Background

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is the United Nations system-wide service for volunteerism. Established by the General Assembly in 1970 and administered by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UNV mobilizes qualified, motivated and diverse volunteers to support United Nations mandates in development, peace and security, human rights and humanitarian action, while promoting volunteerism as an important means of implementing the 2030 Agenda.

UNV works with organizations of the United Nations system, Member States, national and local institutions, civil society and communities. Its distinctive value lies in connecting the UN system with people and communities through volunteers, providing flexible talent and capacity solutions to UN entities while generating evidence, partnerships and policy support for volunteerism. The programme has evolved into a substantial global operation, with more than 17,000 UN Volunteers deployed in 172 countries in 2025, supported by close to 500 global personnel in UNV headquarters in Bonn, six regional offices and over sixty country presences and multi-country field units. 

The current strategic context requires UNV to consolidate previous expansion and relevance as the system-wide service, while at the same time furthering its agility, efficiency, digital maturity, operational and financial resilience, and close alignment with the evolving needs of UN Country Teams and programme countries.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Executive Coordinator reports to UNDP Administrator and leads UNV within the policy, strategic and institutional framework established by the UN General Assembly, the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board, UNDP Strategic Plan and the UNV Strategic Framework. The position combines the responsibilities of executive leader, strategic manager, and principal advocate of UNV.

The Executive Coordinator provides the overall vision, strategic direction and executive leadership required to fulfill UNV’s mandate and to translate the policy direction of the General Assembly and Executive Board into organizational priorities, strategies and partnerships. The incumbent leads the mobilization and stewardship of human, financial, institutional and partnership resources; represents UNV with Member States, UN entities and external stakeholders; and ensures that the programme operates with integrity, efficiency, transparency, accountability and strong results orientation. 

The Executive Coordinator ensures that UNV remains responsive to Member States and UN partners while maintaining a strong focus on volunteer quality, inclusion, duty of care and the experience of volunteers throughout the service cycle. 

The Executive Coordinator leads UNV in a way that continuously modernizes its service offer and promotes the strategic relevance of volunteerism in the UN system and beyond. He/she is accountable for positioning UNV as a trusted, effective and innovative system-wide service that enables the United Nations to draw on the skills, commitment and local knowledge of volunteers, while advancing recognition of volunteerism as a means of achieving peace and development.

In addition, the Executive Coordinator has delegated responsibility for coordinating daily management of common premises and common services for the organizations of the UN system at the UN Bonn campus, including related administrative, managerial and policy issues, as well as liaising with the Federal Government of Germany, the State Government of North Rhine-Westphalia and the City Municipality of Bonn on such matters.

1) Strategic leadership, planning and management

  • Provide overall strategic leadership to UNV and translate General Assembly resolutions, Executive Board decisions, relevant UN system priorities and UNDP policies into organizational strategies, partnerships and practices.
  • Lead the design and implementation of the UNV Strategic Frameworks, ensuring clear institutional priorities, implementation arrangements, measurable results, effective innovations and systematic monitoring of performance.
  • Position UNV as an agile, fit-for-purpose and people-centered UN system-wide service, continuously adapting volunteer modalities, operating models and services to changing UN and country-level needs. Leads the institution in a way that continuously modernizes its service offer. 
  • Promote decentralization and appropriate delegation of authority so that UNV can respond effectively to country and regional requirements while maintaining corporate standards and accountability.
  • Foster an organizational culture based on integrity, innovation, collaboration, inclusion, learning and service to UN partners and volunteers.
  • Ensure that organizational structures, policies, business processes, digital capabilities and workforce arrangements remain aligned with strategic objectives.
  • Inform and consult UNDP Administrator and senior UNDP leadership and ensure that UNV's governance and management arrangements remain consistent with its status as a UNDP-administered system-wide service.

2) External relations, representation and advocacy

  • Serve as the principal spokesperson and representative of UNV with Member States, UN entities, civil society, academia, the private sector and other stakeholders. Contribute to intergovernmental dialogue on volunteerism, including follow-up to relevant General Assembly resolutions, Secretary-General reports, international observances and global policy processes. In doing so, demonstrates strong partnerships acumen and intuitional judgement.
  • Advocate for volunteerism as a cross-cutting means of implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and as a contributor to peace and security, human rights and humanitarian action.
  • Sustain high-level partnerships for the integration of volunteerism into national plans and policies. Maintain strategic engagement with Resident Coordinators and UN Country Teams and promote the inclusion of volunteerism in Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks and country programming.
  • Position UNV as a source of credible evidence, policy advice and innovation on volunteerism, including through research, data, knowledge products and global advocacy.
  • Mobilize support for inclusive volunteerism, with particular attention to participation by women, young and older people, persons with disabilities, people from developing countries and other groups that may face barriers to participation.
  • Strengthen UNV's public profile while ensuring communications are evidence-based, consistent with UN values and focused on the contribution of volunteers to tangible results. Represent UNV at high-level international forums and public events, communicating its mandate, results and strategic priorities with clarity and credibility.

3) Results and resources management

  • Ensure that UNV delivers the results approved by its governing bodies and that organizational performance is systematically measured, analyzed, communicated and used for decision-making.
  • Oversee the effective and transparent management of UNV's financial, human, digital and other resources, consistent with UNDP policies, UN rules and applicable accountability frameworks.
  • Safeguard the financial sustainability of UNV, strengthen the resource base, diversifying strategic partnerships, and maintain appropriate balances between institutional resources and requirements.
  • Provide strategic stewardship of the Special Voluntary Fund and other flexible resources, ensuring that they are deployed where they can respond to emergencies and/or generate catalytic and innovative high-value impact.
  • Oversee enterprise-level risk management, internal controls, audit follow-up and evaluation, ensuring that risks are identified early and addressed decisively.
  • Strengthen data-driven management, including the use of artificial intelligence, digital tools, analytics and evidence to improve organizational performance, decision-making, cost-effectiveness and efficiency gains.
  • Report transparently on results, resources, risks and performance to the Executive Board, UNDP leadership, Member States and other relevant stakeholders.

4) People, innovation and organizational effectiveness

  • Champion the principle that UNV's central asset is its people: UN Volunteers, staff and the communities and partners with whom they work. Translates general duty of care commitments onto practical arrangements and initiatives. 
  • Ensure that volunteerism is delivered through high-quality, safe, inclusive and meaningful assignments, with appropriate duty of care throughout the volunteer life cycle.
  • Oversee continued modernization of volunteer management, including flexible, short-term, part-time, remote and other modalities responsive to the evolving needs of UN entities and programme countries.
  • Ensure that innovation, digital transformation, automation and responsible use of data and emerging technologies improve service quality, accessibility, speed and efficiency.
  • Encourage experimentation and learning while maintaining appropriate safeguards, ethical standards and accountability.
  • Strengthen UNV's ability to identify emerging needs and rapidly adapt its operating model, particularly in fragile, conflict-affected, humanitarian and crisis contexts.
  • Foster a culture of continuous improvement in which evidence from volunteers, host entities, programme countries, evaluations and operational experience informs policy and management decisions.
  • Promote leadership development, collaboration across headquarters, regional and field structures, and a shared organizational identity centered on service, solidarity, professionalism and measurable impact.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: The incumbent oversees the entire personnel of United Nations Volunteers.

Competencies

Core:

  • Achieve Results: LEVEL 4: Prioritize team workflow, mobilize resources, drive scalable results/strategic impact
  • Think Innovatively: LEVEL 4: Easily navigate complexity, encourage/enable radical innovation, has foresight
  • Learn Continuously: LEVEL 4: Create systems and processes that enable learning and development for all
  • Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 4: Proactively initiate/lead organizational change, champion new systems/processes
  • Act with Determination: LEVEL 4: Able to make difficult decisions in challenging situations, inspire confidence
  • Engage and Partner: LEVEL 4: Construct strategic multi-partner alliances in high-stakes situations, foster co-creation
  • Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 4: Create ethical culture, identify/address barriers to inclusion 

People Management:

UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site.  

Cross Functional and Technical:

  • Business Direction and Strategy -
    • System Thinking: Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system.
    • Business Acumen: Ability to understand and deal with a business situation in a manner that is likely to lead to a good outcome. Ability to make good judgments and quick decisions within such frameworks. Knowledge and understanding of the operational frameworks in the organization.
    • Effective Decision Making: Ability to take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one's authority, area of expertise and resources.
  • Business Management -
    • Portfolio Management: Ability to select, prioritize and control the organizations programmes and projects, in line with its strategic objectives and capacity; ability to balance the implementation of change initiatives and the maintenance of business-as-usual, while optimizing return on investment.
    • Communication: Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
  • Partnership Management - Relationship Management: Ability to build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts and others in line with UNDP strategy and policies.
  • Finance - Development Finance Expertise: Ability to develop and work with innovative financing mechanisms and instruments, e.g. social/development impact bonds, guarantees, climate finance, etc.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Advanced university degree (master’s or equivalent) in Social or Political Sciences, Economics, Public or Business Administration, Management or related field. 
  • A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in combination with two additional years of relevant experience will be given due consideration in lieu of a master's degree. 

Experience:

  • More than 15 years of relevant experience that combines policy, partnerships and programme leadership engagement, and strategic resource management is required.
  • Progressively senior management experience with international organizations or Member States’ public service, with clear demonstration of high-level engagement in diplomacy, intergovernmental processes, and international political or development matters is required.
  • Demonstrated ability to provide strategic leadership and position an organization effectively within a broader international context is required.
  • Demonstrated experience in driving institutional modernization and change is required.
  • Solid experience and proven track record in leading other managers and teams with integrity and duty of care is required.
  • Demonstrated partnership acumen, ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with key partners, with strong communication and advocacy skills is required.
  • Experience and demonstrated results in working on sustainable development issues at country level is a strong asset.
  • Solid understanding of the UN system and intergovernmental processes is an asset.
  • Knowledge of UN(DP) policies, rules and regulations is an asset.
  • Experience of working on peace and security and humanitarian action is an asset.
  • Experience in managing substantial regional or global operations is an asset.
  • Experience in managing digital transformations is an asset.
  • Experience of managing volunteer programmes or serving as a UN Volunteer is an asset.

Language:

  • Fluency in English is required. 
  • Fluency in another official UN language is an asset.

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Probation

For all new UNDP fixed term appointments (FTA), including for staff members being transferred or seconded to UNDP under the Inter-Organization Agreement concerning Transfer, Secondment or Loan of Staff, on an appointment of more than one year, continuation of the appointment beyond the initial 12 months is contingent upon the successful completion of a probationary period.

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Use of AI by candidates

Applicants are invited to read UNDP’s guidance for candidates on using AI responsibly in UNDP recruitment and selection

Scam alert

UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.

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