food Programme