Operations Advisor (Deputy Head of Office)

The UNOPS Global Portfolios Office (GPO) unites the New York Portfolios, including the Peace and Security team (PSC); the Geneva Office; and the Vienna-based Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) teams, to maximize global impact, foster efficiencies and streamline global programmes. Leveraging our collective expertise and networks, GPO supports UNOPS' strategic priorities and the SDGs across over 130 countries. We deliver project management, fund management, advisory services, project implementation, and HR services, working closely with major global partners. Our thematic focus includes sustainable development, climate action, health, peace & security, and humanitarian action.

Not Required - part of GPO/NYPO

About UN Global Pulse

UN Global Pulse is the Secretary-General’s Innovation Lab. We work at the intersection of innovation and the human sciences to inform, inspire, and strengthen the ability of the United Nations family and those it serves to anticipate, respond and adapt to the challenges of today and tomorrow.

We support some of the UN’s highest-priority, system-wide innovation efforts, helping teams apply data science, responsible AI and digital solutions to accelerate impact across initiatives such as the UN Global Pulse Accelerator Programme, UN80 priorities and the DISHA programme.

Our teams are spread across the world, with hubs in Uganda, Indonesia, Finland and the United States. Drawing on more than a decade of experience with digital innovation in the UN family, UN Global Pulse unites specialists from the digital and social sciences in search of solutions to the world’s most pressing problems, from conflict to climate change.

We aim to reduce the risks that innovation involves and move towards the opportunities. We restore public trust in technology by making it inclusive, accessible and ethical. Our input brings value to the work of the UN and external partners in protecting the vulnerable and defending human rights.

The goals of the UN Global Pulse Network are: i) Support efforts to advance innovations ii) Contribute to the development of global frameworks, and iii) Support the transformation of the UN family.

The incumbent of the position will be a staff member of UNOPS under its full responsibility.

Under the supervision of the Head of Office, the incumbent will translate Global Pulse Europe’s strategic direction into coherent execution—building the systems, metrics, financial discipline, and evidence pipelines that ensure the hub delivers credible, accountable, and scalable innovation results across its portfolio.

To achieve its goals, UNOPS is recruiting a Deputy Head of Office for the UN Global Pulse Europe project. 

The incumbent will serve as the operational and analytical backbone of UN Global Pulse Europe - translating the hub's portfolio strategy into systems, metrics, and insights that keep the team focused on performance and accountability, while helping them to learn and deliver better with each project cycle. The role ensures that innovation work across the Accelerator, AI/data pilots, and partnerships is targeted at product output and delivered with measurable impact and operational excellence.

Acting as the hub’s core integrator, the incumbent connects strategic direction with execution, embeds AI-enabled tools and practices across operations, and ensures the financial and evidentiary discipline needed for maximum impact.

The incumbent will be responsible for the following duties:

Strategy Execution

• Prepare materials for hub-level governance mechanisms for decision-making, risk oversight, and resource alignment.

• Design and manage structured surge capacity and resource planning models to deliver hub priorities, drawing on private sector, academia, and UN partners.

Performance, Evidence & Learning

• Drive UN Global Pulse Europe portfolio-wide performance tracking and results management, ensuring clear milestones, data pipelines, and delivery metrics.

• Translate evidence into executive-level briefs and recommendations, real-time dashboards, and investment cases for leadership and partners.

• Build routines for team learning, feedback, and adaptive working — strengthening a culture of innovation and accountability.

• Maintain documentation and audit trails to support internal/external reporting.

• Facilitate continuous learning cycles within the hub and contribute to knowledge-sharing across the Global Pulse network.

Systems & Tools

• Identify and operationalize cutting-edge, lean management systems and digital tools, including AI-driven automation, analytics, and monitoring solutions.

• Lead the evolution of the office’s digital delivery toolkit and promote adoption of AI for internal efficiency and tracking.

Financial Stewardship & Resource Performance

• Oversee financial planning and expenditure reviews and link spending to results and impact delivery.

• Provide actionable recommendations for efficiency and reinvestment across the portfolio.

• Provide analytical support to resource mobilization and donor reporting efforts.

Impact of Results

The Deputy Head of Office ensures that Global Pulse Europe delivers credible, measurable, and scalable results, enabling effective decision-making, resource alignment, and confidence from partners and leadership. This position is critical for continuity in implementing the Accelerator model and in strengthening innovation scaling capabilities across the UN system.

Required

• Advanced University degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) preferably in Public Administration, Business Administration, Economics, Computer Science, Data Science, or another relevant field with seven (7) years of relevant experience is required  OR

• A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in the above- mentioned fields of study, with nine (9) years of relevant work experience.

Required:

• Relevant experience is defined as experience in portfolio management, strategy execution, or programme operations within international or multi-stakeholder environments. 

• Experience in managing financial performance and results-based budgets across multi-project portfolios.

Desired:

• Demonstrated experience introducing or managing digital and AI-enabled tools or management systems to enhance delivery and decision-making.

• Experience in translating quantitative evidence and analytics into executive decision-making, including preparation of briefs and recommendations for senior leadership.

• Track record in team leadership, change management, and enabling organizational learning within innovation or digital-focused teams.

• Experience collaborating across the UN system, international financial institutions, or major public-private partnerships.

• Leadership of AI or data innovation projects, especially for internal efficiency or policy insight generation.

• Proven capacity to design or implement surge or rapid-deployment models for cross-sector technical expertise.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• Please note that UNOPS will at no stage of the recruitment process request candidates to make payments of any kind.
• Applications to vacancies must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered. 
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities. 
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here. 
• For more details about the contract types, please click here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda. 
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.