JOB DESCRIPTION

Innovation Officer – Storytelling

Job #: req32803 Organization: World Bank Sector: Other Grade: GF Term Duration: 3 years 0 months Recruitment Type: International Recruitment Location: Washington, DC,United States Required Language(s): English Preferred Language(s): Closing Date: 5/5/2025 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

 

Description

Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? Working at the World Bank provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. The World Bank is one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries; a unique global partnership of five institutions dedicated to ending extreme poverty, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org.

Office of the Senior Managing Director for Development Policy and Partnerships

The Senior Managing Director’s (SMD) key mandate includes overseeing the Bank’s knowledge and partnership programs and ensuring that the Bank’s analytical work continues to address the pressing development challenges facing client countries and global partners. The office is responsible for the Evolution Roadmap, G20 and G7 engagements, the implementation of the Knowledge Compact, as well as the replenishment of IDA, the Bank’s concessional lending arm for the poorest countries. It provides strategic guidance on the WB’s global knowledge and IDA corporate commitments; oversees key partnerships with shareholders, development agencies, other multilateral development banks (MDBs) and academia; helps shape and drive the Bank’s strategic directions; and through the Trust Fund portfolio in Global Practices, mobilizes support and financial resources across the international community to bring concessionally to our work.

Building on the progress of past efforts, the WBG Knowledge Compact for Action aims to empower clients, public and private, by systematically making the latest knowledge available to respond more effectively to increasingly complex development challenges. This includes knowledge embedded in policy advice, expertise and know-how, including from financing operations, as well as the latest research, data and tools to formulate robust development policies and programs. The Compact will deliver this knowledge to clients under the four pillars of enhanced products, partnerships, learning and systems. To advance the knowledge agenda, the practice groups will be organized into five vertical vice presidencies aligned with the new mission (People, Prosperity, Planet, Infrastructure and Digital). In addition, three new departments are being created to enhance coordination, integration and outcome orientation across the WBG.

Department for Innovation

The Department for Innovation was established to drive forward-thinking approaches to address complex development challenges facing the world today. It has three pillars to its work program: (i) lead innovation initiatives -in collaboration with the verticals, regions, corporate units, IFC and MIGA, that help strengthen the implementation of the evolution agenda and find new solutions for development challenges; (ii) build a collaborative and experimental innovation ecosystem within the institution; and, (iii) evaluate innovation initiatives to measure their effectiveness, efficiency, and impact for potential scaling in the Bank’s interventions.

The department’s approach is anchored in human-centered design / design thinking. A key element to HCD is developing narratives and stories that help capture the human aspects of innovations and use it to cultivate a culture of innovation.

Duties and accountabilities:

The Department for Innovation is looking for a highly motivated Innovation Officer – “Storytelling”. The selected candidate is expected to be entrepreneurial, resourceful and with extensive experience in leading and delivering storytelling campaigns to win the hearts and minds of staff and cultivate the culture of innovation across the institution.

• Develop the innovation storytelling strategy with an objective of embedding innovation in the culture by collaborating with corporate communication counterparts and senior external advisors.
• Design, develop, and implement innovation storytelling campaigns aligned with strategy, institutional goal and staff needs and ensure timely delivery
• Create content in various forms including articles, newsletters, press releases, blogs, short videos, presentations and FAQs etc. along the journey of innovation for the institution including telling the story of why innovation is core to WBG and preview the future with innovation embedded in operations to win the hearts and minds of the WBG staff.
• Collaborate with corporate communication and other departments to identify storytelling needs, execute campaigns, and translate complex information into engaging content.
• Manage the department’s communication channels including but not limited to newsletters, intranet, social medias and community platforms in collaboration with corporate communications and under the guidance of senior colleagues
• Curate the latest storytelling resources and best practices, including generative AI,  to better serve the purpose of enhancing innovation culture .
• Serve as a core member in developing, refining, and executing the Department’s strategy and priorities to make innovation a core part of the WBG culture.
• Monitor, track, and analyze innovation storytelling campaign progress, metrics and outcomes. Translate insights into actionable recommendations to improve future storytelling activities and address the top demands of staff members.
• Support internal and external partner outreach efforts. Foster collaboration with internal and external stakeholders.
• Manage multiple projects from concept to completion while maintaining high quality.
• Create and manage internal storytelling systems and processes for organizational efficiency.
• Contribute to the innovation ecosystem by incorporating findings from storytelling campaigns to inform other innovation efforts.
• Drive preparation for internal and external events.
• Support other priorities of the Department.

Selection Criteria

• Advanced degree (PhD or Masters) in communication, innovation, public policy, international relations, business, marketing, journalism, political science, development, economics, or related field.
• Minimum 5 years of experience leading storytelling strategy and campaigns in a large organization or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Exposure to human-centered design/design thinking approaches are a plus but not mandatory.
• Experience in developing, leading and tailoring storytelling strategy and campaigns to engage a wide range of audience.  Skills in developing storytelling campaigns utilizing human-centered design thinking is a plus.
• Strong content development, writing, and editing skills. Creative thinker with strong attention to detail. Working knowledge of story gathering and communicating to different audiences, understanding of brand voice and tone.
• Committed to cultivating culture shifts by proactively identifying opportunities to enhance innovation. Passionate about driving innovation and solving complex global challenges.
• Familiarity in deploying a variety of storytelling channels including digital, print, in-person, broadcast to engage internal and external audience. Familiarity with the latest trends and technologies in digital media and storytelling.
• Experience managing complex cross-functional projects and teams. Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience working with diverse teams and introducing new concepts to broad audiences at various seniority levels.
• Strong collaboration and relationship management skills, with demonstrated ability to partner effectively with internal leaders, cross-functional teams, and external partners.
• Strong interpersonal skills including positive attitude, flexibility to work in a team-oriented and multi-cultural environment.
• Collaborates with other team members and contributes productively to the team’s work and output, demonstrating respect for different points of view.
• Strategic and systems thinker, able to see the big picture and connect the dots.
• Empathic, collaborative, high EQ and people skills. High level of integrity and discretion and sound business judgment.
• Credible and trusted, strong communicator, able to lead with courage of conviction.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Experience managing social media platforms (IG, FB, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube) is a plus but not required.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

Learn more about working at the World Bank and IFC, including our values and inspiring stories.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements