Knowledge Management Specialist (Open Externally)

This vacancy is open to Tier 0, 1, and 2 candidates only.

About the role

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. UNV works with partners to integrate qualified, highly motivated, and well-supported UN Volunteers into development programming and promote the value and global recognition of volunteerism.

The Volunteer Advisory Services Section (VASS) positions UNV as a knowledge and policy hub on volunteerism for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), generating knowledge, consolidating evidence, and advocating with Member States and the UN system to integrate volunteerism in their policies and plans as a cross-cutting means of implementation into the 2030 Agenda, aligned with UNV’s 2022-2025 Strategic Framework.

Reporting to the Policy Specialist (Evidence), VASS, the Knowledge Management Specialist coordinates knowledge management strategies in the section and identifies synergies with other UNV sections to enhance access and visibility of UNV’s work. VASS generates evidence and knowledge to promote and advocate for the integration of volunteerism in stakeholders’ policies and plans.

UNV maintains a Knowledge Portal on Volunteerism, a one-stop platform for knowledge management and dissemination managed by VASS. The portal comprises:

• A country profile database of volunteer data
• An evidence library of global publications on themes related to volunteering
• A knowledge exchange, an interactive space for knowledge sharing, discussions, dissemination, and interaction on different volunteering topics

Responsibilities

• Lead coordination of knowledge management initiatives and advocacy.
• Coordinate VASS knowledge management and brokering efforts, including liaising with internal and external stakeholders for content to the Knowledge Portal.
• Develop a Knowledge Management (KM) Strategy and Work Plan in alignment with approved knowledge management priorities in collaboration with VASS relevant units, including Regional Offices.
• Substantively engage in developing a coordinated and systematic approach to identifying, capturing, and promoting key evidence to support advocacy efforts and key initiatives.
• Review current systems, tools, and approaches to knowledge management, both internally within UNV and with external partners, and recommend and implement improvements.
• Review systems to measure the uptake and effectiveness of UNV’s knowledge work, including portal traffic, and optimize their utilization by recommending changes and/or viable alternatives.
• Contribute to outreach and knowledge exchange through the UNV Knowledge Portal and online events, particularly engaging external partners.
• Work with the Evidence and Integration workstreams to shape the development of innovative graphics and multimedia products that add value to the State of the World’s Volunteerism Report (SWVR).
• Provide summaries of relevant research and policy findings for publishing on the UNV Knowledge Portal.
• Develop and write content for key analytical materials, including strategic and thematic notes, think pieces, and blogs.
• Identify opportunities for the policy-oriented launch of the SWVR, including key research forums (conferences, executive committees, task forces, etc.).
• Contribute to UNV technical missions, conferences, task forces, and other key knowledge events to communicate research findings, give presentations, expand strategic partnerships, alliances, and provoke conversations and debates.
• Engage in online discussions and provide substantive inputs to relevant communities of practice, developing a comprehensive policy dialogue plan for the dissemination of SWVR research findings and recommendations.
• Prepare speeches, presentations, background technical papers, documentation, and reports upon request on SWVR.
• Plan and implement external knowledge brokering and outreach events with key audiences to promote the State of the World’s Volunteerism Report 2026 and UNV’s Global Volunteer Index.
• Provide concrete proposals on positioning the Knowledge Portal through marketing and publicity strategies within the development, policy, and volunteering community and beyond.
• Lead the documentation and dissemination of key information on the SWVR and Volunteer Index development.
• Support research functions in the team, including data collection, analysis, and presentations covering both quantitative and qualitative aspects.
• Offer helpdesk support to the field, providing one-to-one support to UNV’s regional offices and field units to optimize the use of knowledge tools and related processes as needed.
• Provide comments and ensure quality control of knowledge products, guiding on the types of knowledge products best suited for each audience.
• Develop a system to track and regularly establish referencing and citation using tools such as Mendeley, Overton, and others.
• Perform other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Requirements

• Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Information Science, Knowledge Management, research, and/or communications is required.
• A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience, will be considered in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A research degree (master’s or bachelor’s) is an advantage.
• Minimum of 5 years (with master’s degree) or 7 years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant work experience in research and knowledge management, including demonstrated experience in applying research methodologies.

Skills

Core Competencies

• Achieve Results: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have a lasting impact.
• Think Innovatively: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems.
• Learn Continuously: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences.
• Adapt With Agility: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands.
• Act With Determination: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results.
• Engage And Partner: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration.
• Enable Diversity And Inclusion: Appreciate benefits of a diverse workforce and champion inclusivity.

Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies

• System Thinking: Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgment to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact other parts of the system.
• Knowledge Generation: Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need. Ability to apply existing concepts to new situations and develop new concepts to generate workable solutions and new approaches.
• Communication: Ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media, and other appropriate channels.
• Digital Awareness and Literacy: Ability to monitor new and emerging technologies, understand their usage, potential, limitations, impact, and added value. Ability to rapidly and readily adopt and use new technologies in professional activities and empower others to use them as needed.
• Working with Evidence and Data: Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform, and model data to discover useful information, inform conclusions, and support decision-making.
• Marketing Research and Data Analysis: Ability to create actionable marketing intelligence based on primary and secondary research and data analysis.
• Relationship Management: Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain, and/or strengthen working relations, trust, and mutual understanding.

Desired Skills

• Experience in development programming on SDGs, preferably in a national setting.
• Experience publishing analytical and research papers, think pieces, and blogs.
• Knowledge of and experience in volunteerism with its diverse manifestations, preferably in a development setting.
• Experience in the UN system or other international organizations.

Qualifications

• Fluency in English is required.
• Working knowledge of another official UN language, preferably French, Arabic, and/or Russian, is a strong asset.