Chief Executive, Unicef Uk

Chief Executive, UNICEF UK
London, UK with international travel
Circa £160k plus benefits
Permanent
Reporting to: Chair, Board of Trustees

UNICEF works to build a better world for every child, every day. A world where every child has the chance to fulfil their potential and grow up healthy and safe.

UNICEF has more than 13,000 people working for children in more than 190 countries responding to emergencies and building long-term resilience. We save children’s lives with vaccines, clean water, and therapeutic food. We protect children from violence, exploitation, and abuse. We support quality education that empowers children. And we seek to create a safe and sustainable world where children can live, learn, and grow.

UNICEF operates the world’s largest humanitarian response for children. Reaching children whenever and wherever they need us most. We advise governments, influence businesses, and lobby leaders to create lasting change for children.

The UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK) is a registered charity that raises funds for UNICEF’s work for children around the world and advocates for lasting change for children worldwide. We uphold the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and work with partners and supporters to promote children’s voices, unlock resources for children, and advocate for and create change.

We have delivered programmes for children in the UK for more than 25 years and reach around 2.5 million children each year through our Baby Friendly Initiative, Rights Respecting Schools Award, and Child Friendly Cities and Communities programmes.

We are now seeking an outstanding leader to join us as our new Chief Executive.  We have come a long way in the last few years, and this is an exciting moment in our organisation’s development to join us.  You will lead our ambitious strategic plan for 2023-2026 as well as playing a critical role building and delivering our next strategy. 

We are proud of our talented and values driven team of colleagues and are seeking a new Chief Executive that will share those values (Our Shared Commitment), providing inspirational leadership internally and supported by a dynamic Executive Team and committed Board of Trustees. 

You will also provide strong representation with the international UNICEF movement, with policy makers, the media, opinion formers, supporters and the public. 

You are likely to have experience as the Chief Executive or senior leader within a large UK charity or humanitarian organisation that operates at scale.  To succeed, it is essential that you have the capability and diplomatic approach to thrive in the complex and unique environment of leading a charity that is also part of a global organisation. 

If this all sounds like you and you would relish the challenge of leading us through our next chapter of significant growth in income, influence and impact, then we would love to hear from you.

Timeline

Closing date: Sunday 17 March 2024.

Preliminary Interviews with GatenbySanderson: 26 March – 11 April. Stakeholder Meetings and Psychometric Testing: from w/c 15 April – dates TBC.

FinalPanels: 10 May and 15 May.

How to Apply
GatenbySanderson has been appointed as UNICEF UK’s recruitment partner for this process. Candidates will be asked to submit applications via the Applied platform, which can be accessed by following the Apply link on the website.

https://unicefuk-ceo.co.uk/

Candidates will be asked to register on the Applied platform with their email and then guided through the application process. As part of this, Candidates will be asked to respond to five specific questions related to the role requirements and to submit their CV. Partially completed applications will be saved and can be completed at a later time. A link to your application will be sent to your email address.

Candidate assessment will be anonymous to reduce the impact of bias in the assessment process. Answers to the five questions will be scored independently by reviewers, and CVs will not be reviewed as part of our assessment of applications. Candidates should therefore take care to provide sufficient details and evidence of their skills and experience in their answers to ensure reviewers can assess Candidates against the role requirements accurately. A separate supporting statement will not be required as part of the application process.

For a confidential conversation about this opportunity, please contact:

Researcher: Jennie.Wood@gatenbysanderson.com

Partner: Fiona.Wansborough@gatenbysanderson.com

Partner:Emily.Nevins@gatenbysanderson.com

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

At UNICEF UK, we promote equity, diversity and inclusion in our workplace. We live these out through our values and ways of working, and through creating an organisation and culture that represent and embrace the world around us.

We make employment decisions by matching business needs with the skills and experience of candidates, irrespective of age, disability (including hidden disabilities), gender, gender identity or gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, or sexual orientation.

We are committed to making sure that everyone who applies for a role with us experiences a fair, transparent, and inclusive process.