Strategic Communications Advisor

Job Purpose and Organizational Context 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’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels, forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, 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. The Crisis Bureau (CB) guides UNDP’s corporate crisis-and fragility-related strategies and vision under the auspices of UNDP’s Strategic Plan. As part of the Global Policy Network (GPN), the BPPS and CB work in an integrated manner ensuring that issues are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. In this context, the Joint Directorate for the GPN provides support to the leadership of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) and the Crisis Bureau (CB) and serves as the principal management adviser to the Directors and Deputy Bureau Directors of both Bureaux. Turning UNDP’s vision of the GPN into action, the Joint Directorate coordinates joint management actions with the deputy directors and managers of the GPN. With a deep understanding of UNDP’s strategic and operational vision of the GPN, the Joint Directorate creates a dynamic team interaction that empowers teams and units within BPPS and CB to act as critical partners to meaningfully join and collaborate under a nexus approach. The Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy (BERA) is responsible for positioning UNDP as the world’s leading global development network, promoting its global authority and thought leadership on sustainable development and the interconnected issues of poverty, inequality, and climate change. The Bureau creates strong political and financial backing for UNDP by providing partners and supporters with a clear understanding of what UNDP does and how our mission, capabilities and flagship services relate to them. The Bureau leads UNDP’s work on innovative and diversified partnerships and ways of financing the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. It is also responsible for global campaigns on critical development issues, which aim to change government policies and build partnerships around high-impact solutions. The Bureau coordinates and sets corporate standards across the functions of partnerships, marketing and communications within UNDP and leads on executive internal communications. As part of the Joint Directorate for the Global Policy Network as well as the Communications Group in the Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy (BERA), the Strategic Communications Advisor reports to the Chief, Joint Directorate under the authority of the Deputy Directors of BPPS and CB, and to the Director of Advocacy, Marketing and Communications or designate, BERA, under the authority of the Director of BERA, working closely with all teams in BPPS, CB and BERA as needed. The Strategic Communications Advisor will be an important bridge between UNDP’s policy, advocacy and communications work, pulling together processes and working with colleagues from different bureaux and teams to advance UNDP’s priority communications and advocacy plans. S/he is also responsible for maintaining close collaboration with UNDP’s Executive Office at the working level and harmonizing GPN’s thought leadership, policy and programmatic work within the corporate communications strategy. The Strategic Communications Advisor is a highly collaborative role, sharing joint responsibilities and accountabilities across multiple teams and Bureaus. Duties and Responsibilities Summary of Key Functions

Co-lead UNDP’s Global Advocacy and Thought Leadership Network and co-create and implement the campaigns and communications plans of UNDP’s external engagement plan
Design, manage and implement an implementation plan for advancing the GPN aspects of UNDP’s global communications, advocacy and marketing strategy
Plan for and advise on the development of BPPS and CB knowledge/communication products and publications, overseeing their production and dissemination to maximize advocacy and positioning impact
Coordinate and streamline the communications efforts of BPPS and CB teams, in close consultation with BERA and ExO, and support advocacy and outreach on UNDP’s policy and programme support work, including on crisis-related issues
Co-lead a blended BPPS-CB-BERA communications team with the objective of ensuring the integration and close collaboration of policy expertise and targeted communications

Co-lead UNDP’s Global Advocacy and Thought Leadership Network and co-create and implement the implementation plans of UNDP’s external engagement plan

Co-lead the Global Advocacy and Thought Leadership Network, jointly with the Head of the Advocacy and Content Creation pillar within BERA, to integrate policy, advocacy & partnerships expertise across UNDP’s thematic areas and across Bureaux
Ensure the provision of systematic strategic communications advice to BPPS/CB leadership and substantive Heads of Teams to enable high impact advocacy and thought leadership and advise on policy and programmatic goals to make them high-impact, newsworthy and brand-aligned
Advise thematic policy advisors and programme managers on high-level advocacy and build capacity on advocacy and campaigning within the GPN, including overseeing skills development/training needs and development of toolkits and templates for all UNDP organizational units including country offices.
Co-create and implement the global advocacy campaigns and communications plans of UNDP’s External Engagement Plan with the Head of Advocacy and Content Creation in BERA and working closely with BPPS, CB and the Regional Bureaux.
Be a role model and leader on the creation of bold advocacy goals which align with UNDP work on the ground and policy expertise to fully exploit the external engagement opportunities that arise, for example in partnerships aligning with donor priorities, in targeted media outreach, events, digital strategy or new platforms.
Create simple and compelling messaging for UNDP’s advocacy campaigns and supporting material (reports, data, analysis); coordinate consultation and sign off on messaging from different teams with BERA/BPPS/CB
Advance UNDP’s advocacy goals by coordinating with BERA to position UNDP’s knowledge, analysis and policy positions and development experts through a wide variety of channels such as media engagement, digital outreach, events and new public partnerships and platforms.

Design, manage and implement an implementation plan for advancing the GPN-related responsibilities of the UNDP global communications, advocacy and marketing strategy

Develop and implement the implementation plan for GPN aspects of the global communications strategy, and marketing and advocacy plans, with a view to influence the development agenda to promote public and media outreach in UNDP's substantive areas of work, and to mobilize political and financial support for UNDP's policy and programme support work, including on crisis- and fragility-related issues.
Plan and elaborate communications needs assessments.
Provide constructive and timely advice on including communication components in programme formulation to integrate advocacy and communication strategies into all aspects of BPPS/CB’s work on supporting the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, including in crisis and fragile settings.
Coordinate programme-related communications efforts and streamline and rationalize the programme-specific digital and social media channels to support brand-aligned corporate communications, advocacy and marketing plans.
Prepare for and attends as required GPN management and heads of team meetings and other relevant meetings as necessary.

Plan for and advise on the development of BPPS and CB knowledge/communication products and publications, overseeing their production and dissemination

Coordinate and manage all BPPS/CB knowledge/communication product and publication activities, including content management, editing, norms for publishing, design, liaison with printers and other suppliers to oversee production and supervision of publications dissemination.
Advise on / ensure the maintenance of a joint BPPS-CB-BERA roster of qualified writers, editors, translators and style checkers in main UN languages to ensure high-quality translations, wokring in close collaboration with BERA.
Monitoring of stocks and usage of print publications and reordering, as required.

Coordinating and streamlining the communications efforts of BPPS and CB teams, in close consultation with BERA and ExO, and support advocacy and outreach through more intensive media/press coverage by building effective relationships with the media to promote the key policy and practice areas within UNDP

Manage and coordinate the writing, development, design, production and dissemination of diverse publications and news releases through a variety of media, including print, broadcast, online and social
Identify and develop storylines for publications and substantive articles contributing to debates on frontier development-related issues (including active seeking and verification of inputs).
Identify and develop storylines for media, including print, broadcast, online and social, focusing on high impact areas of UNDP’s work, including working closely and coordinating with staff on the ground.
Advise on the development of an internal system for production planning, registration, review and tracking of expenses.
Identify and ensure the use of opportunities to leverage social media to complement GPN’s messaging.

Co-lead a blended BPPS-CB-BERA communications team with the objective of ensuring the integration and close collaboration of policy expertise and targeted communications

Jointly with the BERA Head of Advocacy and Content Creation, align performance goals and work plans between the CB/BPPS communications staff and the BERA Advocacy and Campaign team members
Co-lead to fulfill the overall responsibilities of the Global Advocacy and Thought Leadership Network, specifically ensuring at all times there is a consistent, coherent and coordinated approach to all aspects of its work
Lead and guide monitoring and analysis of integration of communications, advocacy, campaigns, policy and programmes and report on advocacy impact of thought leadership on UNDP’s policy and programme priorities.

Required Skills and Experience Education:

Master’s degree in communications, journalism or other relevant field, or Bachelor’s degree and two additional years of relevant work experience in lieu of an advanced degree.

Experience:

A minimum of 10 years of professional experience (when holding a Master’s degree) or 12 years of experience (when holding a Bachelor’s degree) in communications, journalism, advocacy, public relations or campaigns, with a demonstrated track record of successfully managing multiple people, processes and projects in a complex environment.
A proven ability to effectively manage high profile global communications initiatives and campaigns, with experience with successful advocacy campaigns, digital communications, and outreach to diverse global and national audiences; and a proven track record of success in generating and garnering media coverage for international development or international relations issues.
Proven excellence in people management.
International and developing country experience and perspective, including field experience in international development contexts, is strongly preferred.

Language Requirements: