Org. Setting and Reporting

This position is located in the Digital Government Branch (DGB), in the Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government (DPIDG) of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). DPIDG focuses on supporting countries in enhancing digital government development, internet governance and improving effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels for internationally agreed development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The incumbent is under the overall guidance of the Director of the Division and the direct supervision of the Chief of DGB. More information on DPIDG is available at https://www.un.org/development/desa/en/about/desadivisions/public-administration.html.

Responsibilities

The incumbent will be responsible for supporting the Division’s work in diverse aspects related to policies and capacity development related to the role of public administration and public institutions in support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Within delegated authority, the duties of the incumbent will include the following; Governance and Public Administration analysis • Leads or provides major inputs in the formulation, organization and management of mandated programmes on governance, public administration, development management and public institutions and in the formulation of possible strategies, policies and actions in this area for advising individual countries and/or the international community; • Leads or participates extensively in the identification of new or emerging governance, public administration and sustainable development. issues of potential concern to Member States and/or the international community, particularly those of a regional or global nature; designs and develops programmes to address them. • Plaas, designs, supervises and undertakes substantive research, studies, and prepares or reviews reports, and publications. • Conceived, plans and manages expert group meetings, seminars including capacity development events. • Prepares briefing notes and speeches for more senior staff of the United Nations and makes presentations on governance, public administration, public institutions and sustainable development related issues for specialist or non-specialist audiences. • Leads the development of a research agenda, oversees the development of key trends and specific topics to continuously enrich the substantive work of the Division. Intergovernmental support • Provides direct substantive support on governance, public administration and sustainable development policy making to intergovernmental bodies such as the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council, the UN Committee of Expe1is on Public Administration and the high-level political forum on sustainable development by offering strategic advice, giving technical guidance and assisting in developing a consensus; • Prepares and manages meetings of intergovernmental bodies; • Represents the Branch/Division and the Department as well as the Organization at international, regional and national meetings on governance, public administration and related issues. Technical cooperation • Develops and maintains relations with senior officials of Member Governments and ensures a response to requests for advice and/or assistance on governance, public administration and development management issues and policies. • Works with recipient and donor governments on capacity development programmes and projects. • Organizes and coordinates cooperation among Member States on governance, public administration and development management programmes or issues. • Leads or participates in technical cooperation missions. • Plans, designs and oversees implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of projects in governance, public administration, and related issues, and manages major projects or studies. • Leads research and studies in support of programme and project formulation. • Takes a leading role in supervising the technical support to seminars and workshops organized by the Division and its partners. Programme support • Actively participates and provides major inputs in the formulation of the medium-term plan, the programme of work and the budget of the Branch and participates in the formulation of the Division’s overall programme of work and other similar endeavors; • Attends to various administrative matters concerning the Branch or Division. • Performs other related duties as required.

Competencies

• Professionalism: Knowledge and understanding of governance, public administration and development theories, principles and applications. Ability to produce quality rep01is and publications in selected areas of governance, public administration and development management. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting constituents, 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. • Planning & Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently. • Creativity: Actively seeks to improve programmes or services; offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs; promotes and persuades others to consider new ideas; takes calculated risks on new and unusual ideas; thinks “outside the box”; takes an interest in new ideas and new ways of doing things; is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches. • Leadership: Serves as a role model that other people want to follow: empowers others to translate vision into results; is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives; establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; drives for change and improvements; does not accept the status quo; shows the courage to take unpopular stands. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing. • Judgement/Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent degree) in public administration, governance, political science, social science, business administration, law, public finance or related field is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Job – Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of ten years of progressively responsible experience in governance, public administration, sustainable development policy making, or related area is required. Experience in internet and digital governance is desirable. Supervisory and management experience is desirable. Experience in published research articles in digital government is desirable. Experience in working in regional or international organizations is desirable. Experience in working with high- level government officials and facilitating and supporting high-level policy formulation is desirable Experience in emerging technologies including artificial intelligence in the public sector is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is desirable.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

• This position is temporarily available starting as soon as possible until 31 March 2025, with a possibility of extension. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment. • While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post. • Subject to the funding source of the position, the eligibility for this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station. • This temporary job opening may be limited to “internal candidates,” who have been recruited through a competitive examination administered according to staff rule 4.16 or staff selection process including the review of a central review body established according to staff rule 4.15. • Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply.Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation. • Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as “retirement.” Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions. Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile of the inspira account-holder homepage. The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application. Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.