Org. Setting and Reporting

To ensure a United Nations that is fit-for-purpose to deliver on the ambition of the SDGs, the General Assembly adopted the most far-reaching development reforms in the history of the organization in May 2018. At the core of resolution 72/279 was the establishment of a reinvigorated, independent, impartial, and empowered Resident Coordinator (RC) system to support a new generation of UN country teams (UNCTs). The UN Development Coordination Office (DCO) oversees managerial and oversight functions of the Resident Coordinator system under the collective ownership of the members of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG). The position is located in the Communications and Results Reporting Section (CRRS) of DCO at the United Nations Headquarters in New York and is temporary available until 31 August 2026, with the main responsibilities to support communications and results reporting activities, ranging from editorial and content strategy and production to digital backend infrastructure support. The position reports to a Results Reporting Officer and is under the overall supervision of the Chief of CRRS.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Communications Officer will be responsible for the following duties: •Provide insights and analysis from traditional, social, and digital media monitoring, including public narratives and areas of reputational risk to inform communications strategy. •Contribute to the development and implementation of communications strategies that raise awareness, drive engagement, build support and have a measurable impact with target audiences. •Draft compelling narratives and messaging on the work of the UN that engage target audiences across different channels and platforms. •Track and review UN country team (UNCT) Results Reports to ensure timely submission, extract relevant content and ensure report quality, in line with the UNCT Results Report Guidelines, working closely with DCO regional teams and Resident Coordinator Offices (RCO). •Support the drafting and production of the UNSDG Chair report on the work of DCO and the RC system, including the development of an interactive online summary (e-Report). •Create compelling content related to the interactive UNSDG Chair Report on DCO that is optimised to reach target audiences across a range of platforms and channels, analysing the relevant structured and unstructured datasets. •Draft and produce communications products, such as press releases, press statements, web stories, reports, and infographics. •Participate in the creation of compelling communications campaigns that engage and have a measurable impact on target audiences through appropriate channels and platforms. •Participate in the development and coordination of strategic communications partnerships with internal and external stakeholders to reach target audiences and maximise impact. •Participate in the development and delivery of in-person outreach and advocacy strategies and campaigns to engage target audiences and advance UN priorities. •Ensure technical and design enhancements for the e-Report and the System-Wide Contributions to the SDGs. •Monitor the performance of technical components and collaborate with vendors to implement updates, security patches, and performance optimisation, including design and UI/UX, to ensure the e-Report is integrated into an enterprise Drupal-based content management system (CMS) websites. •Contribute to the development of social media assets to promote the e-Report to a global audience in multiple languages across different digital communication platforms. •Serve as a focal point on policy and reporting and prepare inputs for strategic communications in the context of regular reporting to governmental bodies. •Keep abreast of the latest trends in communications and maintain expertise in relevant and emerging technologies. •Maintain confidentiality, integrity, and discreet handling of sensitive information in compliance with the UN data privacy, security requirements, and standards. •Monitor, analyse and report on communications approaches, activities and strategies to assess their performance and effectiveness. •Collect and analyse data to identify trends or patterns and provide insights through graphs, charts, tables, and reports using data visualisation methods to enable data-driven planning, decision-making, presentation, and reporting.

Competencies

PROFESSIONALISM: Shows pride in work and in 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 audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed. TECHNOLOGICAL AWARENESS: Keeps abreast of available technology; understands applicability and limitation of technology to the work of the office; actively seeks to apply technology to appropriate tasks; shows willingness to learn new technology.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in communications, international relations, journalism, digital marketing or a related field. A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Job – Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in communications, international relations, journalism, digital marketing, or a related area is required. Demonstrated ability to write and edit content for digital platforms (websites, social media) for an international organization comparable to the United Nations is required. Demonstrated knowledge of content management systems and backend operations to manage complex, multilingual websites is required. Demonstrated knowledge in liaising with field offices to compile inputs for reporting is desirable. Demonstrated skills in collecting, processing and analysing large volumes of structured and unstructured data is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this job opening, English is required. The table below shows the minimum required level for each skill in these languages, according to the UN Language Framework (please consult https://languages.un.org for details).

Required Languages

LanguageReadingWritingListeningSpeakingEnglishUN Level IIUN Level IIUN Level IIUN Level II

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 till 31 August 2026. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment. Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures. The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position. Internal Applicants: When completing the form, ensure ALL fields, ALL professional experience and contact information are completed and up to date. This information is the basis for the hiring manager to assess your eligibility and suitability for the position and to contact you. Individual contractors and consultants (Non-Staff Personnel) who have worked within the UN Secretariat in the last six months, irrespective of the administering entity, are ineligible to apply for professional and higher temporary or fixed-term positions and their applications will not be considered. At the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. The United Nations is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application. All applicants are strongly encouraged to apply on-line as soon as possible after the job opening has been posted and well before the deadline stated in the job opening. Online applications will be acknowledged where an email address has been provided. If you do not receive an email acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. In such cases, please resubmit the application, if necessary. If the problem persists, please seek technical assistance through the Inspira “Need Help?” link. NOTE: 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. 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. All external candidates recruited in accordance with section ‎2.2 (a) of ST/AI/2025/3 for a fixed term appointment without limitation and all external candidates recruited in accordance with section 2.2. (c) of ST/AI/2025/3 for a fixed term appointment limited to the entity are subject to an initial probationary period of one year under a fixed-term appointment. 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.