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.

The following documents shall be required from the applicants:

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.

Office/Unit/Project Description 

At UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), we are on a mission to end poverty, build democratic governance, rule of law, and inclusive institutions around the world. UNDP is the United Nations' global sustainable development organization working across 170 countries with 17,000 staff.

Digital technology is one of the most fundamental drivers of change this century. Digital not only provides new opportunities and challenges for development, but it is also fundamentally changing the context in which development is taking place. Since the launch of its first Digital Strategy in 2019, UNDP has been on an ambitious transformation journey to harness the potential of digital technology for development. We are now in the next phase of our digital transformation, implementing the Digital Strategy 2022-2025, which puts forth a vision to create a world in which digital is an empowering force for people and planet. 

The Chief Digital Officer at UNDP is leading this effort with the goal of embedding digital technology in the development projects that we implement, supporting government partners to build inclusive digital eco-systems, and transforming the organization internally to enable these changes.

Our Team:

The Chief Digital Office (CDO) is a global team of innovators, digital strategists, and changemakers who are passionate about making digital a positive force for people and planet. The team is led by Robert Opp, a former consulting leader from BCG and former Director of the Innovation and Change Management Division at the UN World Food Programme (WFP).

The CDO is a transformation team within UNDP tasked with the responsibility to implement the Digital Strategy by building the required programmatic (planning and implementation of development projects to support government partners) and internal capacities at the country, regional and global level. Within the CDO, the Digital Programme Enablement Team develops and scales UNDP’s digital programmes, building global and local digital ecosystems that reaches and works for everyone, including in areas such as discovery and implementation of scalable digital solutions, digital skills-building, and inclusive connectivity. 

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work

UNDP is looking for a Digital Programme Manager to provide direct strategic and operational support to the Digital Transformation team at UNDP, acting as a thought partner, scale impact and enable opportunities for collective action, especially through multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder coalitions across UNDP’s 171 country offices.  This is a highly strategic role, with a unique opportunity to be directly involved in shaping how UNDP supports efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through empowering digital ecosystems and digitally-enabled programming using UNDP’s Whole of Society Digital Transformation framework.

Key Responsibilities include:

1. Scaling Impact: Develop strategy on scaling UNDP initiatives to support digital ecosystems across countries and lead the implementation of the scale strategy to maximize impact.
2. Coherence & Coordination: Lead in identifying joint priorities and support its integration across digital transformation programming portfolio in both digitally enabled programming and empowering digital ecosystems.  Support project execution for the team - e.g., timeline, milestones, progress reporting
3. Stakeholder Engagement: Support in positioning UNDP’s digital programme integrator role in countries: identify lessons, convene stakeholders and foster collaboration.
4. Reporting: Manage donor reporting and consultations in collaboration with the Partnerships Team, Operations and Finance.

Scaling Impact: Develop strategy on scaling UNDP initiatives to support digital ecosystems across countries and lead its implementation: Provide strategic direction and design implementation plan on how UNDP can scale priority initiatives that support digital ecosystems for our partner governments. This includes:

• the design and implementation of a collaboration model with leading technical assistance providers and local digital ecosystems. 
• Support the delivery of new, high-impact initiatives to achieve scalability and maximum impact, in alignment with UNDP’s objectives and priorities.
• Develop global / regional expansion strategies for select existing projects by providing advice and operational support to bring these to scale.

Coherence & Coordination: Support in identifying joint priorities with the Digital Transformation portfolio and support its integration across digital transformation programming portfolio

• Align and support internal stakeholders and external consultants/advisors to support program goals
• Support project execution for the team - e.g., timeline, milestones, progress reporting

Stakeholder Engagement: Support in strategic positioning of UNDP’s digital programmes and fostering collaboration between key stakeholders

• Identify best practices and develop insights on how to scale impact of digital programmes
• Convene key internal (UNDP) and external stakeholders to share best practice, encourage knowledge-sharing, and facilitate dialogue in order to improve effectiveness of digital programmes
• Engage with partner governments, civil society, and private sector partners to develop new partnerships that support UNDP’s digital programmes

Reporting: Manage donor reporting and consultations in collaboration with the Partnerships Team, Operations and Finance.

• Serve as the coordinator for all donor reporting including collecting key results, lessons, and other aspects of ensuring sound reporting to donors.
• Ensure Digital Transformation programme team’s understanding of and compliance with internal processes during program implementation (e.g., budgeting, contracting)
• Manage progress reporting
• Coordinate with relevant functions whose work will support the impact of the program (e.g., comms, finance)
• Facilitate decisions regarding the funding sources and financial structures for programmes, ensuring that those decisions are ultimately reflected in distribution model. 
• Develop benchmarks and other methods for evaluating the cost-efficiency of technical assistance: contracts, grants, and other expenditures.