UNDP Jobs - 71914- Knowledge and Innovation Internship

Knowledge and Innovation Internship

Location :

Istanbul, TURKEY

Type of Contract :

Internship

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

10-May-17 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

Intern

Duration of Initial Contract :

estimated 26 May 2017-7 July 2017

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

possible extension up to 2 months

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

The UNDP Regional Hub for Europe and the CIS (based in Istanbul, Turkey) is UNDP’s main knowledge and advisory hub for the countries serviced by UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS (RBEC). Through its regional programme, the Hub provides advisory support and knowledge management and innovation services to UNDP Country Offices in the ECIS region in the areas of sustainable development, effective democratic governance, energy and resilience, gender, health and development.

UNDP’s Strategic Plan 2014-2017 envisions UNDP to be “a more knowledge-driven, innovative and open institution” and to achieve “greater organizational openness, agility and adaptability to harness knowledge, solutions and expertise”. More specifically the Strategic Plan sets out to “draw on knowledge and expertise gained in all development setting, thus, able to grasp and respond flexibly to common concerns and important differences between countries and regions”. It demands the “utilization of South-South and triangular cooperation, in particular, to share knowledge on policy and institutional issues”, emphasizing that UNDP’s “role will be that of a knowledge broker, builder of capacity and facilitator of exchanges driven primarily by programme countries themselves, working with other interested stakeholders”. During 2015, the UNDP Regional Hub for Europe and the CIS has carried out a knowledge management audit as well as a social network and collaboration analysis and produced a Knowledge Management Roadmap to further improve information management and enable further collaboration in conjunction with the global tools and intranet. With an introduction of a SharePoint-based RBEC Knowledge Management Gateway, launched in February 2016, as well as the social networking and collaboration tool, Yammer, the UNDP Regional Hub for Europe and the CIS is promoting better information management and collaboration with internal/external partners.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the day-to-day supervision of the Knowledge and Innovation team leader, the intern will perform the following tasks:

Conduct a research on existing faculties in Turkey working on a range of methods including big/new data, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, internet of things, social innovation;
Explore the feasibility of partnership with UNDP including specific models of engagement and work thereby maximizing expertise and competencies of all involved partners;
Proposed possible entry points for working with Country Offices (based on the review of their existing portfolios);
Prepare a report detailing the analysis, the feasibility and engagement options;
Other related tasks as required in supporting the work of the Knowledge and Innovation team.

Competencies

Strong interpersonal skills, communication and diplomatic skills, ability to work in a team;
Demonstrated keen interest in the work of the UN/UNDP;
Computer proficiency in standard software applications (MS Office, Excel, Word, Powerpoint);
Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;
Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations;
Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities;
Good IT literacy and understanding of existing knowledge management and collaboration tools.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Applicants to the UNDP internship programme must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements: a) be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher); b) be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent); or c) have graduated with a university degree in in fields such as international development, business management or other relevant field

Experience:

Previous related work experience in a national or an international entity would be an asset but is not a requirement
Experience in using SharePoint and/or Yammer is an asset

Language skills:

Proficiency in written and spoken English;
Knowledge of languages spoken in the Europe and the CIS region, especially of Russian, is an asset

Learning:

The intern will acquire a good overview on knowledge management and innovation work in UNDP, and a basic understanding of the roles of a Regional Hub in UNDP

Notes:

Financial Issues:
Internships within the UN system are unpaid and subject to conditions the applicant must get familiar with prior to signing his/her internship agreement. The costs associated with the internship must be borne by the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or by the student, who will have to obtain financing for subsistence and make his or her own arrangements for travel, accommodation etc.

Application procedure:
The application should contain:

Brief Cover Letter (in English) stating interest in and qualifications for the post;
Current and complete CV in English;

Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document. Selected candidate must submit following documents:

Official letter from the University confirming enrollment in a under-graduate or graduate-level degree programme;
Proof of medical and life/accident insurance valid for the location in which the internship will be carried out. Selected intern must have medical and life insurance.

UNDP only accepts interns for a minimum of 6 weeks and a maximum of 6 months. UNDP accepts no responsibility for costs arising from accidents and/or illness or death incurred during the internship. Interns are not staff members and may not represent UNDP in any official capacity. It is important to note that interns are responsible to arrange for their own visa and residence documents, and need to plan for these well in advance.

Subsequent Employment:
The purpose of the Internship Programme is not to lead to further employment with UNDP but to complement an intern’s studies. Therefore, there should be no expectation of employment at the end of an internship. More information available at: http://www.undp.org/internships/.