United Nations reviews

There is no clear career progression. As part of the Young Professional Programme you move from your first post to a second post in a different geographic location after 2 - 2.5 years. The new post is at the same career level and it is then up to you to apply to higher posts in the organisation. However there are too few such posts, especially in coveted locations such as Geneva or NY. Staff who has served in difficult locations is not rewarded for their efforts or worse is penalised because they lack the network of those who started in Geneva or NY. There is also a lot of corruption in hiring, some managers hire friends or people they know. Meritocracy is low in the system at all levels, with some exceptions. Internal processes are extremely bureaucratic and wasteful of staff's time. HR is messy and often incompetent, but mostly it is not their fault because the system is governed by a complex system of byzantine rules. Some people get lazy and never leave Geneva or New York, others bravely go to serve in difficult locations but then get stuck there with very little support from the organisation. There needs to be more fairness in the way staff moves around locations. I think people who are only interested in headquarter jobs should not consider a career a the UN.

It has the systems of a billion dollar, global organization for a $20 million organization. The UN HR system is incredibly rigid and slow, making staff recruitment and replacement difficult. Compensation and benefits having decreased significantly over the past years. The system does not allow for promotion or any merit pay. The organization is very short of core (unrestricted funds) which necessitate difficult decisions that are not being made in a timely fashion.