Senior Economist; Data Science

Composite Indicator Research Section, Department for Economics and Data Analytics, IP and Innovation Ecosystems Sector

Contract Duration - 2 years *

Duty Station: CH-Geneva

Final date to receive applications: 05-Aug-2026, 11:59:00 PM CET

a. Organizational Setting

The position is located in the Composite Indicator Research Section (CIRS) of the Department for Economics and Data Analytics (DEDA). This WIPO department studies how intellectual property (IP), innovation and intangible assets drive economic growth, and uses data science to map global innovation trends and technology diffusion. As part of this work, CIRS delivers flagship products such as the Global Innovation Index (GII) and supports the development and use of composite and other innovation indicators to advance innovation measurement.

Published annually, the GII evaluates nearly 140 economies using around 80 indicators and identifies the world’s top innovation clusters. It is a core function that supports WIPO Member States by providing high‑quality data and economic insights to inform evidence‑based policy making aimed at strengthening innovation ecosystems and IP policies and practices. Over 80% of WIPO Member States use the GII to monitor performance, strengthen innovation metrics, and shape national policy.

b. Purpose Statement

The Senior Economist (Data Science), reporting to the head of section, drives the Global Innovation Index (GII) as a strategic platform, strengthening global innovation measurement, benchmarking, and policy by providing Member States - across nearly 140 economies - with a credible and comparable basis for innovation decision‑making. Through the production and continuous development of the GII and its components, the role transforms data into actionable insights that enable governments to enhance innovation indicators, innovation performance and policy.

c. Work Relations

The incumbent closely collaborates with other DEDA and IES sections and cooperates with national government agencies, national and international statistical bodies, and other inter‑governmental organizations with a view to improving IP and innovation ecosystems and coordinating the various WIPO IES and other services on offer to this effect.

• a. Maximize the quality of GII World Innovation Cluster and Innovation Economy Rankings
  :
  Manage the full process of GII data collection and audit, coordinating across data providers, building new data partnerships and enforcing robust quality controls to deliver the report reliably and on time, the foundation of the credible, comparable rankings that governments act on. Lead the analysis and author chapters of the GII, and provide substantive inputs to its other components, turning complex data into clear findings that policymakers, business and the media act on.
• b. Building the GII infrastructure of the future leveraging technology and AI
  :
  Enhance the availability, accuracy and strategic use of innovation data by conceptualizing and overseeing a modern GII data infrastructure - leveraging automation, advanced AI tools and robust data management processes - to strengthen data quality, improve the performance and reliability of measurement systems, and enable the continuous development of timely and credible innovation indicators.
• c. Innovation measurement framework and methodology
  :
  Contribute to the conceptual frameworks and methods underlying innovation indicators, defining the measurement scope, indicator selection and analysis, including via the GII Innovation Ecosystems & Data Explorer and its GII Economy and GII Innovation Cluster Profiles, so the GII measures what matters for policy and stays methodologically sound. Conduct research to guide new approaches aimed at closing gaps in measuring innovation and creativity, with a special focus on the development of big and micro‑data, and the production of scalable, comparable, high‑quality indicators to enhance global innovation benchmarking, inform decision‑making, and strengthen the organization’s leadership in innovation and IP measurement and policy.
• e. Contribution to growth
  :
  Share insights with…