Director, Partnerships and Futures

General Information

Position Title
Director, Partnerships and Futures
Job Category
Leadership
Duty Station(s)
Copenhagen
Seniority Level
Executive Level
ICS Level
ICS 14
Contract Type
Staff \- IP \- FTA
Contract Level
IP D\-2
Posting Start Date
05\-Jun\-2026
Posting End Date
28\-Jun\-2026
Duration
2 years initially, renewable, subject to satisfactory performance and funding availability

Job Highlight

Lead the UNOPS Partnerships and Futures Group at the forefront of global development, shaping strategic partnerships, driving knowledge, innovation and foresight, and positioning the organization to scale impact across diverse partner ecosystems. As a key member of the senior leadership team, you will influence high\-level decision\-making, build transformative alliances, and ensure UNOPS remains agile, relevant, and future\-ready in delivering results for people and communities worldwide.

About the Group

The Partnerships and Futures Group (PFG) is responsible for strengthening and expanding UNOPS partnerships and building knowledge, innovation and foresight capabilities through non\-programmatic missions, underpinning UNOPS ability to scale up and speed up delivery for impact \- for the people we serve.

PFG works across the range of UNOPS partner segments \- including UN agencies, international financial institutions and multilateral/regional development banks, donors, partner country governments, vertical funds and multilateral initiatives, south\-south cooperation, and the philanthropic and private sectors \- to deepen engagement, expand implementation capacity and accelerate progress toward the SDGs.

PFG collaborates closely with HQ groups and geographic offices on partner segment strategies, partner leadership, and opportunity development, ensuring that partner engagement is coherent, intelligence\-driven and aligned with UNOPS strategic priorities to strengthen UNOPS positioning and visibility.

PFG leads the development of knowledge, innovation and foresight through eight thematic missions relating to the sustainable development goals, enabling UNOPS to anticipate partner needs and emerging trends and respond proactively to strengthen mission readiness. It brings mission\-led intent to partnerships and opportunity development, and drives the horizontal integration of missions into policy framing, service offering refinement and service delivery. It provides expertise and business partnering support to teams across UNOPS, and technical advice to partners.

PFG has personnel based in UNOPS headquarters in Copenhagen and in locations close to key partners: Beijing, Brussels, Manila, Riyadh, Tokyo, and Washington.

Role Purpose

The Director, PFG provides leadership and strategic direction of the group, working collaboratively with key internal and external stakeholders to strengthen capabilities that support implementation of UNOPS 4\-year strategic plan to scale up and speed up delivery for impact for the partners and people UNOPS serves.

The Director, PFG reports directly to the Executive Director (ED), and supports the two Deputy Executive Directors (DEDs), respectively, Management and Policy (M\&P), and Delivery and Partnerships (D\&P).

The Director, PFG is accountable for:

• Driving growth in the volume and value of UNOPS portfolio of engagements and ensuring the portfolio is strategically aligned, diverse and balanced.


• Strengthening UNOPS positioning, ensuring that it is demand\-ready for partner needs across mission thematic areas.


• Driving increases in partner satisfaction with the quality and delivery of UNOPS services.


• Ensuring PFG is adding value to the overall strategic direction of UNOPS.

Functions / Key Results Expected

1\. Organizational Leadership and Strategic Direction

• Serve as a senior organizational leader contributing to UNOPS corporate strategy, advising the Executive Director and senior management on emerging global trends, risks and opportunities in partnerships, knowledge, innovation and foresight.


• Translate UNOPS organizational mandate into a strategic vision and multi\-year plan for partnerships, knowledge, innovation and foresight that leverages innovation, strengthens organizational coherence and enhances UNOPS global positioning.


• Envision and advocate for the role of partnerships, knowledge, innovation and foresight as core drivers of sustainable development and operational excellence within and beyond UNOPS.


• Ensure alignment between PFG priorities and organizational goals, while championing initiatives that strengthen leadership capacity, institutional resilience, and long\-term impact.

• Lead the development, implementation and continuous evolution of the strategies and approaches that define how UNOPS develops partnerships and integrates knowledge, innovation and foresight across the organization.


• Ensure the quality and effectiveness of partnerships, knowledge, innovation and foresight across UNOPS, building capabilities and sharing accountability for results with regional and country offices and headquarters groups.


• Promote devolved, empowered decision\-making models that place accountability and authority closest to the point of delivery while ensuring coherence and organizational learning.


• Guide regional and country teams on strategic negotiations, programme design and high\-impact engagements with partners, ensuring alignment with UNOPS priorities and global standards.


• Provide authoritative advice to the Executive Director, the Deputy Executive Directors, Regional Directors, governing bodies and external partners on complex and politically sensitive matters.

• Oversee the development of partner segment strategies for growth, framed by missions, and driven by partner needs and trends.


• Ensure segment portfolios are mission aligned and balanced, drawing on knowledge, innovation and foresight, and market intelligence.


• Serve as a member of the Strategic Portfolio Committee (SPC), providing strategic recommendations on portfolio composition, and the Portfolio Oversight Committee (POC), ensuring high\-stakes engagements are managed at the appropriate level and in a way that protects the organization while maximizing UNOPS impact.


• Oversee the generation and dissemination of segment and partner insights among UNOPS leadership team and partner\-facing personnel.


• Oversee the strengthening of quality standards for partnership development among partner\-facing personnel across UNOPS.

• Oversee the development and delivery of key partner strategies to strengthen relationships, engagement and positioning, and ensure mission\-led intent is embedded.


• Oversee Key Partner Leads (KPLs) in PFG and the functional coordination of KPLs across UNOPS geographic offices.


• Support the ED, DEDs and UNOPS leadership team in representing UNOPS and engaging with Member States, donors, international financial institutions, host governments and implementing partners to advance UNOPS strategic interests and expand opportunities for collaboration and partnership development.


• Represent UNOPS at the highest levels in inter\-agency bodies, executive boards, governing bodies and major international forums.


• Strengthen collaboration across the UN system, ensuring UNOPS contributes to collective results and sector\-wide standards.


• Oversee the development of global\-level capabilities to support opportunity development, and guide efforts to identify and develop opportunities with key partners in collaboration with regions and countries.

• Guide the development and advancement of missions, driving the creation of evidence and strategic insights, ensuring UNOPS credibility, visibility and positioning are strengthened across each mission and bringing mission\-led perspectives to senior discussions.


• Oversee the integration of knowledge, innovation and foresight through missions into policy and practice, working across Management \& Policy and Delivery \& Partnerships to align policy framing, service offering development and service delivery.


• Promote a culture of experimentation and learning that anticipates future needs and positions UNOPS to respond to global shifts.


• Oversee the establishment and continuous improvement of knowledge management, innovation and foresight frameworks, tools and capacity development approaches \- enabling personnel to access the right information at the right time and the organization to learn systematically, ensuring the organization remains at the forefront of global best practice and technological innovation.

• As a member of UNOPS global leadership team, role\-model UNOPS values and behavioral competencies.


• Drive leadership development and talent pipelines, ensuring the cultivation of the next generation of partnerships, knowledge, innovation and foresight leaders.


• Promote teamwork and collaboration across PFG, ensuring team members have clear direction, objectives and guidance to enable them perform their duties responsibly, effectively and efficiently.


• Foster a positive work environment that is respectful of all. Ensure appropriate focus on team well\-being, empowerment, diversity and inclusion and that the highest standards of conduct are observed.


• Champion organizational learning, continuous improvement, and a high\-performance culture.

Skills

Business Relationship Management, Growth Strategies, Key Account Development, Knowledge Management, Market Intelligence, Strategic Partnerships, Partner Development, Strategic Thinking

Competencies

Develops and implements sustainable business strategies, thinks long term and externally in order to positively shape the organisation. Anticipates and perceives the impact and implications of fut

Dette opslag er fra indeed. Se originalopslag ↗