Background

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development system and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field- based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan.  Within the GPN, the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP's Strategic Plan and provides cutting edge policy advisory to Government and other partners, including on innovation.

In line with the priorities expressed in the Strategic Plan, embracing innovative practices is a foundation for the next generation UNDP. Innovation refers both to UNDP’s capacity to renew its own programmatic approach to respond to fast changes in the external environment and to UNDP being able to bring transformational capability to government counterparts. The Strategic Innovation Unit (SIU) leads the process of embedding innovation in UNDP’s work, working closely with the GPN, Regional Bureaus, Country Offices and other internal and external stakeholders.

An important role of the unit is generating intelligence from the innovation work that UNDP is undertaking across the globe to identify emerging trends, anticipate and shape demand from government counterparts, inform programming and ensure overall coherence of the innovation portfolio

Duties and Responsibilities

SCOPE OF WORK, RESPONSIBILITIES AND DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED ANALYTICAL WORK

The Innovation and Design Specialist will perform the following functions:

Strategic innovation policy and program support to Country Offices (COs), other business units and clients that is focused on:

  • Horizon scanning of the emerging trends with potential implications for development and around the specific issues that COs are exploring with or have a need for;
  • Explore new methods and identify partners who are testing new ways of engaging with complex policy problems and dealing with uncertainty;
  • Distilling emerging signals into new learning via R&D sessions, workshops, trainings, webinars, interviews & discussions with the intention to enable acceleration of learning across the network of partners and Cos;
  • Translating new learning into potential new policy advisory and/or new program development with and for COs, thinking through methods to rapidly understand what works and what doesn’t;
  • Help meet innovation related requests for support from Country Offices.

 

Design and visualization of various products and processes that the team is involved in either directly or in supporting clients (Country Offices, partners, etc):

  • Develop compelling visual products (e.g. diagrams, system maps, data visualizations, animations) that can help senior management make sense of emerging trends from innovation work;
  • Help develop a distinctive visual identity for the innovation unit artifacts: templates, training materials, visualizations, interactive sessions, timelines, etc;
  • Generate new (digital, visual, analogue) forms in which to represent SIU’s work both internally and externally.

 

Generating intelligence from the experiences in the field:

  • Identify and summarise emerging patterns from COs work, looking for ways to foster connections and ensure greater coherence of the innovation portfolio over time;
  • Generate intelligence that can help guide the work of senior management and embed innovation work in the broader GPN agenda;
  • Identify opportunities for translating experiences from one CO to others and explore, and identify means of delivering learning at speed and scale; 
  • Workshop design and facilitation, ensuring that intelligence informs decision making across different levels of the organization;
  • Work out loud in an effort to share learnings to the broader strategic innovation community, create potential engagement opportunities.

Deliverables:

The international consultant will be engaged for 228 days over a period of 12 months (with possibility for extension as required). 

Deliverables

Target Due Date

Expected Number of days

Providing technical support to COs, regional bureaus and other business units

Monthly

No more than 9 days a month

Horizon scanning and identification of partners, organization of learning sessions to share the findings

Monthly

No more than 4 days a month

Design and production of templates, data visualizations, intelligence reports, visual identity

Monthly

No more than 2 day per month

Monthly summaries of innovation community activities – identification of patterns and intelligence reports for senior management

Monthly

No more than 2 days a month

Production of blogs, podcasts, social media content

Monthly

No more than 2 days a month

Information on Working Arrangements

  • Estimated level of effort including travel: approximately 19 working days per month over 12 months;
  • The consultant will report to, and be directly supervised by the head of the SIU
  • The Consultant will be given access to relevant information necessary for execution of the tasks under this assignment;
  • The Consultant will be responsible for providing her/his own laptop, and mobile phone and service plan.  UNDP Istanbul will provide a working station, internet, phone, scanner/printer, etc.;
  • The consultant shall submit to the Supervisor a monthly progress report on the status of the implementation of tasks;
  • Given the global consultations to be undertaken during this assignment, the consultant is expected to be reasonably flexible with his/her availability for such consultations taking into consideration different time zones;
  • Payments will be made monthly upon submission of a detailed time sheet (including deliverables and their timely execution) and certification of payment form, and acceptance and confirmation by the supervisor on days worked (with “a day” calculated as 8 hours of work) and outputs delivered.

 

Travel

  • International travel will be required (once travel restrictions are relaxed) though it will be approved on the needs basis and upon agreement with and approval from the head of the Strategic Innovation Unit. Expected mission travel would be discussed upon commencement of assignment and updated quarterly;
  • Any necessary mission travel must be approved in writing and advance by the supervisor;   
  • BSAFE course must be successfully completed prior to commencement of travel;
  • Consultants are responsible for obtaining any visas needed in connection with travel with the necessary support from UNDP;
  • Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director;
  • Consultants are required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under https://dss.un.org/dssweb/;
  • The consultant will be responsible for making his/her own mission travel arrangements in line with UNDP travel policies;
  • All related travel expenses will be reimbursed as per UNDP rules and regulations upon submission of an F-10 claim form and supporting documents. Costs for mission travel (including air tickets, living allowances) should not be included in the financial proposal.

 

Competencies

Corporate:

  • Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
  • Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
  • Treats all people fairly without favouritism.

Technical:

  • Ability to work on different levels, from zooming out for strategic view to zooming in for context and emerging signals from the ground. 
  • Ability to translate complex, abstract ideas and concepts into practical exercises and accessible tools for learning and decision making
  • Ability to bring bridges and nurture networks of relationships- developing shared understanding, creating linkages between nonobvious partners, generating appreciation and understanding of the value of the new
  • Service oriented attitude
  • Empathy – being able to put oneself in shoes of decision makers and colleagues undergoing process of change, unlearning or learning a new way of doing work 
  • Curiosity- continued, persistent curiosity in order to identify new trends, make sense of emerging patterns
  • Persistence- persevering in face of barriers to change, cultural, organizational and other conditions that go counter to emerging trends

 

Functional:

Communications

  • Able to communicate effectively in writing to a varied and broad audience in a simple and concise manner.
  • Ability to plan and deliver communication initiatives that make an impact, persuades intended audiences, shapes perceptions of the UNDP and creates positive demand for UNDP's value propositions

 

Professionalism

  • Capable of working in a high- pressure environment with sharp and frequent deadlines, managing many tasks simultaneously;
  • Excellent analytical and organizational skills;
  • Exercises the highest level of responsibility and be able to handle confidential and politically sensitive issues in a responsible and mature manner.

Teamwork

  • Works well in a team;
  • Projects a positive image and is ready to take on a wide range of tasks;
  • Focuses on results for the client;
  • Welcomes constructive feedback
Required Skills and Experience

Academic qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in industrial, graphic or service design, architecture or urban planning, environmental science, transition or complexity science, engineering, communications of related fields (Master’s level university degree will be an asset) required

Experience:

  • A mnimum 5 years of experience in international development and/or public sector design and innovation work required;
  • Professional knowledge and experience in social and public innovation approaches such as design thinking/human centered design, co-creation, systems thinking, ethnography, future thinking and foresight, and data analysis required;
  • Experience in design and visualization (Please provide the link or samples of one or two relevant recent samples)  required;
  • Experience in providing innovation support to clients in public and private sector; required.

Language:

  • Fluency in written and spoken English is required;

Application Procedure

The application package containing the following (to be uploaded as one file):

  • A cover letter with a brief description of why the Offer considers her/himself the most suitable for the assignment;
  • Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects and specifying the relevant assignment period (from/to), as well as the email and telephone contacts of at least three (3) professional references;
  • Samples or links of one or two relevant recent experience of design and visualization.

Note: The abov documents need to be scanned in one file and uploaded to the online application as one document.

Shortlisted candidates (ONLY) will be requested to submit a Financial Proposal.

  • During the current COVID-19 situation, the consultant is expected to telecommute (from the country of residence at the moment of application) until the situation allows for the deployment in Istanbul Offices. As such, shortlisted candidates will be asked to submit two different all-inclusive professional daily fees: home-based and office-based (based on a 7-hour working day - lunch time is not included - and estimated 21.75 days per month).
  • The financial proposal must be all-inclusive and take into account various expenses that will be incurred during the contract, including: the daily professional fee; (excluding mission travel); living allowances at the duty station; communications, utilities and consumables; life, health and any other insurance; risks and inconveniences related to work under hardship and hazardous conditions (e.g., personal security needs, etc.), when applicable; and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services under the contract.
  • In the case of unforeseeable travel requested by UNDP, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between UNDP and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed. In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.
  • If the Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNDP under a Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNDP.

 

The Financial Proposal is to be emailed as per the instruction in the separate email that will be sent to shortlisted candidates.

 

Evaluation process

Applicants are reviewed based on Required Skills and Experience stated above and based on the technical evaluation criteria outlined below.  Applicants will be evaluated based on cumulative scoring.  When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

  • Being responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
  • Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation where technical criteria weighs 70% and Financial criteria/ Proposal weighs 30%.

Technical evaluation - Total 70% (70 points):

  • Criteria 1: Relevance of experience (minimum 5 years) in international development and/or public sector design and innovation work; Maximum Points: 20
  • Criteria 2: Relevance of professional knowledge and experience in social and public innovation approaches such as design thinking/human centered design, co-creation, systems thinking, ethnography, future thinking and foresight, and data analysis; Maximum Points: 10
  • Criteria 3: Relevance of experience in design and visualization (Please provide the link or samples scan copy of one or two relevant recent samples); Maximum Points: 10;
  • Criteria 4: Relevance of experience in providing innovation support to clients in public and private sector; Maximum Points: 10
  • Criteria 5: Interview; Maximum Points 20.

The maximum points that can be achieved in the desk review is 50 points.

Only top 4 applicants obtaining a minimum of 35 points (70% of points obtainable in the desk review: Criterion 1-4) will be considered for an interview (Criterion 5).


Candidates obtaining less than 14 points during the interview (70 % of points obtainable during the interview) will be directly disqualified.

Only those candidates who obtain a total technical score of 49 points and above on the technical evaluation will be considered for financial evaluation and will be asked to submit a financial proposal.

 

Financial evaluation - Total 30% (30 points)

The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:

p = y (µ/z), where

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

 

Contract Award

 

Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the combined score of Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered technically qualified and will be offered to enter into contract with UNDP.

 

Both home-based and office-based all-inclusive professional daily fees will be considered during the financial assessment and will have an equal impact on the evaluation’s result. The most competitive financial proposal for each of the categories (home-based and office-based) will be awarded a total of 15 points.

 

 

Payment modality

  • Payment to the Individual Contractor will be made based on the actual number of days worked, deliverables accepted and upon certification of satisfactory completion by the manager. Payments to the consultant will be based on the all-inclusive home-based professional daily fee while telecommuting. Effective from the first day of deployment in Istanbul offices, payments to the consultant will be based on the all-inclusive office-based professional daily fee. Should the deployment not be carried out, the all-inclusive home-based professional daily fee will be considered during the entire assignment.
  • The work week will be based on 35 hours, i.e. on a 7 hour working day, with core hours being between 9h00 and 18h00 daily.
  • The consultant will be employed for 228 days


This vacancy is archived.

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