News from March, 2009

Members of the Umoja project team have embarked on a "world tour" to meet with colleagues at offices away from Headquarters (OAHs) and field missions to wrap up the first major step in Umoja's implementation.

Once in place, the Umoja system will enable more effective management of human, financial and physical resources to support fully the needs of the United Nations. This will have been achieved by reengineering our processes and practices to be more efficient and implementing them on a single, global information system that will replace IMIS and many of the 250 administrative systems scattered across the Secretariat.

As recently announced, Umoja is the name that was selected for the United Nations enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. (Umoja to bring unity to the way we work)

Broadly, the main steps in developing Umoja are:

• analyzing current administrative processes and needs,
• designing new and more effective working methods reflecting best practices,
• developing a single global information management system to support those working methods,
• testing the solution extensively in real-life scenarios,
• training staff to use it effectively, and
• implementing it in all offices and missions.

The analysis phase is now reaching a close. While visiting approximately 20 UN entities in OAHs and field missions during February and March, Umoja staff are completing and validating the documentation of existing processes.

In the course of their travels, the Umoja team members are working with administration managers to ensure that the list of business processes across the four functional areas – finance, human resources, supply chain/logistics/procurement and central support services – is complete; to document systems, processes and databases that have not already been captured; and to seek feedback as to whether processes already recorded elsewhere in the Secretariat match their own. Colleagues in missions and OAHs are also being asked to identify challenges, risks and opportunities for improvement.

Equally important, the visits will add to a Secretariat-wide network of colleagues contributing to and supporting the implementation of Umoja.

It is not possible for Umoja staff to visit every office or mission on this trip, but colleagues in all locations will be invited to review and validate the complete set of processes captured. The team looks forward to meeting with staff in additional offices and missions in upcoming project stages.

The Umoja project is a strategic part of the UN reform initiative and enjoys the support of UN management at the highest levels. The replacement of IMIS and other legacy systems with Umoja presents a rare opportunity for the UN to improve its working methods so that it can carry out its work more efficiently in all major areas of resource management. There is great potential value to be realized by learning from good ideas that have been implemented around the global Secretariat and by harmonizing processes.

The input and participation of experienced staff members in all duty stations and missions is critical to the success of Umoja's implementation. The Umoja team is aiming to build strong relationships for the duration of the project with colleagues throughout the Secretariat. These visits are just one part of a much larger effort to ensure that the design of the system has considered the full spectrum of the Organization's needs as well as best practices in the UN system.

Originally published on iSeek on Friday, 6 March 2009, New York

Ms. Pauline Omondi-Ingabo didn't hesitate for a moment when she read the October 2008 iSeek article announcing the competition to name the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. Her entry – the word "umoja" (meaning unity in Swahili) – leapt to mind instantly; she felt it perfectly captured what the ERP was setting out to accomplish.
"When people work together towards a common goal, you get results," said Ms. Omondi-Ingabo, Administrative Assistant in the Office of the Director of the Division of Administrative Services (DAS) at the UN Office at Nairobi (UNON).

Born in Nairobi, Ms. Omondi-Ingabo joined the United Nations in August 2008. She revealed that working in the Secretariat had been a life-long dream and that she aspires to contribute to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) while serving the organization. Before joining UNON, Ms. Omondi-Ingabo had been working with the Secretariat of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI).

"Umoja" has been a guiding principle throughout her life. She is the eldest daughter of eight siblings, and she has held her family together through good times and bad. Now married and a mother of three, she stresses the need for people to support and help one another. "Umoja is dear to my heart because there is strength in unity," she affirms.

Ms. Omondi-Ingabo was ecstatic to learn that her submission had been selected. "It's like winning a gold medal! I was on cloud nine," she said, searching for words to describe how she felt upon learning Umoja had won. She wishes to express her deep gratitude to all the colleagues who cast their votes for her entry.

To celebrate the naming of the ERP project and to congratulate their colleague for her prize-winning contribution, her Office had a small get-together in Ms. Omondi-Ingabo's honor. She said of the team, "Umoja runs through them."

Her elated team members also used the occasion to discuss the name and how the project will impact them, the duty station and the larger organization. She and her colleagues were looking forward to learning more about it during the visit by members of the Umoja team to Nairobi, one of the stops on their world tour of Secretariat locations away from Headquarters.

Ms. Omondi-Ingabo said that there is excitement and anticipation amongst many of her colleagues at UNON for the improvements Umoja will bring to their work. She foresees that there will be individuals within the Secretariat who may at first resist changes to how they work, but she feels that once people understand the benefits they will embrace it.

With her background in planning and project management, Ms. Omondi-Ingabo is most looking forward to better access to accurate and up-to-date information, the ability to undertake higher quality analysis, increases in efficiency both in terms of time and money, and improved measurement of programme performance.

Ultimately, Ms. Omondi-Ingabo feels the implementation of Umoja will enable the Organization to meet more of its goals and help more people. "When people come together, they can move mountains. So let’s make it happen."

Originally published on iSeek on Thursday, 12 March 2009, Nairobi