Leaving the United Nations & Coming Back at a Leadership Position

Having extensive experience conducting executive search assignments for the United Nations at diverse agencies and international organizations, specializing in senior and senior executive levels up to Assistant Secretary-General/Under-Secretary-General positions, has provided me with a unique outlook on how top leaders reach the highest levels, which patterns most of them share; how does an outlier profile works around the United Nations recruitment system, when/why are exceptions acceptable; furthermore, a vast knowledge of career pathways that the sharpest professionals use as leverage to accelerate their careers.

In this article, I will elaborate on a common struggle for the United Nations staff, citizens from developed countries, which are usually over-represented at senior executive levels at the UN and end up getting stuck at the same level for many years, and it’s becoming a widely-spread recurrent issue as the rest of the world’s emerging economies are producing highly qualified professionals at a soaring rate.

You have some options, but I will expand on one that might not be evidently the right career step at first, but we have seen time after time professionals yielding great results by taking this career strategy, obstacles that they encounter when taking this path and how to overcome them.

I will also give recommendations on whether this also applies to nationals from emerging economies and developing nations. More importantly what’s the best shot for them to reach higher seniority at the United Nations in less time.