Head, Spanish Translation Section - 26214-FT

Language Division, Patents and Technology Sector

Contract Duration - 2 years *

Duty Station: CH-Geneva

Final date to receive applications: 21-Aug-2026, 11:59:00 PM CET

1. Organizational Context

a. Organizational Setting

The post is in the Spanish Translation Section of the Language Division, Patents and Technology Sector. The Language Division is responsible for delivering comprehensive and high-quality language services in relation to: the translation of treaties and other international instruments administered by WIPO, national legislative texts, documents for the Assemblies of Member States, publications, reports of meetings and conferences and working documents for committees of experts and other bodies, and the WIPO website;

and the provision of interpretation services for the meetings of the WIPO Assemblies, committees and meetings organized by the various sectors.

b. Purpose Statement

The Head of the Spanish Translation Section is responsible for the strategic leadership and day-to-day management of the Section and its staff, driving digital transformation and implementing innovative solutions to ensure high quality, cost-effective, and timely delivery of texts translated into Spanish. The incumbent champions and oversees the integration of artificial intelligence, machine translation, and other language technologies, while ensuring standardization of best practices and continuous improvement in line with the Organization's strategic objectives.

c. Reporting Lines

The incumbent works under the supervision of the Director of the Language Division.

d. Work Relations

The incumbent collaborates closely with Section Heads across the Division and other stakeholders including technology teams (Advanced Technology Applications Center (ATAC), Information and Communication Technology Department (ICTD), Translation and Terminology Technology Section (TTTS) of the PCT Translation Division) to ensure standardized adoption of language technologies.

2. Duties and Responsibilities

The incumbent will perform the following principal duties:

a. Lead the digital transformation of the Section by championing the systematic adoption, integration, and standardization of artificial intelligence (AI), neural machine translation (NMT), computer-assisted translation and terminology (CATT) tools, translation management systems (TMS), and other emerging language technologies; drive change management initiatives to ensure smooth technology adoption, facilitate acceptance and address implementation challenges, and foster a culture of innovation and continuous learning within the Section.

b. Develop and implement a strategic vision for the Section aligned with organizational objectives, focusing on efficiency gains, cost optimization, and quality enhancement; establish and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and quality metrics, using data analytics to inform decision-making, optimize workflows, and measure and communicate impact and results in accordance with results-based management principles.

c. Lead, plan and control translation, revision, editing, machine translation post-editing (MTPE), terminological, reference and word processing work, determining priorities and allocating staff resources for the timely, quality and cost-effective delivery of outputs.

d. Manage and evaluate the work performed by staff of the Section (including temporary staff) and by contractual translators; guide, mentor and counsel staff; develop comprehensive training and capacity-building plans to promote the best utilization of their skills and support their professional development in line with evolving industry requirements.

e. Revise and approve complex, urgent, and sensitive texts; translate particularly complex, difficult or sensitive texts from English and at least one other official UN language; make authoritative linguistic determinations concerning the Spanish language and take decisions regarding terminology, style, usage, and quality standards.

f. Organize and supervise Spanish terminology and knowledge management work, including glossaries, technical vocabularies, translation memories, and related data collections; direct…