Back Chief Scientist

Organizational Setting

FAO has established the Core leadership composed by Three Deputy Directors-General (DDGs), Director of Cabinet, Chief Economist and Chief Scientist with an Organigramme and a modular management structure that avoid silos and promote working jointly at all managerial levels in a cross-sectoral and global manner for a more efficient and effective Organization.

The Organizational structure is designed to create cooperation, both within FAO and by building up its comparative advantages to work with other organizations outside of FAO. Heads of Units (Offices, Centres and Divisions) are accountable, and each Head reports directly to either a Deputy Director-General (DDG), the Director of Cabinet, the Chief Economist or the Chief Scientist. 

The core leadership members’ function as a unified leadership team working jointly in a cross-sectoral and global manner, supporting the Director-General in all areas of the Organization’s mandate. Each DDG and Chief is accountable for overseeing specific units (A reporting). In addition, each has defined alternate oversight responsibility for a number of units for which they are not the lead, but provide support and replace when needed the primary person of the leadership team responsible, including when the primary person is out-of-office (B reporting). The Director-General is establishing the specific reporting line of each Head of Unit to a DDG, Chief Economist or Chief Scientist taking into consideration the background, skills and knowledge of the individuals in the leadership team and after internal consultations. In addition to these specific responsibilities within the proposed Organizational structure, each member of the leadership team has responsibility for specific transversal areas that require overall corporate leadership.

Reporting Lines

The Chief Scientist reports to the Director-General.

Summary of Duties and Functions

Accelerating and scaling up innovation is fundamental for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and leveraging emerging opportunities for reaching a world free from hunger, poverty and malnutrition. It is an opportune time for FAO to harness and increase its knowledge and expertise, building on its comparative advantage, promoting a more holistic and coordinated approach to address the complex and interconnected challenges facing agriculture and food systems. 

In the framework of FAO’s mandate, Strategic Framework, Programme of Work, agreed Organizational results and technical, operational and administrative corporate procedures and policies, the Chief Scientist is an aggregator with convening capacity to improve delivery of results and strengthen FAO’s innovative spirit throughout the Organization and in its interaction with others. 

The Chief Scientist works under the guidance of, and reports to, the Director-General of FAO. In particular, the Chief Scientist will:

• Consolidate and strengthen FAO’s innovative ethos, including innovation of mindset, cooperation models and innovation of application by digitalization;
• Ensure that FAO apply modern science and technology and adopts innovative approaches in management of resources, projects and programmes;
• Promote innovative approaches in order to scale up the work on the ground and in cooperation with public, private, academia and civil society;
• Leverage science, innovation, technology and new approaches across the Organization and in support of countries for better results and strengthening partnerships;
• Coordinate intelligence gathering and medium- to long-term prioritization processes for identifying new programmes and cooperation models;
• Lead task forces on nexus approaches in order to look at sustainability issues in an integrated and innovative manner;
• Employ systems thinking, identify trade-offs and synergies for innovative policy assistance and advice to Members;
• Lead the development of an evidence-based and corporate perspective on emerging innovation that includes evaluation of the impact of context-specific innovation;
• Lead the formulation and establishment of an internal mechanism to foster, promote and incentivize innovations to strengthen FAO's innovative ethos including innovation of mindset, developing champions and promoters of innovation;
• Lead and oversee the work of the Office for Innovation and ensure the achievement of the desired results;
• Update as required and lead delivery of results expected from the FAO Science and Innovation Policy;
• Develop a policy and capacities to enhance assistance to Members with regard to their research and development (R&D) strategies and priority actions;
• Nurture partnerships with science and innovation and R&D actors and networks such as the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) network and centres, National Agricultural Research Systems ( NARS), universities, and public and private research centres;
• Lead and manage the Office by supervising its staff making efficient and effective internal organizational arrangements;
• Oversee and deal with the management of risk in all relevant units, ensuring that any significant control weaknesses be escalated;
• Advocate FAO’s policy position with respect to the areas under his/her mandate and communicate its messages;
• Acts as B oversight supervisor amongst the leadership team for units or offices or centres under designated authority.

  CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

  Minimum Requirements

  • Advance university degree (PhD as reference) in a field related to the work of the Organization;
  • At least fifteen years of relevant experience in a field related to the work of FAO and in particular food security, agriculture, rural development and agricultural innovation;
  • Demonstrated professional competence and management/strategic leadership of a high level;
  • Working knowledge of English (level C) and intermediate knowledge (intermediate proficiency – level B) of another FAO official language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish);
  • Experience with multilateral negotiations and advice to governments;
  • Good resource mobilization and partnership development skills;
  • Ability to lead and work effectively with a diverse team of people of different national and cultural backgrounds in an international setting.