Change Management - Senior Manager

The Strategy and Transformation Group (STG) supports the Executive Director in driving the UNOPS long-term vision, guiding the organization through strategic planning, transformation, and change. It leads the development of the UNOPS strategic plan, ensuring alignment with evolving priorities and global contexts; and it manages the midterm review of the strategic plan and the Executive Director’s annual report ensuring transparency to the Executive Board, including through external evaluation suited to the UNOPS mandate and efforts to enhance impact management. STG also provides high-level analysis, oversight advice, and secretariat support to the Audit Advisory Committee, fostering informed decision-making.  

With deep expertise in United Nations strategic planning and organizational transformation, STG serves as a trusted advisor and implementation partner for major change programmes, including designing transformation strategies, delivering change management support, and coordinating cross-organizational initiatives that address operational challenges and advance institutional ambitions. STG generates practical, innovative solutions that strengthen UNOPS resilience, efficiency, and impact - positioning the organization to adapt, excel, and deliver on its mandate in a dynamic operational environment.

We are building a talent roster for upcoming change management projects, anticipated to be delivered over the course of the next few years. Successful candidates will join our elite talent pool and will be engaged in either Ongoing or Retainer (freelance) contract opportunities based on their interest and availability.

When on assignment, the incumbent will be embedded into a specific transformation programme and/or project delivery team and will report on a day-to-day basis to the relevant programme/project lead. Many of the current transformation initiatives are being led from within the UNOPS HQ units in Copenhagen yet the project teams can be geographically dispersed across the regions. The stakeholder management will also require cross-geographical engagement.  Regardless of the day-to-day reporting line arrangement, the incumbent will also be part of the Change Management community of practice and be expected to apply UNOPS change management standards and approaches, as well as contribute to the Change Management practice development through knowledge sharing and peer-to-peer engagement. Depending on assignment, the incumbent might also have a reporting line arrangement to the central Change & Transformation team.   

There is at least one fully funded assignment already approved, with the tentative start date of mid-November 2026 and anticipated to run until 31 December  2027 (with possibility for extension). This is a Senior Change Manager assignment on a  P3M Framework Transformation Programme reporting to the P3M Programme Manager / Deputy Programme Manager and with a dotted reporting line to the Change and Transformation Practice. The P3M Programme aims to establish a common organisational approach to the governance and delivery of projects, programmes and portfolios (P3M). The programme comprises two interrelated projects that together will establish the organisational policy, governance, business processes, management products, guidance, competencies and digital capabilities required to support the consistent management of projects, programmes and portfolios across UNOPS. This represents a significant organisational change extending beyond the implementation of new technology. The  P3M Programme will introduce new governance arrangements, strengthen decision-making, standardise business processes across regions and headquarters, improve integration with corporate functions, and establish common ways of working throughout the project lifespan. Successful implementation will require changes to the processes, behaviours, competencies and organisational culture.  Change management effort is expected to enable change readiness, effective stakeholder engagement, communications, learning as well as reinforcement -  to drive successful change adoption and sustain the new ways of working over time. The Senior Change Manager will play a central role in this effort, leading the programme’s change management activities globally,  coordinating across headquarters, regional offices and key business stakeholders.

Further assignments are imminent and will support a similar scale of change as part of UNOPS Transformation.

The Change Management - Senior Manager is responsible for shaping and delivering change management approaches and plans for large-scale transformation initiatives, ensuring change adoption and benefits realization. This role involves engaging with executive and senior leadership, navigating complex stakeholder dynamics, and contributing to UNOPS' multi-year transformation aimed at scaling up and speeding up its impact.

1. Change Management approach and plan

Establish and maintain an integrated organisational change management approach on a given programme/project that supports its successful implementation

Shape structured change management plans, integrating change management objectives and specific actions into the relevant transformation programme/project governance and delivery plans, covering the entire programme/project lifespan. Ensure sufficient focus on understanding change impacts and utilising that into tailored and practical plans to drive change readiness, enable smooth change deployment and maximise change adoption.

Lead change impact assessments to identify the implications of the new ways of working (e.g. policies, governance arrangements, business processes, management products, digital capabilities etc.) across the stakeholder groups. Develop mitigation strategies to support successful adoption. Periodically review and adjust the change management approach and plans based on the identified and emerging change impacts.

Manage change risks and ensure that planned organisational readiness activities are aligned with programme governance, delivery milestones and business priorities.

Provide strategic advice to the sponsor and programme/project leadership on organisational implications of specific decisions and recommend appropriate mitigation measures where risks to change adoption are identified.

2. Stakeholder engagement and cross-functional collaboration

Collaborate with the Regional Transformation Advisors and Regional Change Management Specialists in coordinating change management activities, ensuring a consistent enterprise-wide approach while allowing flexibility to respond to regional priorities and local implementation needs.

Engage with the Transformation Office, ensuring that change activities remain aligned across related transformation initiatives, reducing duplication and helping to manage organisational change load by promoting a coordinated implementation approach.

Partner with and engage with a wide range of stakeholders, change sponsor(s), executives and senior leaders, project teams, regional teams and technical delivery partners across shaping, planning and implementation of the change, reflecting practical realities and needs of different leadership objectives, regions, practices and functional groups.

Drive senior alignment on pivotal recommendations for the change. Ensure effective stakeholder engagement and collaboration in the development and implementation of solutions, often in challenging environments, ensuring commitment to the successful change implementation.

Produce and/or contribute to executive briefings, a wide range of communication products, awareness campaigns and stakeholder engagement activities while establishing mechanisms to capture feedback and incorporate lessons learned into the change implementation. Prepare and deliver senior-level presentations and facilitated sessions when required.

3. Change Management plan implementation

Lead the implementation of the change management plans. Leverage and tailor UNOPS Change Management toolkit to match the needs and scale for the relevant initiative at each step of the change journey.

Mobilise effective feedback channels and engagement plans, to facilitate two way dialogue with the impacted stakeholders, facilitating buy-in in and surfacing and mitigating any prevailing change resistance.

Perform organisational readiness checks and tailor the subsequent actions to target low readiness levels, to ensure offices and personnel are prepared for deployment.

Manage the stakeholder engagement and communication effort, with tailored and practical approaches to engage different audience groups and facilitate their awareness building, build buy- in and mobilise critical change roles (e.g. people supervisors)

Manage the deployment of the targeted learning and support plans (e.g. guidance, training, knowledge products, drop-in clinics) that enable personnel to understand and apply the new ways of working. And are able to sustain them long-term.

Establish and coordinate mechanisms for monitoring change adoption, measuring change outcomes and reporting progress to programme governance. This includes developing change performance indicators, monitoring stakeholder engagement, organisational readiness and learning completion, identifying barriers to implementation and recommending corrective actions where required.

Ensuring that change management considerations remain integrated into the transition to business-as-usual.

4. Change Management practice development / organisational capability building

Apply and promote a consistent enterprise-wide approach to organisational change.

Contribute to the UNOPS body of knowledge on change management and organisational change management maturity, e.g. through knowledge sharing, mentoring junior change managers, contributing to change management tools and materials where relevant.

Build change management capability through strengthening the contributions for a given programme/project from across the change management ecosystem, e.g. by engaging, guiding, equipping programme/project’s sponsor coalitions, change agents (where applicable), and supervisors to those who are impacted by change.

Required

• An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Business Administration, Management, Social Sciences, International Development, Public Administration, or another relevant field is required.

  A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in combination with an additional two years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

  
  

  Desired

• Professional certification in change management (e.g. Prosci, APMG Change Management or equivalent) is highly desirable.

• A recognised programme or project management methodologies (e.g. MSP®, PRINCE2®, PMP®) is desirable.

  
  

Required

• A minimum of seven years’ progressively responsible experience in leading organisational change management activities for a business transformation or medium-to-large-scale programme implementation (e,g. enterprise-wide business process improvement, governance reform, culture change, system implementation) is required

  
  

• Experience managing  stakeholders in a complex environment, relationship building and stakeholder alignment is required

Desired

• Experience working within the United Nations system or another international organisation is an asset

• UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• 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. 
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the selection process, which may include various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of a wide range of nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. We strive to sustain and strengthen this diversity, fostering an inclusive working environment where all personnel are treated with respect and have equal access to opportunities.
• UNOPS evaluates all applications based on the skills, qualifications and experience outlined in the vacancy announcement. We are committed to a fair and transparent selection process and welcome diverse perspectives, including those of women, indigenous and racialized communities, individuals of diverse gender identities and sexual orientations, and persons with disabilities.
• We are committed to enabling all candidates to perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require support or reasonable accommodation to complete any assessment, please inform our human resources team upon receiving your invitation.
• UNOPS has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment, and other forms of abusive conduct, including discrimination, abuse of authority, and harassment. To uphold these standards, background checks are conducted for all final candidates to help ensure that individuals with a history of such conduct are not hired. By applying for a position with UNOPS, candidates acknowledge and consent to these verification processes.
  

• 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.