Evaluation Specialist

Job Posting Organization:
UN Women was established in July 2010 by the United Nations General Assembly as the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The organization was created as part of the UN reform agenda to consolidate resources and mandates for greater impact on gender equality and women's empowerment. UN Women merges and builds upon the work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system that focused on gender issues: DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW, and UNIFEM. The organization operates globally, with a mission to eliminate discrimination against women and girls, empower women, and achieve equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action, and peace and security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">security. UN Women emphasizes accountability on gender equality through evaluation and learning, and it aims to enhance its role at country, regional, and global levels.

Job Overview:
The Evaluation Specialist will play a crucial role in leading and supporting corporate, institutional, and thematic evaluations within UN Women. This position requires a strong commitment to promoting the use of evaluation findings and collaborating with UN and other evaluation partners. The specialist will be responsible for ensuring that evaluations meet the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) professional standards, applying both quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis tools. The role also involves preparing reports and briefing materials, organizing knowledge management discussions, and ensuring that evaluation results are integrated into project design and implementation. The Evaluation Specialist will lead technical support for knowledge management and evaluation use, keeping abreast of developments in gender equality evaluation and sharing evaluative information across communities of practice. Additionally, the specialist will promote UN coordination on gender-responsive evaluation initiatives, collaborating with other UN evaluation units and participating in taskforces.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Conduct and support impartial and independent evaluations that adhere to UNEG professional standards. This includes leading evaluations, promoting stakeholder ownership, and ensuring alignment with country evaluation systems.
• Ensure that evaluation findings and recommendations are effectively followed up by preparing reports and briefing materials for stakeholders, organizing meetings and workshops, and liaising with project managers to integrate evaluation results into project design.
• Lead the implementation of evaluation use and knowledge management strategies, exploring innovative approaches in gender equality evaluation and providing guidance to project managers.
• Collaborate with other UN evaluation units on joint evaluation initiatives and contribute to the inclusion of gender equality dimensions in system-wide evaluations.
• Perform other duties as necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess strong technical knowledge of evaluation components, including design, data collection, analysis, and reporting. They should have substantive knowledge of gender-responsive evaluation methodologies and a demonstrated understanding of a human rights-based approach. The ability to synthesize evaluative information and write clear evaluation reports is essential. Candidates should also have a broad knowledge of social development issues relevant to UN Women's strategic priorities on gender equality and women's rights, as well as the ability to manage tasks and supervise evaluation teams. Familiarity with Results-Based Management principles is also required.

Educational Background:
An advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) in evaluation, social science, or a related field is required. Alternatively, a first-level university degree combined with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree. A project/programme management certification, such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®, would be an added advantage.

Experience:
A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in evaluation, preferably within normative, development, or humanitarian contexts, is required. Candidates should have proven experience in leading or conducting evaluations, with a focus on gender equality analytical work and programming. Experience in international organizations or similar complex environments is desirable, as is experience in evaluation use and knowledge management. Field experience is also preferred, along with proficiency in office software and web-based management systems.

Languages:
Fluency in English is required, while knowledge of another official UN language (French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, or Spanish) is desirable.

Additional Notes:
The position is expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures, including a zero-tolerance policy on conduct incompatible with the aims of the United Nations. Selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks, including verification of academic credentials and employment history. Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form are completed to avoid disqualification from the recruitment process.