Chief, Client Service Division [Open to internal and external applicants]

Tiered Approach

In line with the commitment to safeguard capacity and support personnel already in the Organization, a majority of UNDP UNCDF/UNV vacancies are advertised using a tiered application process whereby:

• Tier 0: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV IP staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments, whose posts will be abolished, or contracts will be terminated or not renewed during 2026.
• Tier 1: Other UNDP/UNCDF/UNV staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments
• Tier 2: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV staff holding temporary appointments (TA), personnel on regular PSA contracts, and Expert and Specialist UN Volunteers
• Tier 3 or no tier indicated: All other contract types from UNDP/UNCDF/UNV and other agencies, and other external candidates

Please make note of the Tier(s) indicated in the vacancy title, if any, and ensure that you satisfy the eligibility to apply.

Background

The Bureau for Management Services (BMS) is the central operations Bureau in UNDP that supports the organization in the provision of management services. Drawing on client needs, user experience, sound analytics, and a risk-informed approach, BMS provides policy, oversight, advisory and transactional services and solutions for UNDP to deliver fully integrated development solutions. In doing so, BMS keeps pace with the evolving needs and expectations of development partners and international best practice through strengthening and innovating business operations. In line with UNDP’s Strategic Plan, BMS also aims to provide effective, improved and customer-focused procurement services to clients both internal and external to UNDP.

BMS is based in UNDP Headquarters, New York, with outposted locations across multiple country locations, regional hubs, and global shared service Centres. It is comprised of a Directorate and a number of functional units providing finance, human resources, security, procurement and other management services.

The Client Service Division (CSD) Chief oversees a team of professionals that partners with team leads and subject matter experts across BMS and UNDP in designing and implementing on demand integrated business solutions that support key client relationships and ensures relevance of BMS’s support and activities. The CSD Team further coordinates the understanding and resolution of complex and/or cross cutting client requests. She/he serves as a single point of contact within BMS draws on the resources across UNDP’s management practices / capacity network and provides the coordination leadership to drive timely, integrated solutions that meet client needs. 

In response to continuously evolving business opportunities and client service requirements, the CSD Chief serves as the UN Agencies account manager. He/She partners with team leads and experts across BMS and UNDP in addressing UN Agency client needs, designing and supporting implementation of new client/service lines that support client relationships.  The CSD Chief coordinates the implementation and delivery of new business services ensuring their integration into BMS regular service lines.  The CSD Chief is the primary face of UNDP for all new and major BMS Clients acting as the coordinator for all client needs and servicing, ensuring responsiveness across BMS teams, relevance of services, and client satisfaction.  By merging major client and complex case coordination with new service delivery design across BMS, the CSD Team acts as a center of excellence for innovative service design and delivery and an advocate for client needs.

Position Purpose

Under the direct supervision and guidance of the BMS Deputy Director Client Services Division is responsible for partnering with team leads and experts across BMS and UNDP in addressing UN Agency client needs, designing and supporting implementation of new client/service lines that support client relationships.  The CSD Chief serves as the UN Agencies account manager and continuously evolving business opportunities and client service requirements.  

UNDP adopts a portfolio approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages across interventions to achieve its strategic goals. Therefore, UNDP personnel are expected to work across units, functions, teams, and projects in multidisciplinary teams in order to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration. 

Key Duties and Accountabilities

Positions UNDP to provide operational and management advisory services as part of an integration services offer, and brokers new business opportunities for UNDP and the common UN System.

• Serves as management interface for UNDP operations and management services on behalf of corporate UNDP and UN Agency clients, establishing a client-focused posture, which is intently focused on the performance of operations services services to UNDP and the UN System;
• Shares and transfers deep knowledge of UNDP’s role supporting the strategic operational needs of UN Agency partners; 
• Articulates and documents the benefits of new service offerings in support of UNDP’s and other UN Agencies’ increasingly complex business environments and strategic visions for contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); and 
• Leads UNDP’s management practitioners in rethinking the strategic intent and execution capability of UNDP’s operational services and the business model implications of negotiating service agreements differently.

Leads the Client Service Division Team and coordinates the positioning and delivery of UNDP operations services at elevated professional standards

• Leads the Client Business Solutions Team, overseeing the team of client account managers, with dedicated outreach and engagement with UNDP Regional and Central Bureaux, and partner UN Agencies; 
• Actively engages the network of Bureaux Operations Managers and maintain an understanding of Regional Bureaux, Central Bureaux, and Agency Services client strategic and operational needs; 
• Balances client expectations with management services capabilities, initiatives, and timing; 
• Ensures a single-point-of-contact for Bureaux and partner UN Agencies with complex and/or multidimensional management operations issues and works to coordinate solutions;
• Follows up with clients to inquire about the resolution of specific cases and seek feedback on the client’s experience working with BMS and opportunities for improvement; 
• Establishes a formal approach to service withdrawal and completion; and 
• Collaborates with the BMS Directorate team on Corporate Management to share good practices in operations management and client services from the field context, and advocates for alignment of BMS policies and procedures to reflect field-level innovations and solutions.

Acts as a catalyst in the transformation of UNDP’s approach and capability for operations service coordination and delivery as an integral component of UNDP’s broader organizational transformation.

• Marshals technical capacity from UNDP management practitioners as well as external, technical capacity from across development networks, to activate thoughtful and productive contributions to the development of integrated solutions; 
• Proactively identifies opportunities to redefine, reinvent, and scale management and operations services for clients as corporate investments, such as the UNDP Digital Strategy and Accelerator Labs, open new space for working differently, thereby shifting UNDP’s organizational capability; 
• Contributes to the Service Excellence initiative in UNDP, and leads the mainstreaming of a continuous improvement discipline across management practices; 
• Provides technical support to the BMS Directors, in collaboration with broader UNDP leadership team, in articulating strategic interests at the intersection of emerging management and operations solutions and corporate, organizational transformation, especially in the area of adaptive business modeling; and Provide insight to senior management regarding the interpretation of data and statistics and intelligent analysis of BMS services against the business model and Strategic Plan.

In partnership with BMS management practice leaders, leads the provision of integrated business solutions for client support needs, which are not sufficiently addressed through the conventional interface with BMS functional units

• Role models client-oriented service delivery and solution-oriented analysis in the dynamic business context of UNDP operations for internal UNDP clients as well as UN Agency Partners and other external actors;  
• Provides technical leadership in diagnosing complex operational issues and scoping requisite support, drawing on the resources across all BMS functional units to facilitate the formulation of integral solutions; Within this context, actively engages BMS colleagues to: 
• Take ownership of resolving complex or atypical operational issues and facilitate integrated solutions, on-demand, specifically tailored to client needs;
• Assist clients who are not able to access the right support within BMS and/or who are not aware of alternative measures for resolving issues; 
• Help clients articulate complex needs and business requirements, in integrated on-demand service scenarios.
• Establishes a triage mechanism for resolving client issues, serving as the primary technical resource person, and personally oversees the resolution of the case and closure of the request; and
• Assembles, coordinates and/or directly manages multi-disciplinary teams dedicated to delivering solutions in a time-bound manner, negotiating the release of required expertise and resources, by leveraging the office of the BMS Director and Deputy Director.
• Engages in substantive and practical collaboration with management practice leaders to influence the evolution in UNDP operational policies, procedures to better address client interests and better capitalize on UNDP’s value proposition in the operational services arena; and
• Leads pilot initiatives which reflect the progressive nature of BMS’s support and provide testing ground for organizational adaptation, expansion, specialization, and excellence.

Monitors effectiveness and relevance of UNDP operations services and solutions

• Ensures completion of the client requests, to resolution or to the satisfaction of the client, by tracking, monitoring and regularly reporting status back to the client;
• Monitors the proper functioning of the service delivery process to evaluate the pace of issue resolution and efficiency / effectiveness with which an effective solution was delivered; 
• Evaluates the quality of working exchange between the client and UNDP and the service delivery from the client’s perspective by tracking the communication to clients, especially regarding the status of inquiries / cases, the practical application of proposed solutions, and the client’s experience of working through the problem; and 
• Directly engages with clients to obtain feedback on UNDP operations services and to then works with management practice leaders / business owners to identify solutions which can be instituted to improve UNDP’s offer.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: The incumbent oversees 3 IPs

Requirements:

Education

• Advanced University Degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Business and/or Public Administration, Information Technology, Finance or any related disciplines is required, or
• A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the above-mentioned areas with an additional 2 years of relevant work experience will be considered in lieu of master’s degree.

 Experience, Knowledge, and Skills

• A minimum of 10 years (with Master’s degree) or 12 years (with Bachelors degree) of relevant professional experience, of which 7 years are in managing programme and operations teams in UNDP, or comparable international organizations, at country or regional-level duty stations, is required. 
• Certified in one or more UNDP operations practices (Procurement, Finance, HR, IT) or with internationally-recognized professional certification(s) is a significant asset. 
• Experience utilizing a Client Relationship Management System (CRM) is an asset.
• Experience working in different parts of the organization (e.g., HQ, CO level) is required.
• Excellent communications skills with documented experience in organizing strategic internal and external communication products are required.
• Experience in managing strategic partnerships and service agreements with UN entities or other international organizations is desirable.
• Demonstrated experience in leading complex cross-functional initiatives involving multiple areas (e.g. HR, Finance, Procurement, ITM..) is desirable.
• Experience in using data analytics, performance metrics or client satisfaction indicators to drive service improvement and decision making is an asset.
• Experience managing institutional or corporate-level client relationships and stakeholder engagement in a large international organization is desirable.
• Experience working with UN common services, Business Operations Strategy (BOS), or wider UN reform initiatives is preferred.
• Proficiency in English language is required.
• Working knowledge of a second UN language is desirable.

Expected Demonstration of Competencies

Core : Full list of UNDP Core Competencies can be found here 

• Achieve Results: LEVEL 4: Prioritize team workflow, mobilize resources, drive scalable results/strategic impact
• Think Innovatively: LEVEL 4: Easily navigate complexity, encourage/enable radical innovation, has foresight
• Learn Continuously: LEVEL 4: Create systems and processes that enable learning and development for all
• Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 4: Proactively initiate/lead organizational change, champion new systems/processes
• Act with Determination: LEVEL 4: Able to make difficult decisions in challenging situations, inspire confidence
• Engage and Partner: LEVEL 4: Construct strategic multi-partner alliances in high stake situations, foster co-creation 
• Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 4: Create ethical culture,  identify/address barriers to inclusion 

People Management 

• Demonstrate Empathy & Emotional Intelligence – See the positive in people, situations and events.
• Motivate and Direct - Understand and proactively builds the team/organization culture.
• Build Capability - Have willingness and ability to delegate to help people learn, including from failure.
• Manage Performance and Ensure Accountability - Provide praise and recognition, as well as ensure accountability

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies 

Business Direction & Strategy

Strategic Thinking

• Ability to develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDP’s objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, potential risks and opportunities; linking the vision to reality on the ground, and creating tangible solutions.
• Ability to leverage learning from a variety of sources to anticipate and respond to future trends; to demonstrate foresight in order to model what future developments and possible ways forward look like UNDP

Business Direction & Strategy

Systems Thinking

• Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Business Direction & Strategy

Negotiation and Influence

• Ability to reach an understanding, persuade others, resolve points of difference, gain advantage in the outcome of dialogue, negotiates mutually acceptable solutions through compromise and creates ‘win-win’ situations

Business Development

Knowledge Generation

• Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need.

Business Management

Customer Satisfaction/ Client Management

• Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers' needs.
• Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy. Look for ways to add value beyond clients' immediate requests.
• Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns

Business Management

Risk Management

• Ability to identify and organize action around mitigating and proactively managing risks.

Business Management

Operations Management

• Ability to effectively, plan organize and oversee the organization’s processes in order to convert its assets into the best results in the most efficient manner. Knowledge of relevant concepts and mechanisms.

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Probation

For all new UNDP fixed term appointments (FTA), including for staff members being transferred or seconded to UNDP under the Inter-Organization Agreement concerning Transfer, Secondment or Loan of Staff, on an appointment of more than one year, continuation of the appointment beyond the initial 12 months is contingent upon the successful completion of a probationary period.

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Use of AI by candidates

Applicants are invited to read UNDP’s guidance for candidates on using AI responsibly in UNDP recruitment and selection

Scam alert

UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.