Associate Innovation Officer

Deadline for ApplicationsDecember 18, 2025Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)H (no hardship Family Type (not applicable for home-based)Family Staff Member / Affiliate TypeInternational Deployee Target Start Date Terms of ReferencePosition Overview:This Syni position sits within UNHCR Innovation Service and reports to the Associate Innovation Officer on Partnership and Fundraising, but work in very close collaboration with the deputy Head of Service and Head of Service.UNHCR Innovation Service, is mandated by UNHCR to help nurture and support a culture of innovation within UNHCR. To achieve its strategy and goals, the Innovation Service implements five strategic Programmes, namely: 1) Digital Innovation 2) Refugee Led Innovation 3) Data Innovation 4) Environment and Climate Action Innovation and 5) Innovation Learning. These programmes provide UNHCR teams and Refugees with both funding and technical support to develop innovative solutions. In addition, the Service will be launching an accelerator program to support innovative pilot projects in their journey to scale. These programmes require extensive fundraising and partnership building support.The incumbent will support the partnership function within the Innovation Service with its day-to-day business as well as key projects to advance the overall fundraising activities.The role involves writing and reviewing proposals and reports and coordinating on inputs with different team members. In addition, the incumbent, will actively support in identifying funding opportunities, providing intelligence on potential donors, coordinating fundraising activities such as preparing proposals, reports, and communication materials for donors. The scope of responsibilities extends beyond fundraising to include supporting in managing collaborations and potential partnerships with other organizations, private sector companies, etc.Key Responsibilities:1) Fundraising and Strategic Partnerships SupportSupport the identification of new funding opportunities, including private sector partnerships and governmental donors.Assist in preparing and submitting fundraising materials, including concept notes, proposals, presentations, talking points, and reports.Conduct research on potential donors and partners to provide intelligence for strategic decision-making.Support the organization of key partnership and fundraising events, the Summit for the Future, and the Global Refugee Forum (GRF), coordinating side events, talking points, and presentations.Support engagement with non-funding partners (e.g., private sector innovators) exploring collaborations with UNHCR to test new solutions.Assist in partnership-related meetings by taking notes, drafting minutes, and preparing accompanying materials.2. Fundraising Communications and Donor Engagement MaterialsWork closely with the Innovation Service communications team to support the production of fundraising and donor engagement materials.Develop compelling, donor-facing content such as success stories, impact reports, social media materials, and case studies highlighting the role of innovation in refugee response.Support the drafting of donor reports, ensuring clarity and alignment with donor expectations.3) Partner Mapping and support materialsLead on mapping events relevant to the service and prepare related engagements with the counterparts from the Innovation Service teamMapping of calls for proposals from major funders and companies, relevant to the Innovation ServiceCreate a comprehensive partner mapping for particular interest areas of the Innovation ServiceSupport creation of a list of proposed partnership communications materials for the year (in collaboration with communications colleagues)Support creation of a LinkedIn content calendar for the Innovation Service (in collaboration with communications colleagues)Draft proposals for the redesign of internal and external websites to better target donorsQualifications and Experience:Master's degree in relevant fieldMinimum 3 years' experience in fundraising and partnership development in particular with the private sector.Proven experience in proposal development, reporting, and communication with donors.Strong understanding of private sector engagement and governmental donor relations.Exceptional writing skills.Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills.Proven ability to identify and pursue funding opportunities successfully.Ability to work collaboratively across teams and with external partners.Standard Job Description Associate Innovation OfficerOrganizational Setting and Work RelationshipsUNHCR's Innovation Service aims to create an enabling environment for innovation to flourish in UNHCR by equipping staff with the knowledge, resources, and skills they need to use innovation as a tool to solve challenges.The Innovation Service facilitates creative problem-solving alongside colleagues, partners, and refugees, generating new and needed, multi-disciplinary approaches that benefit displaced communities and the Organization.All team members are expected to be able to work on a range of projects in a collaborative manner regardless of subject area and geographic location (HQ, Multi-Country or Country Office). At times this means working directly with the High Commissioner's team, at other times with the Division of Human Resources, with a remote field operation in an emergency, or in a CRRF operation. As such, the incumbent is experienced in using innovation processes and methodologies through which to innovate, on a wide-range of challenges faced by refugees, UNHCR staff, and partner staff, agnostic of subject area.All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR's core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.Duties- Participate in innovation projects and programmes (both within the service and at organizational level), including research, design, planning, coordination, implementation and monitoring functions as and when requested/appropriate.- Support UNHCR colleagues in identifying pressing challenges in their context and co-develop novel and creative solutions by drawing on a broad range of innovation approaches, frameworks and methods.- Cultivate and manage diverse strategic relationships with both UNHCR and external partners, including consultants, donors and subject matter experts, academia, civil society and private sector organisations.- Proactively solicit and exchange views and methods, ensuring that relevant and promising lessons learned are incorporated from broader ecosystems into UNHCR's work.- Support fundraising opportunities for project partners or UNHCR field operations, either through the application and management of a fund or supporting projects managed by innovation fund opportunities.- Work with strategic communications, designers and writers to contribute to the production of compelling written and visual material to advance the goals of the Innovation Service.- Promote and support a culture of innovation, learning, risk-taking, diversity and inclusion within operations and teams and across portfolios.- Remain up-to-date on new innovations, approaches and technologies, particularly those that could be potentially applied to the humanitarian sector and/or forced displacement settings.- Document and share insights on innovation in UNHCR as a way of strengthening the Innovation Service's work and building internal credibility for innovation as a respected source of good ideas and tested approaches.- Ensure that Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) sensitive analyses, rights and community-based approaches inform human-centred design processes.- Apply relevant research, evidence and data-driven decision making to support UNHCR and Partners in the improvement of services and programmes, as well as innovative approaches through assisting in documenting, codifying and disseminating key programme processes and lessons learned.- Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).- Perform other related duties as required.Minimum QualificationsYears of Experience / Degree LevelFor P2/NOB - 3 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 2 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 1 year relevant experience with Doctorate degreeField(s) of EducationSocial Sciences; Science, Technology,Engineering; Humanities; Administration,Management; or other relevant field.Certificates and/or LicensesNot specified,Relevant Job ExperienceEssentialExperience of forging and/or maintaining partnerships and collaborative working methods, simultaneously with a range of stakeholders, including private sector entities, donor governments, civil society, communities of concern, INGO, NNGO, and other UN entities. Experience applying innovation and/or innovative methodologies in forced displacement contexts. Experience of providing support to a range of operations through capacity building around scale, evidence building and provision of guidance and creation of tools. Experience managing budgets for innovation activities, including experimentation. Experience working in organisations with multi-year planning processes, such as development agencies, whether governmental, UN, or other.DesirableA strong understanding of theory, principles, established approaches and evidence concerning effective innovation and programme design.Functional SkillsHR-Inclusion, Diversity and Gender strategy design and implementationMG-Team building (development/facilitation)(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)Language RequirementsFor International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.Required Languages ,,Desired Languages ,,Additional Qualifications SkillsHR-Inclusion, Diversity and Gender strategy design and implementation, MG-Team building (development/facilitation)EducationBachelor of Arts: Administration, Bachelor of Arts: Engineering, Bachelor of Arts: Humanities, Bachelor of Arts: Management, Bachelor of Arts: Science, Bachelor of Arts: Social Science, Bachelor of Arts: TechnologyCertifications Work ExperienceOther informationFunded through Syni Lusanne ProgrammeCandidate name is: Tatiana MarquezThis position doesn't require a functional clearanceRemoteNo