Communications Lead for Digital Transformation

Background

Instructions to Applicants: Click on the "Apply now" button. Input your information in the appropriate Sections: personal information, language proficiency, education, resume and motivation. Upon completion of the first page, please hit "submit application" tab at the end of the page. Please ensure that CV or P11 and the Cover letter are combined in one file.

Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.

A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) indicating why the candidate considers him-/herself to be suitable for the position.

Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as  reports, presentations, publications, campaigns or other materials.

Travel:

1. UNDP will cover the cost of travel of the individual to the duty station, as well as their return to their home upon completion of their services. Travel costs are covered only in the event that the function will be undertaken physically in the duty station and excludes working from home arrangements.
2. Any travels related to official performance of duties will be covered by UNDP.

Office/Unit/Project Description 

Emerging and future digital technologies and the opportunities they offer will profoundly improve the lives of those furthest behind. Recognizing this potential, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched an organization-wide digital transformation that will splice digital into its DNA—harnessing its potential to do good for more people, better and faster. UNDP’s 2019-2021 Digital Strategy has created a new UNDP Digital Unit (Chief Digital Office or CDO), charged with leading the next wave of innovation in sustainable development.

UNDP is the development arm of the United Nations.  Present in 170 countries with over 17,000 people, UNDP works on the world’s biggest problems: extreme poverty, climate change, good governance, renewable energy, crisis prevention, and women’s empowerment, among others.

We are leveraging the power and agility of digital to propel all people forward, starting with digital initiative development, scaling innovation, and communicating this organizational change internally and externally. To achieve this, we need a team that's nimble, that's passionate, that has the technical skills required to help close the digital divide. Are you one of these people? Read more about our digital strategy here.

To bring digital around the globe, we need someone who can promote and communicate the digital agenda, strategically and globally. This position will be part of the team under the Chief Digital Officer and report to the Capability Building & Networks Lead.

Institutional Arrangement

This position will be part of the team under the Chief Digital Officer and report to the Head of Digital Culture.

Duties and Responsibilities

Strategy and Engagement

• Develop communication strategies that support UNDP and CDO objectives and translate into agile annual and quarterly workplans
• Lead the development of internal and external communication narratives and contribute to ongoing high-level communication efforts (including but not limited to senior management speech and talking points, integrating digital into corporate key messages and main reports, etc)
• Supervise overall communications efforts online (including social media) and offline (e.g. events), to ensure the activities serve the strategy and directions.

• Work with various CDO workstreams to target key stakeholder groups to grow awareness and engagement with the UNDP digital transformation agenda, both internally and externally
• Build and manage media relationships with key outlets (traditional and online) for positioning UNDP in the digital development space

Content development and distribution

• Lead the development of marketing and communications content with workstream leads, for various CDO initiatives such as digital innovation, country office support, data strategy and the digital advocates network.
• Supervise the development and distribution of success stories/case studies of UNDP and CDO digital initiatives, including digital innovations, thought leadership, COVID-19 digital responses, and internal transformation initiatives.
• Manage and/or produce communications pieces (including, but not limited to, written articles, videos, podcasts, social media content, etc) to highlight digital initiatives across UNDP internally and externally
• Support the compilation and development of funding materials for key donors, government, and partner audiences.
• Work closely with relevant UNDP communications colleagues at Headquarter/ regional/ country level to solicit best stories and promote UNDP’s work and key messages.

Digital communications & Relevant Systems

• Identify key audiences around priority areas of interest, build awareness via advocacy campaigns and/or marketing initiatives with precise targeting.
• Manage regular updates to priority stakeholder groups; both within UNDP and with external partners and other United Nations agencies.
• Advance UNDP’s practice in digital marketing, including but not limited to leveraging the latest tools and platforms, guiding UNDP teams on such efforts, and demonstrating data-driven results.
• Seek opportunities and partnerships to promote UNDP and its priorities through events, awards, etc.
• Work closely with other team members to improve customer relationship management, digital marketing, knowledge management and content management systems to enable the rapid growth of digital at UNDP

Competencies

UN CORE VALUES AND COMPETENCIES

Professionalism: Shows pride in work and achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; Asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; Tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience; Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be "clients " and seeks to see things from clients' point of view; Establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; Identifies clients' needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; Monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients' environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; Keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; Meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Required Skills and Experience