Manager, Community, Policy and Advocacy, DIAL

Position Overview

The Digital Impact Alliance (DIAL) aims to advance a more equitable world through a shared vision of a positive digital future. We connect people with evidence on digital tools that work for society through research, demonstrations, and advocacy. We collaborate with others to promote digital systems that hold qualities of inclusion, trust, choice, and human agency, with a particular focus on the themes of effective digital public infrastructure and strong data governance.

Hosted within the UN Foundation in Washington, DIAL is a partnership among some of the world’s biggest digital development champions, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the United Kingdom’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, among others.

Principles for Digital Development:

As part of DIAL’s mandate, we steward the Principles for Digital Development (Digital Principles). The Digital Principles are a set of nine guidelines meant to help digital development

practitioners better integrate digital tools and technology in their strategies, projects, and programs. In this role, DIAL encourages community conversations about digital development, curates knowledge and resources for digital development practitioners, including implementing organizations (international and humanitarian NGOs), donors, and country governments, and promotes awareness, endorsement, and adoption of the Digital Principles.

Africa Data Leadership Initiative:

The Africa Data Leadership Initiative (ADLI) is a peer engagement and learning network for senior practitioners tackling the thorniest data policy and governance issues, building the capacity of decision makers across the continent through exchange of knowledge and experiences within a values-oriented framework designed to expand the value of data for governments, markets, and people while safeguarding key civil liberties. In this current growth stage, ADLI will expand participation in the network from five to 16 countries and create new cohorts of parliamentarians and government digital technology coordinators–leaders of agencies charged with executing national digital policies.

Working closely with the Senior Director for Policy & Advocacy and the DIAL leadership team, the Community Manager will help shape and implement DIAL’s strategy for enabling the digital development community’s capacity through the Digital Principles and ADLI communities of practice. This will include promoting the adoption of good practice and collaboration between key stakeholders in order to achieve greater collective impact; managing and coordinating the networks through regular communications; contributing to strategy development and business plans for long term planning and sustainability; providing thought leadership and programmatic support to other DIAL teams as needed; working closely with DIAL staff to implement donor / funder project activities; and serving as a champion of the DIAL’s values and priorities for digital transformation. On a limited basis, the Community Manager will oversee delivery of Digital Principles trainings.

The Community Manager will report to and be supervised by the Senior Director, Policy & Advocacy for overall guidance, work planning, and performance reviews.

This position is based in Washington D.C. or remote.

Essential Functions

Principles for Digital Development:

• Manage the Principles endorser network, including responding to inquiries from potential and new endorsers and collaborating on Digital Principles-related publications to highlight the Principles in Practice
• Organize “Pulse on the Principles” convenings of the endorser network to share DIAL knowledge products and enable practitioners to network and learn together
• Respond to, and if appropriate, organize and lead delivery of “Principles 101” trainings with key DIAL stakeholders
• Lead a strategy review of DIAL’s stewardship of the Digital Principles based on consultations with stakeholders and a financial analysis. This review will culminate in concrete, well-formed recommendations for DIAL leadership and the board

Africa Data Leadership Initiative:

• Coordinate the ADLI peer network in coordination with anchor partners Smart Africa and UN Economic Commission for Africa
• Organize and support ADLI roundtables
• Create and institute a governance structure to support network growth and ensure ADLI is integrated with priority initiatives of DIAL, Smart Africa, and UNECA
• Contribute to the development of a staffing plan and business plan for ADLI that encompasses aspirations for both growth and sustainability
• Develop a communications strategy to give the ADLI brand greater recognition and influence among key digital/data governance decision makers across Africa
• Serve as a champion of ADLI and DIAL with data sharing/governance stakeholders

DIAL-wide Support:

• Engage internal DIAL stakeholders to support the inclusion of the Digital Principles and ADLI throughout their work, as relevant
• Provide input into the design of DIAL’s organizational strategy, incorporating aspects of the Digital Principles and ADLI across objectives and thematic areas
• Support the successful delivery of DIAL’s approach to funder coordination and collaboration by designing processes, tools, and training to support that work
• Other duties as assigned

Selection Criteria:

• Bachelor’s degree required and/or significant equivalent work experience with an international NGO or technology sector background. Master’s degree preferred
• 5-7 years of relevant work experience
• Familiarity with current trends in digital development, including digital public infrastructure and data governance
• Passion for the mission and purpose of the Principles for Digital Development and the Africa Data Leadership Initiative
• Demonstrated experience designing, managing, and delivering projects with limited supervision.
• Strong facilitation skills and significant experience of designing, planning, and delivering effective trainings in person or virtually
• Experience developing business plans and models, in the context of commercial or sustainable training and capacity-building programs
• Comfort and experience working independently and autonomously, managing multiple competing priorities, and working within a team spread across time zones
• Entrepreneurial, strategic thinker who enjoys being a thought partner and collaborator on new projects, with the ability to design and own projects from beginning to end and talent for creative problem solving, perseverance, flexibility, and resilience. Able to thrive in environments of ambiguity and enjoys being a thought partner on new ventures
• Detail-oriented and results-driven
• Fluent in English with excellent oral and writing skills: able to convey complex information in a simple and compelling way that is targeted to its audience

Benefits & Compensation 

For full-time, benefit eligible employees, UNF offers an excellent range of benefits, including:

• a choice between two health plans through UnitedHealthcare (PPO or HDHP with HSA)
• dental insurance
• vision insurance
• flexible spending accounts
• 403b retirement savings plan with a generous matching contribution
• group term and supplemental life insurance
• short-term disability
• long-term disability
• health club discounts
• commuter subsidy
• back-up care
• employee assistance program

Additionally, all benefit eligible employees have 12 paid holidays, 20 vacation days, 10 sick days, 3 personal days, and 8 weeks of family leave care.

** Closing date: January, 20. 2023 ** 

The United Nations Foundation is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative-action employer. The United Nations Foundation provides equal employment opportunity to all employees and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.