Chief, Digital Trade and Frontier Technologies Unit

VN Category (INT / EXT / EOI):

External

05-08-2024

Grade 10

Job Category:

Professional

Fixed-term

CHF169,982.00

This is an external vacancy notice open to external candidates and WTO staff. It is posted on the WTO internal as well as external career site. Eligible WTO staff on short-term, fixed-term or regular contracts and interns must apply through the Workday internal career site.

This is a Fixed-term contract funded through the regular budget. The duration will be two years with the possibility of extension, unless specified in the vacancy notice.

The recruitment policy of the WTO is to seek to attract and retain staff members offering the highest standards of competence, efficiency and integrity. As an Equal Opportunities Employer, the WTO gives full regard to merit and diversity.

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CONTEXT

The WTO is dedicated to supporting its Members in leveraging trade to enhance living standards, create jobs, and improve quality of life. This commitment extends to digitally traded goods and services, as well as trade aspects of intellectual property rights and frontier technologies.

The digital revolution, marked by the rise, among others, of AI, blockchain, big data, and the Internet of Things, is transforming the landscape of trade. Digitalization and frontier technologies offer numerous new opportunities for trading goods and services and are set to shape the future of the global economy and international trade. These technologies can enhance access to global markets and create flexible work opportunities, particularly benefiting micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. However, while digitalization and frontier technologies can be powerful tools of inclusion, they can also bring new challenges, especially for countries seeking to develop their digital economies. The technological revolution we are witnessing has the potential not only to impact trade flows but also to fundamentally transform the way countries engage in trade.

In keeping with these developments, the WTO is looking for a dynamic and visionary leader to become the Chief of the newly created Digital Trade and Frontier Technologies Unit. Reporting to the Director of the Economic Research and Statistics Division, the incumbent will lead, co-ordinate, and oversee the Secretariat’s cross-divisional work on digital aspects of trade in goods and services, intellectual property rights and new technologies. He or she will play a pivotal role in shaping the vision for the WTO Secretariat and its service to Members in a global economy dominated by frontier technologies.

The incumbent will be responsible for developing the strategy for the new unit and implementing it with the goal of establishing a centre of expertise on digital trade issues and frontier technologies. In this capacity, the incumbent will coordinate with relevant divisions to provide assistance to WTO Councils, Committees, and bodies, including in relation to e-commerce issues. Additionally, the incumbent will oversee and coordinate technical assistance projects, including those conducted in collaboration with other international organizations, aimed at building the capacity of Member States in digital aspects of international trade with a view to identifying gaps and addressing digital divide.

GENERAL FUNCTIONS

1. Provide intellectual, strategic and operational leadership for the Digital Trade and Frontier Technologies Unit, as well as WTO’s activities involving digital trade and newly emerging technologies, such as AI, big data, or quantum computing.

2. Formulate strategic objectives for the Unit and implement them by securing and managing resources, ensuring the Unit has the necessary expertise to achieve its goals.

3. Offer insights and provide advice on the impact of frontier technologies on the global economy, international trade, and the WTO’s activities; devise strategies to leverage opportunities and mitigate challenges associated with these technologies.

4. Provide thought leadership and guidance for research, reports and other publications on the interplay of trade, digital economy and frontier technologies and oversee research projects undertaken by the Unit in these areas.

5. Design, coordinate and oversee internal training programmes for WTO staff on digital trade and frontier technologies and their impact on various aspects of international trade and global economy more generally.

6. Ensure coordination, support and liaison with WTO Divisions and units, including the Office of the Director-General, with respect to digital aspects of trade in goods and services, intellectual property rights and technology, including those related to frontier technologies.

7. Co-ordinate the WTO Secretariat’s activities supporting Members, in particular to WTO’s Councils, Committees and other bodies, in the area of digital trade, including e-commerce, and frontier technologies, leveraging these technologies to add value for the WTO Members.  

8. Oversee and co-ordinate the design and implementation of technical assistance activities aimed at enhancing WTO Members’ capacity related to digital trade and trade aspects of frontier technologies, with particular emphasis on their development dimension.

9. Manage strategic partnerships with International Organizations, NGOs, and the private sector in the areas of digital economy and frontier technologies including AI, quantum computing, big data and others.

10. Represent the WTO in international initiatives relating to digitalization and frontier technologies and contribute WTO’s vision to discussions shaping national and international regulatory approaches.

11. Identify, create and implement opportunities for resource mobilization dedicated to technical assistance for WTO Members in the area of digital trade and trade-related aspects of frontier technologies.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

Advanced university degree in Digital Business, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain Technology, International Trade, Economics, Data Science, or another field relevant to the role is required.

Knowledge and skills:

Technical Knowledge and Skills:

• In-depth up-to-date knowledge of technical and policy aspects of frontier digital technologies, including AI, blockchain, quantum computing, big data etc.

• Capability to shape the vision of multinational/international organizations in the wake of digitalization and newly emerging technologies, demonstrated by experience.

• Capability to develop and implement comprehensive strategies addressing opportunities and challenges presented by digitalization, AI, blockchain, big data, etc., demonstrated by experience.

• Capability to engage with policy makers and stakeholders at national and international level in the areas of digital economy and frontier technologies, demonstrated by experience.

• Resource mobilization and management skills, demonstrated by experience in international or intergovernmental setting.

• Good familiarity with the international trading system and the institutional, legal, policy, and development context of the work of the WTO.

Behavioural Skills:

• A forward-looking mindset with a willingness and desire to think outside the box and a pro-active rather than reactive attitude.

• Well-developed diplomatic skills and high level of political awareness and sensitivity, particularly regarding issues relating to digital trade, data, and frontier technologies, as well as negotiations between and among countries.

• Strong partnership-building skills, including establishing and cultivating strategic relationships with relevant outside stakeholders.

• Strong ability to manage relationships externally and internally and work across different cultures and sectors.

• Excellent management, organizational and leadership skills with the ability to guide and motivate a diverse international team of experts to timely deliver high quality results.

Work experience

Minimum ten years of progressively responsible experience in private or public sector involving governance of frontier technologies and their impact on the global economy.

Language

Excellent knowledge of English is required. Knowledge of any other WTO working language (French or Spanish) will be an asset.

Additional Information:
 
Only applications from nationals of WTO Members will be accepted. 

The recruitment process will be undertaken as per Administrative Memorandum No. 976 (OFFICE(16)/15) on Staff Promotions and external recruitment through Vacancy Notices.

The initial fixed-term contract for positions up to grade 10 shall normally be two years, which shall be probationary, as per Administrative Memorandum No. 997 (OFFICE(23)/4) on Probation Policy. For Director positions, the Policy on evaluation of directors apply as per Administrative Memorandum No. 978 (OFFICE(17)/29).

The WTO may use various communication technologies such as video or teleconference for the assessment and evaluation of candidates. The recruitment process may also involve the use of various forms of testing, assessment centres, interviews and reference checks. 

Applicants may be required to sit a written examination. 

Applicants will be contacted directly if selected for an interview. 

Candidates not selected whose performance in the selection process nevertheless shows them to be suitable for a similar position may be kept on a roster for up to 24 months, and may subsequently be called upon as and when the need arises for additional resources.

All applicants are encouraged to apply online as soon as possible after the vacancy has been posted and well before the closing date – Geneva (Switzerland) time – stated in the vacancy announcement. 

PLEASE NOTE THAT APPLICATIONS RECEIVED AFTER THE CLOSING DATE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. 

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