Communications Specialist

United Nations Volunteers (UNV) contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. UNV works with partners to integrate qualified, highly motivated and well-supported UN Volunteers into development programming and promote the value and global recognition of volunteerism. UNV is active in around 170 countries every year. With field presences in over 60 countries, UNV is represented worldwide. UNV is administered by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

• The External Relations and Communications Section (ERCS) builds and nurtures corporate donor relations, strategically leads the donor resource mobilization platform and conducts coherent communications efforts to highlight the value of volunteerism for peace and development and the contributions of UNV and UN Volunteers. ERCS also leads and manages UNV’s corporate strategic partnership relations and alliances with Member States, intergovernmental, non-governmental organizations, financial institutions, civil society, academia, media, and the private sector to promote UNV’s mandate and initiatives, raise awareness and stimulate action to advance UNV’s global agenda and resource mobilization.
• The Communications Section focuses on clear and effective messaging to increase the visibility and impact of UNV. It raises awareness on the work of UN Volunteers and of volunteerism and its contribution to development among UNV stakeholders, encourages support of volunteerism for development, including observation of IVD, and produces and promotes materials (social media content, graphics, videos, website, annual report, etc.) to highlight UNV’s work, its contribution to partners’ objectives and support for volunteerism for development.

Duties and Responsibilities

UNV reaches out to diverse audiences through its websites, along with articles in publications, reports and statements/ speeches. Content is needed with a keen eye for consistency and fact checking, along with management of approval processes and editing. The Communications Specialist will also be required to steer the strategic direction of all content and guide all layers of the organization in implementing plain and jargon free content that makes an impact. Content also includes the overall management of the corporate website unv.org and a revamp of UNV’s digital presence. The responsibilities of the Communications Specialist include:

Lead editorial strategy, coordination and planning:

• Keeps UNV’s content and editorial strategy and guidelines up to date, incorporating forward thinking on training and continued improvement of content creation and relevant thematic areas;
• Create messaging and content for the corporate brand and thematic areas to promote UNV’s work and engagement with all UNV’s audiences;
• Lead the development of and support other UNV teams and Regional Offices creation of editorial planning, strategies and content for the website and communications plans for other outreach (such as high-level missions);
• Coordinate editorial plans for all UNV content, guided by UNV priorities;
• Coordinate work of the global communications team and focal points within all Sections and Regional Offices to produce diverse types of online content, along with external articles, reporting and other communications products;
• Lead on original content about the impact of UNV and UN Volunteers and to publicize and promote the work with other UN partners and Member States;
• Edit and approve content from the regions and the field in line with the mandate of UNV;
• Develop innovative written content for corporate communications.

Website coordination 

• Handle the content production and of all communications content, ensuring high editorial quality and accuracy of relevant data;
• Manage the strategic development of UNV online presence, including content development, expansion and continual assessment of the innovative quality and relevance of web-based information services, including overseeing geographically mixed visuals/video and innovation in online content;
• Implement online information design plans (i.e. new content development, display, classification and navigation), overseeing the production of graphic and interactive components for optimal presentation;
• Ensure consistency of web publishing plans, and review and clear all online content and editing, guided by UNV priorities, for posting on websites and social media, as well as Regional Offices/Field Units’ sites;
• Develop and implement a website revamp project, starting with a scoping exercise (with procurement and management of any external service providers), and development of a website strategy;
• Oversee the maintenance of the UNV.org web site ensuring its updates and technical functionality (with management of a technical resource);
• Oversee regular statistical analysis of web usage and the impact of content on volunteer mobilization, along with analytics of performance for all online content for the website. (with management of technical resource);
• Adapt editorial and outreach priorities according to the data and coordinate the digital evidence for impact of communications on mobilization. Prepare yearly plans for capacity, resources and technical requirements.

Perform/Support other functions:

• Contribute to the promotion of special events, executive missions and global campaigns;
• Contribute to the development of and implement innovative communications marketing and outreach initiatives;
• Guidance on how to create and edit social media content as needed, bringing to the content the rules and rigor of the editorial guidelines;
• Work with the ERCS team as well as other UNV teams to ensure a coordinated approach to content;
• Be versed in photo curation and ability to back-stop photo and visual selection and use (for website, power point, etc.) as needed;
• Manage the production of user friendly and searchable corporate publications (overviews, brochures, annual report, etc.);
• Participate in the design of and maintain a yearly corporate publications calendar and workplan for all published products;
• Liaise with relevant organizational units on the gathering of reporting content for the UNV Annual Report, Executive Board report and other required reporting.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in journalism, international relations or any field related to UN work and communications is required.
• A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas stated above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years (with master’s degree) or 7 years (with bachelor’s degree) of professional work experience at the national or international levels in communications, public relations, web management and/or and journalistic, writing in English at publishing level.

Required   skills 

• Experience in journalistic writing on development within a UN agency
• Experience in website management, preferably with Drupal
• Experience in writing reports for international organizations
• Strong project management experience in communications with online publications, campaigns and projects.

Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section

• Proven records of writing in another UN language is an asset.
• Research experience is desired.
• Experience reporting on and communicating about global events is desired.

Required Language(s)

• Fluency in  English is required.
• Working knowledge of another UN language is desired.

Source: https://estm.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1/requisitions/job/21247