UN Innovation Toolkit

As the United Nations faces a number of pressing issues, it is time to make innovative thinking the new normal. Developed by the UN, for the UN, this digital platform includes twenty-one tools, step-by-step directions, worksheets, case studies, references as well as a 27-question assessment which provides a diagnosis on every user’s strengths and areas for improvement.

Upon request of the UN Secretary-General, the UN Innovation Toolkit was developed under the leadership of the UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB) in close collaboration with the UN Innovation Network and innovators from 30+ UN Entities. The toolkit has been entrusted to UN System Staff College (UNSSC) to ensure dissemination and integration into relevant capacity building and innovation efforts.

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WHAT IS THE TOOLKIT?
The Toolkit is a digital platform that you can access anywhere, anytime, from your computer, tablet, or mobile phone. It includes 21 tools that are grounded in research and contextualized for the diverse operating realities of UN organizations. The Toolkit also includes an innovation diagnostic, a 27-question survey that assesses a user’s relative innovation strengths and growth areas. The Toolkit was endorsed by the SecretaryGeneral, Members of the Chief Executives Board, and tested by over 120 staff from 36 UN entities as well as the UN High Level Committee on Management.

INNOVATION IN THE CONTEXT OF THE UN
Innovation can take a number of forms – from process and policy changes, to new business models and ways of engaging stakeholders – and can be both programmatic and operational in nature. The Secretary-General has challenged all UN entities to think creatively, work collaboratively, and take smart risks. Innovation consists of doing something new and different whether solving an old problem in a new way, addressing a new problem with a proven solution, or bringing a new solution to a new problem.

The Toolkit is designed to help UN entities accelerate and sustain innovation, regardless of the problems they are trying to solve or the “newness” of the solutions they are seeking to explore.