04-1234  OFFICE(04)/26 
 19 March 2004 
 
WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 
 
WTO  
 
Geneva  
 
Vacancy Notice No. 516  
 
 The Secretariat of the WTO is seeking to f ill the position of Administrative Assistant in the 
Agriculture and Commodities Division.  Applications from men and women are equally welcome.  Serving staff members interested in this po sition are also invited to apply. 
 
TITLE AND GRADE: Administrative Assistant - Grade 7
1 
 
STARTING SALARY: Approximately Swiss francs 88,000 net p.a. 
 
OTHER CONDITIONS: In accordance with WTO St aff Regulations and Staff Rules and WTO 
   Pension Plan Regulations. 
  A package of expatriate benefits is available to staff recruited 
internationally. 
 
TYPE OF APPOINTMENT: Fixed-term for tw o years with possibility of extension. 
 
GENERAL FUNCTIONS: Under the supervision of  the Director the incumbent will act as 
Administrative Assistant to the Dir ector with overall responsibility of 
the administrative management of  the Agriculture and Commodities 
Division. Responsibilities will include the following: 
 
(a) to assist the Director with administrative matters related to the 
work in the Division, including the organization of the office of the Director, preparing budget estimates, monitoring the Division's budget and maintaining all administrative records and the Division's filing system; 
 
(b) to perform the full range of secretarial duties for the Director;  (c) to supervise lower-level support staff by organizing the work 
and determining priorities,  providing guidance, giving 
instructions, controlling work quality, arrange training, 
contributing to evaluation reports and help resolve performance-related problems; 
 (d) to advise and participate in recruitment of subordinate staff;   
(e) to assist new staff and interns in familiarizing them with 
technical Secretariat facilities and procedures; 
 (f) to manage the implementation of, and develop or improve as 
necessary, office procedures based on the needs of the Division; 
 
                                                           
 1The position may be offered at a lower grade if the se lected candidate does not fully meet all the required 
qualifications.  OFFICE(04)/26 
Page 2  
(g) to monitor and help finalize travel arrangements for staff on 
official missions; 
 (h) to convene meetings and provide  support in the preparation for, 
servicing of and follow up of formal and informal meetings; 
 
(i) to receive telephone calls and visitors; to screen and schedule 
appointments; to maintain contact with other Divisions,  delegations and the general public; 
 (j) to deal with incoming and outgoing correspondence, including 
the drafting of standard correspondence; 
 (k) to coordinate and monitor document reproduction; to ensure 
that all outgoing written material conforms to WTO format and presentation standards; and to provide editorial assistance to 
staff  with reports and correspondence as required;  and ensure 
quality of work distributed; and   
 (l) to perform other duties as required. 
 REQUIRED Completion of secondary school and secretarial or commercial school 
QUALIFICATIONS:  equivalent: specialized  training or proven expertise in the 
secretarial/administrative field. At least fifteen years of relevant experience at increasing levels of r esponsibility.  Demonstrated ability 
to work successfully in a large team of people, good team leadership skills, ability to work under minimu m supervision and high level of 
discretion and diplomacy.  Good know ledge in using standard WTO 
software applications (text pro cessing, spreadsheet and data base 
applications) and the Internet.  A good knowledge of WTO document systems would be an advantage. 
 LANGUAGES: An excellent knowledge of Eng lish as well as of French or Spanish. A 
good knowledge of the third language would be an asset. 
 APPLICATIONS:
 2 Please use the online application form which may be downloaded 
from the WTO website – www.wto.org  - under "vacancies".  If you 
are unable to download the application form, please send an e-mail or 
fax to the Human Resources Section requesting the form.  A 
completed form may also be submitted to the following address: 
  Director, Administration a nd General Services Division 
  (Human Resources Section)    WTO   Centre William Rappard 
  154, rue de Lausanne 
  1211 Geneva 21   Switzerland 
  Fax: + 41-22-739-57-72 
  E-mail:  humanresources@wto.org
              Fax::  +41-22-739 5772 
                                                                     2Only applications from nationals of WTO Members will be accepted. 
 OFFICE(04)/26 
Page 3 
 
355   Please do not send your application via multiple routes.  It is not 
necessary to follow your application up  with copies of qualifications, 
previous employment contracts, entire publications, etc. 
  Candidates must indicate clearly in section 15 of the application form the Vacancy Notice No. 516. 
  Applications will not be acknowledge d.  Only applicants possessing 
the required qualifications will be take n into consideration.  Only the 
successful candidate will be notified of the outcome of the competition. 
Candidates are kindly requested to refrain from enquiring about 
progress of their application. 
 CLOSING DATE OF THIS 13 May 2004  
VACANCY NOTICE: No applications will be considered after this date.