United Nations seeks archival consultants

 I don't often run across position descriptions for electronic records or digital preservation consultancies -- at least in the United States, consulting slots are often filled via word of mouth -- so I'm happy to have a few consultancy descriptions to file away for future reference.

About six weeks ago, I posted about a trio of archival positions -- Digital Archivist, Archivist, and  Audiovisual Archivist -- opening up within the United Nations' International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, which was established in 2010 to wrap up the work of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.

The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals is now seeking a trio of consultants -- Digital Archives Expert, Archives Expert, and Audiovisual Archives Expert -- who will be responsible for helping to recruit and evaluate candidates for these positions.  I find it kind of interesting that the Mechanism started soliciting applications for the archival positions well before it began soliciting consultants who would help to evaluate the applications, but my long sojourn in government has taught me that the workings of large organizations often have a strange logic all their own.

A few things you need to know:

• Consultants are expected to work for a total of seven days and to be available to work in The Hague on short notice. 
• Consultants will be paid a flat fee of $200.00 (U.S.) for each day worked.
• The postings say nothing about travel or lodging reimbursement; if you don't live in or around The Hague, you should probably think twice about applying.
• The deadline for applying is 26 July 2012.

Here's the posting for the Digital Archives Expert:

The Chief Archivist, Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT), is recruiting professional staff for the Mechanism Archives and Records Section (MARS). These staff include Digital Archivists. The contractor(s) will provide expert advice on, and assistance with, recruitment to these posts. Specifically, the contractor will assist the Chief Archivist with: setting and marking technical assessment tests, grading candidates' submissions and shortlisting candidates for interview; planning technical components of interviews and evaluating candidates' responses. The knowledge required is expert knowledge of managing digital records and archives, including digital preservation. Familiarity with records and archives of international criminal tribunals is an advantage.

And the Audiovisual Archives Expert:

The Chief Archivist, Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT), is recruiting professional staff for the Mechanism Archives and Records Section (MARS). These staff include Audiovisual Archivists. The contractor(s) will provide expert advice on, and assistance with, recruitment to these posts. Specifically, the contractor will assist the Chief Archivist with: setting and marking technical assessment tests, grading candidates' submissions and shortlisting candidates for interview; planning technical components of interviews and evaluating candidates' responses. The knowledge required is expert knowledge of managing audiovisual records and archives. Familiarity with records and archives of international criminal tribunals is an advantage.

And, for good measure, the Archives Expert:

The Chief Archivist, Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT) is recruiting professional staff for the Mechanism Archives and Records Section (MARS). These staff include Archivists. The contractor(s) will provide expert advice on, and assistance with, recruitment to these posts. Specifically, the contractor will assist the Chief Archivist with: setting and marking technical assessment tests, grading candidates' submissions and shortlisting candidates for interview; planning technical components of interviews and evaluating candidates' responses. The knowledge required is expert knowledge of managing physical records and archives, including a variety of media and formats, including artefacts. Familiarity with records and archives of international criminal tribunals is an advantage.

As you can see, the postings contain a lot of duplicate content.  All three of them contain identical language concerning the consultants' core responsibilities:

Objectives and Targets
Expert advice and assistance provided to the Chief Archivist in the recruitment of professional staff for MARS.

• Tangible outputs of the work assignment
• Technical assessment tests
• Marked and graded candidate submissions
• Technical interview questions
• Assistance with review of candidate interview responses

Delivery
The contract will be for the duration of the recruitment process. It is anticipated that the consultant would be required to provide services for 7 working days, comprising 5 days relating to setting and marking of technical assessment tests, and 2 days relating to planning and evaluating interviews.

If you're interested in one or more of these consultancies, each position description contains detailed application instructions.