The state of innovation, data and digital capabilities in the UN family

Addressing the risk of growing capability gaps:

For the United Nations family, building 'next-generation' innovation, data and digital capabilities is a strategic priority. To support leaders and colleagues in the change process, we run an annual capacity mapping across 50 UN organizations, review progress with the Secretary-General's Senior Management Group, and deliver scorecards to each chief executive. Despite good progress, the 2020 assessment revealed growing gaps between leading UN organizations and those struggling with innovation, data and digital change.

Complementing the Secretary-General's Data Strategy, we therefore focused our latest system-wide capacity mapping on what leaders can do now to foster the data capabilities our organizations need to effectively serve 'people and planet' in the 21st century.

Organizations cannot skip steps on the improvement path:

To build internal capacity sustainably, UN organizations should pursue approaches tailored to their current strength – combining tiers of foundational, systematic, and transformational initiatives – without skipping steps. Our key recommendations for each tier include:

• Foundational: Develop problem-driven data strategies, recruit data analysts, leverage shared data architectures, nurture strong and consistent leadership engagement, build knowledge communities.
• Systematic: Focus on data engineering capacity, create dedicated centres of excellence, establish top-level data governance mechanisms, enable cross-functional collaboration.
• Transformational: Recruit data scientists, focus on complex high-value tasks (e.g. making sense of unstructured data, using predictive analytics and data models in resource optimization, risk management, impact modelling, etc.)

Key insights on the state of UN family 'next-gen' capabilities:

1. Most UN family organizations have clarified vision, strategies and plans for innovation, data and digital change.
2. About half of organizations have begun shifting significant resources and strengthened internal governance for change initiatives.
3. Most executives are now putting innovation, data & digital issues on management agendas and are engaging in resource decisions.
4. Outside expertise is not always sought where it is needed most.
5. Accountability of top management, incl. in management compacts, is still limited.
6. Key data policies & guidelines are in place in less than half of UN entities.
7. Every second entity reports significant internal data sharing challenges, incl. within the UN System.
8. Centres of excellence on digital, data and innovation help leading entities race ahead.
9. Leading entities can leverage their strong data sharing / integration capabilities to create more value in complex tasks.
10. Leading entities have created dedicated leadership (staff) roles on innovation, data and digital topics, but staffing needs in data-focused roles are significant across the board.
11. Data competencies are not mainstreamed for generalist roles.
12. Discouraging risk taking , fostering hierarchy and limiting delegation are seen as key cultural constraints to change.

For our full results and analysis, you can download the assessment here.

About our 'next-generation UN' capacity mapping:

Our annual UN System Innovation, Data and Digital Capacity Assessment is designed to foster improvements in strategy, organizational design, culture, policy and practice. Now in its third year, the assessment surveys leaders in UN System entities on the strength of organizational ‘capabilities’ and ‘cultures’.

Designed by the Secretary-General's Strategic Planning Unit with support from the UN Innovation Network, the UK's UN Reform Unit, UNICEF, UNDP and the Chief Executive Board Secretariat, the 2020 edition measured 80 detailed change attributes and received inputs from leaders in over 50 UN System entities.

For more information on the 'next-gen' capacity mapping, contact datastrategy@un.org

---

Disclaimer: The findings shared in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the United Nations and its member states.