Chef of Section, Institutions and Ecosystems (IE), DECI/IE, P5

The Chief of Section leads the Institutions and Ecosystems Section within the Division of Enterprise Competitiveness and Institutions at the International Trade Centre. The role involves managing and mentoring the team, overseeing programmatic and administrative tasks, forging strategic alliances, and providing technical expertise to business support organizations to enhance their capacity and effectiveness in supporting trade and economic development.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor the DECI/IE team to define the role, organization and functions of business support organizations in the public and private sectors with a special emphasis on capacity building and cost-effective services.
• Oversee programmatic/administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the section, including preparation of budgets, assigning and monitoring performance parameters and critical indicators, reporting on budget/programme performance, preparation of inputs for results-based budgeting, evaluation of staff performance.
• Forge and develop strategic alliances and foster the development of mutually beneficial network relationships with private and public sector partners including donors, technical agencies, private sector foundations, multinationals and non-governmental organizations.
• Foster teamwork and communication among staff in the section and across organizational boundaries to ensure resources are harnessed to meet BSO needs.
• Advocate and promote ITC’s portfolio of BSO strengthening services ensuring relevancy to key stakeholders.
• Represent ITC at inter-agency meetings, seminars, etc. on substantive-related issues.
• Participate in international, regional or national meetings and provide programmatic/substantive expertise on an issue or hold programmatic/substantive and organizational discussions with representatives of other institutions.
• Build and provide technical expertise to national, regional and international networks of intermediary, distributor and multiplier BSOs through the provision of capacity building and advisory programmes.
• Oversee the design, development and delivery of new products and services, in support of the above, including needs and performance assessment tools, training programmes, and BSO and ecosystem creation/restructuring services.
• Develop ITC's profile as a centre of excellence in BSO capacity building by contributing to the identification, documentation, dissemination and implementation of "best practice" including supervising work in the area of benchmarking, research, information collection, drafting of publications, organizing conferences and direct interaction with business support network partners.
• Diversify the range of BSOs supported by ITC, including specialist BSOs offering skills development (TVETS) or economic pathways for the vulnerable or underserved (e.g. women, youth, those with disabilities, displaced people, indigenous people etc).
• Establish ITC as a pre-eminent authority on systems designed to measure the impact on enterprises of the policies and activities of BSOs.
• Perform other duties as required.

Requirements

• Advanced university degree (Masters or equivalent) in Management, Business Administration, Public Administration, or related subject such as International Development, Economics, Organizational Development.
• A first-level university degree in the above subjects may be accepted with an additional two years of relevant professional work experience.
• A minimum of 10 years (12 years with a first level university degree) relevant professional experience is required.
• Senior management and advisory experience in a proven leadership role in or with recognized trade and investment support organizations or equivalent business support organization, including TVETs is required.
• Experience in high-level organizational representation is required.
• Experience in managing, providing advice and capacity building for business support organizations in different countries and across different cultural backgrounds is required.
• Experience in designing and leading complex projects/programmes and managing a cross-cultural team is required.
• Advisory experience and wide networks within ecosystems related to SME competitiveness, entrepreneurship, TVET and/or innovation is required.
• Experience with change management processes, in particular integration of digital technology and AI is desirable.
• English is required at UN Level III proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
• Either French or Spanish is desirable at UN Level II proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

Skills

• Senior Management
• Organizational Representation
• Business Support Advisory
• Capacity Building
• Project Design
• Programme Management
• Cross-cultural Team Management
• SME Competitiveness
• Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Development
• TVET Advisory
• Innovation Ecosystems
• Change Management
• Digital Technology Integration
• Artificial Intelligence Integration
• Strategic Alliance Building
• Technical Expertise in Trade Support
• Coaching and Mentoring
• Economic Development
• Trade Support Organizations

Languages

English, French, Spanish