Eligibility criteria
Minimum age: 25 years old. Nationals of the country of assignment are not eligible, except the assignments in Headquarters duty stations.
Description of task
Experiment portfolio design
- Works with UNDP and partners in mapping the context and nature of development challenges, with a particular focus on understanding systemic issues beyond traditional silos and classifications and identifying drivers of change, and levers for intervention
- Mapping systems and assets, identifying levers and logic for intervention, building hypotheses of change that are a fit to the system level challenges identified
- Works with colleagues from UNDP programs and government counterparts to identify logic against which to asses fit and coherence of the individual portfolios with the frontier challenges on which they are meant to generate learning.
- Identifies and articulates policy options.Together with UNDP and development partners, coordinate portfolios of experiments to target multiple domains of complex problems.
Management of tests and experiments for sustainable development challenges
- Collaborate with UNDP colleagues and stakeholders on the design of experiments across to validate the hypotheses and test the effectiveness of identified prototypes, including (but not limit to) defining variables, formulating hypotheses, and coordinating experimental protocols
- Develop a framework to capture the learning from the experiments in such a way that it favours critical reflection and rapid adaptation over static reporting
- Provide technical guidance for experiment design, roll-out and validation based on the experiment conditions, resources available, and requirements
- Proactively manage risks within experiments including those related to ethics and privacy
- Examine the results from the testing of prototypes and translate them into proposals informing programmatic decisions on next steps and implications for improvement, spin offs and scaling-up, where warrented.
Working out Loud
- Proactively use blog and social media to share findings from the experiments and portfolio implementation
- Help UNDP and partners disseminate insights from Accelerator lab experiments via social media platforms as a way to regularly reflect and engage with external audiences.
- Liaise with UNDP’s global Accelerator Lab network and share learnings and insights from the country-specific experience
- Jointly with the CO, support lab partners to develop an emerging pipeline of new initiatives, support other activities related to the design and operation of the Lab
- Design and deliver engaging and meaningful methods for reflection on learning from experiments
- Proactively use blog posts and social media to share insights, attract partners and help position Accelerator Lab at the forefront of the exploration of new trends.
- Lead other activities related to the design and operations of the Accelerator Lab
Organizational learning and interface with the core business of UNDP
- Help embed a portfolio logic in clients’ work including the existing UNDP Country Programme (as determined and agreed with the senior management)
- Working with clients to encourage reflection and capturing of insights from individual experiments, as they related to the overall portfolio logic
- Work together with your Accelerator Lab colleagues and experts to codify and advance the Accelerator Lab practice and portfolio design in particular.
- Provide technical consultation and training for national partners and the CO through various phases including asset mapping, developing a strategic portfolio logic, experiment design, prototype testing, and evaluation;
- Design and deliver engaging and meaningful methods for reflection on learning from experiments
- Lead other activities related to the design and operations of the Accelerator Lab
Qualifications/Requirements
Required degree level: Bachelor degree or equivalent
Education - Additional Comments:
Master’s degree in Social Science, International Development, Environmental Science, Transition or Complexity Science, Engineering, Design (e.g. industrial or service design, architecture, urban planning), Psychology or a related area and minimum of 3 years of professional experience in development programming or policy; social innovation; partnership building; engagement (public and private sector) and/or resource mobilization
OR
Bachelor’s degree in Social Science, International Development, Environment Science, Engineering, Design (e.g. industrial or service design, architecture, urban planning), Psychology or related area and minimum of 4 years of professional experience in development programming or policy; social innovation; partnership building; engagement (public and private sector) and/or resource mobilization
Required experience: 48 Months
Experience remark:
- Demonstrated ability to design experiments, validate hypotheses and test prototypes;
- Demonstrated successful experience in bringing about organizational change
- Professional experience in development programming or specific policy areas and social innovation.
Experience in following areas is desirable but not necessary:
- Proven professional knowledge and experience in social innovation approaches such as Systems Thinking, Behavioral Insights, Qualitative and Quantitative User Research, Co-creation, Prototyping, Lean Startup, Design Thinking, Data Empowerment, and Collective Intelligence
- Demonstrated experience in applying experimental and portfolio logics to a specific policy area (or social issue)
- Demonstrated ability to work with clients to help surface unarticulated needs
- Demonstrated ability in running co-design sessions and capacity-building in experimental design, lean iteration and impact evaluation.
Language skills:
- English(Mandatory), Level - Fluent
Area of expertise: Development programme management, Community participation and development, Resource mobilization, partnership and donor coordination
Driving license: No
Competencies values:
Accountability, Adaptability and Flexibility, Building Trust, Client Orientation, Commitment and Motivation, Commitment to Continuous Learning, Communication, Creativity, Empowering Others, Ethics and Values, Integrity, Judgement and Decision-making, Knowledge Sharing, Leadership, Managing Performance, Planning and Organizing, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity, Self-Management, Technological Awareness, Vision, Working in Teams