UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture., coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to innovate

UNICEF has a 70‑year legacy of innovation for children. From its base in Copenhagen, the Sustainable WASH Innovation Hub (the Hub) identifies, demonstrates and scales climate‑resilient water and sanitation solutions that can accelerate progress toward a water‑secure future for children and young people. Working with partners and UNICEF country and regional teams, the Hub selects high‑impact, cutting‑edge innovations, adapts them to context, and expands proven solutions from helping thousands in one country to reaching millions across multiple regions through an annually reviewed WASH portfolio focused on the greatest challenges and opportunities for impact.

How can you make a difference? 

The specific objectives of the assignment are to:

1. Review and assess current contracting procedures and procurement pathways used to support innovation and co-creation by UNICEF, UNDP, WFP and UNOPS and any other identified UN actors.
2. Identify strengths, gaps, bottlenecks, risks, and opportunities within these procedures, with a focus on their applicability to innovation and co-creation use cases.
3. Provide clear, evidence-based recommendations that guide the Hub in selecting the most suitable contracting modality for different scenarios. -based recommendations that guide the Hub in selecting the most suitable contracting modality for different scenarios.
4. Translate findings into practical operational tools, including decision trees, SOPs, templates, and quick reference guidance for Hub staff and Country Offices. -reference guidance for Hub staff and Country Offices.
5. Develop a draft procurement strategy to establish a pathway for UNICEF to enter into a contractual arrangement with subsequent innovators, with the aim of modeling for scale and accelerating the solutions of these providers, in one or several UNICEF Country Offices.
6. Support the Hub with advisory assistance on real or emerging innovation contracting cases to ensure direct, applied value during the consultancy.

We seek a self-motivated consultant who can support with:

• Desk review of policy documents, SOPs, templates, and procedural guidance.
• Identification of legal thresholds, contracting modalities, timelines, and approval workflows.
• Stakeholder interviews with procurement, legal, and innovation teams in each agency.
• Analysis of strengths, bottlenecks, risks, and suitability for innovation/co-creation.

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  TOR innovation contracting consultancy.pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

Minimum requirements:

Education: An advanced university degree in Public Procurement, Business Administration, International Development, Innovation Management, Law, or a related field relevant to procurement and innovation contracting within the UN system.
*A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree.

Work Experience:

• 5–8 years of progressively responsible experience in procurement, legal advisory, contracting, or innovation management—preferably within the UN system or other large international organizations.
• Demonstrated experience supporting innovation or co-creation contracting, including agile procurement approaches, partnership-based agreements, or alternative contracting modalities.
• Proven track record conducting comparative assessments of procurement frameworks (e.g., UNICEF, UNDP, UNOPS, WFP) and advising on contracting pathways for non-traditional or innovative use cases.
• Experience providing advisory support on real-time contracting issues, including risk, IP, due diligence, and approval workflows.
• Experience developing tools and operational guidance, such as decision trees, SOPs, templates, workflows, and risk-based decision frameworks.-based decision frameworks.
• Familiarity with risk assessment and mitigation, supplier due diligence, and internal approval
  requirements for non-standard procurement.
• Ability to design user-friendly processes, workflows, templates, and decision-support tools that can be applied in diverse country office contexts.
   

Skills:

• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and synthesis skills, with the ability to translate complex regulatory and legal frameworks into clear, actionable operational guidance.-solving, and synthesis skills, with the ability to translate complex regulatory and legal frameworks into clear, actionable operational guidance.
• Strong skills in stakeholder engagement, including conducting structured interviews with procurement, legal, programme, and innovation teams across agencies.
• High level of independence, initiative, and organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple parallel workstreams and deliver against tight timelines.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts. 
• Strong working knowledge of UNICEF’s Regulatory Framework, Supply Division procedures,and contracting thresholds is desirable.
• Knowledge and/or experience of UNDP innovation challenge procedures, procurement modalities, and accelerated contracting pathways; UNOPS alternative procurement frameworks, legal thresholds, and innovation-related contracting options is desirable
• Demonstrated expertise in intellectual property management, including licensing arrangements, shared ownership structures, and data/IP considerations in innovation partnerships is desirable.
• Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese,French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset

Travel:
No travel is required for this post.

All travel (in case of any) will be by most economical fare and reimbursement will be as per UNICEF policy, “As per UNICEF DFAM policy, payment is made against approved deliverables. No advance payment is allowed unless in exceptional circumstances against bank guarantee, subject to a maximum of 30 per cent of the total contract value in cases where advance purchases, for example for supplies or travel, may be necessary”.

Payment details and further considerations

• Payment of professional fees will be based on the submission of agreed deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of
  the consultant.

How to apply:

• Interested applicants are required to submit a technical and financial proposal with all inclusive fee. Please see the financial proposal template. Consultancy Financial Offer template.docx
• Technical proposals should be no more than 10 pages.
• Financial proposals must include travel costs (economy class) and daily subsistence allowance, if travel is required as per TOR and any other estimated costs: visa, travel/health insurance.
• Applications without a technical and financial proposal will not be considered.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:  

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. 

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.