Chief Economist and Director

VN Category (INT / EXT / EOI):

External

23-04-2025

Grade 11

Job Category:

Professional

Fixed-term

CHF201,030.00

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 WTO seeks to attract and retain staff members offering the highest standards of competence, efficiency and integrity and to build an organization that is representative of the Members and People it serves. As an equal opportunity and inclusive employer, the WTO gives full regard to competence and welcome applications from qualified candidates irrespective of age, disability status, gender, nationality, race, religion, sexual orientation, social origin or any other characteristic. Applications from non-represented Members (link) are particularly encouraged for all positions.

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The WTO Secretariat is seeking to fill the position of Chief Economist and Director, Economic Research and Statistics Division. This is a fixed-term contract funded through the regular budget, with an initial duration of two years and the possibility of extension.

Context

The Economic Research and Statistics Division (ERSD) is central to the WTO Secretariat’s vision to be a knowledge hub on trade-related issues. Its overarching goal is to support evidence-based trade policymaking by providing high-quality data, analysis, and research.

ERSD’s work is organized into four workstreams: data, analysis, research, and policy.

• Data Workstream: Involves the production and dissemination of trade-related data. Key outputs include trade policy statistics (e.g., applied and bound tariffs) and international trade statistics (e.g., trade in goods and services).
• Analysis Workstream: Focuses on analysing current trade trends, with the Global Trade Outlook and Statistics report as its flagship publication.
• Research Workstream: Explores trade and trade policy in greater depth, often leveraging frontier research methods. The World Trade Report serves as its flagship publication.
• Policy Workstream: Tackles cross-cutting issues, including G7 and G20 engagement, coherence with the IMF and World Bank, digital trade and frontier technologies, and trade finance. It also supports WTO bodies on e-commerce, MSMEs, and trade, debt, and finance.

The division consists of approximately 40 staff members across statistics, economic research, and policy groups.

General Functions

The Chief Economist and Director, Economic Research and Statistics Division, fulfils three main roles:

Director: Leading the Division’s work by setting objectives, coordinating tasks, and monitoring performance to achieve its goals. Chief Economist: Acting as the Secretariat’s authority on economics, providing expertise to the Director-General, Senior Management, and WTO Members. Public Face of Economics: Representing the Secretariat in economics-related matters, presenting flagship reports, engaging with partners, liaising with the media, and speaking at conferences and events.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

• A PhD in economics or a relevant field, with expertise in international trade.

Knowledge and Skills:

Technical Knowledge and Skills

• Advanced expertise in economics, with a focus on international trade and trade policy, supported by a strong record of publications.
• A solid understanding of the WTO system, its rules, and its role in global trade policymaking.
• Proven ability to produce high-quality statistical analysis and economic research to address policy challenges.
• Strong communication and presentation skills, with the capacity to convey complex ideas effectively to diverse audiences, including policymakers, media, and academia.
• Experience in collaborative, cross-disciplinary, or cross-institutional initiatives.
• Experience in innovating and thinking out of the box.

Behavioural Skills

• Strong leadership potential, with the ability to inspire, empower, and motivate teams in a multicultural environment.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust and effective partnerships across diverse groups.
• High political awareness, intellectual flexibility, and openness to diverse perspectives, enabling effective navigation of complex international environments.
• A creative and solutions-oriented mindset, with the capacity to innovate and adapt to emerging challenges.
• Commitment to the highest ethical standards, with the ability to model and promote integrity and accountability.

Organisational Competencies:

• Communication for Results

• Effective Collaboration

• Cultivating Progressive Growth

• Professional Accountability

• Relevant Digital Proficiency

• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Managerial Competencies:

• Talent Centered Leadership

• Coordinated Cross Functional Leadership

• Self Aware Leadership

• Strategic Leadership

Work Experience:

• At least 15 years of experience in international trade, economics, or related fields, gained in academia, government, international organizations, or the private sector.
• Proven ability to lead economic research, statistical analysis, and policy-oriented studies.
• Leadership experience managing teams, projects, or initiatives in diverse, multicultural settings.
• Experience engaging with stakeholders at high-level international events or policy dialogues.

Languages:

• Proficiency (speaking and writing) in English is required.
• Adequate skills in at least one other working language of the WTO (French, Spanish) would be an advantage.

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.

The WTO is a non-smoking environment.