Title of Assignment: Consultant (Product Technical Owner)
Name of unit/sector: Administration, Finance and Management Sector Information and Communication Technology Department - Enterprise Solutions Division
Place of Assignment: Remote (up to 100%) or Hybrid or On-site at WIPO HQ, Geneva, Switzerland. For remote work, a maximum time zone difference of 3 hours from CET is allowed
Expected places of travel (if remote): Geneva, for an estimate of cumulated 2-4 weeks during initial assignment period
Expected duration of assignment: 6 months with a possibility of renewal
1. Organizational Context
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) serves the worldโs innovators and creators, ensuring that their ideas travel safely to the market and improve lives everywhere.
WIPO provides services that enable creators, innovators and entrepreneurs to protect and promote their intellectual property (IP) across borders and acting as a forum for addressing cutting-edge IP issues. Our IP data and information guide decisionmakers the world over.
Meetings, conferences, and events are central to WIPOโs mission of fostering international collaboration and working towards making the IP system fair, balanced, and accessible to all. They help promote the alignment of IP standards across nations, encourage innovation, and protect the rights of creators and innovators worldwide.
WIPO has, over many years, deployed a suite of conference management systems and tools to manage meeting invitation/circular mailings, conference room bookings, meeting document distribution, and participant registration processes. These systems are largely stand-alone, developed and maintained inhouse, and are running on legacy technologies that are not part of WIPOโs enterprise solution environment.
WIPO is now modernizing its conference management system by adopting Indico solution. WIPO is therefore looking for a Product Technical Owner (PTO). The PTO is responsible for driving the technical solution design and implementation of software products. Acting as the bridge between business requirements and technical execution, the PTO ensures that solutions are architected, developed, and maintained in alignment with organizational goals and technical standards. This role collaborates closely with business stakeholders, and IT governance bodies to deliver robust, scalable, and future-proof software systems. The PTO is also expected to anticipate technological trends, assess their impact, and ensure continuous improvement in software development practices.
2. Objective of the assignmentย
The Product Technical Owner will participate closely in the implementation of the Conference solution leveraging Indico, including solution implementer oversight and quality assurance, ensuring adequate implementation and delivery in line with business requirements and in collaboration with Project Team. The PTO will ensure as well proper solution transfer to production and setting up operational capability.ย
2.1 Tasks
The Product Technical Owner will perform the following principal duties:
a) Solution Architecture Design
โข Participate to the design of the overall Indico solution architectureย
โข Map integration points with existing enterprise systems (Physical Security, Zoom, SharePoint, Interpretation Management System, Online Registration, Document Management System, etc.)ย
โข Define data models and entity relationshipsย
โข Establish security framework and compliance controlsย
โข Create technical documentation and solution blueprintsย
b) System Configuration and Customization
โข Participate to configuration of Indico to meet business requirementsย
โข Direct development of custom entities, forms, workflows, and business rules โข Guide creation of custom dashboards and reportsย
c) Systems Integration
โข Orchestrate integration between Indico and third-party systemsย
โข Lead development of APIs and integration middlewareย
โข Ensure enterprise architecture standards complianceย
d) Systems Testing. System Integration Testing and User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
โข Create system, system integration test scriptsย
โข Create UAT test scripts that meet acceptance criteriaย
โข Employ automated testing where possibleย
โข Participate in system testing, system integration testing ย
โข Manage User Acceptance Testing with the end usersย
e) Change Management
โข Develop user training materials and documentationย
โข Coordinate training sessions for different user groupsย
3. Deliverablesย
The Product Technical Owner will work in collaboration with project and implementation team to achieve the following deliverables:ย
a) Solution Architecture Package
โข High-level solution architecture diagramย
โข Detailed technical architecture specificationsย
โข Integration architecture blueprintย
โข Data model and entity relationship diagramsย
โข Security and compliance framework documentย
b) Design & Configuration
โข Functional Design Documentsย
โข Detailed functional specificationsย
โข System configuration documentationย
โข Customization design documentsย
โข UI/UX design mockupsย
c) Technical Specifications
โข Custom development specificationsย
โข Code documentation and standardsย
โข API design and integration specification documentsย
d) Data migration strategy and plan
โข Source-to-target data mapping documentsย
โข Data transformation rules and scriptsย
โข Data validation criteria and test casesย
e) Integration
โข Integration requirements specificationย
โข Interface control documentsย
โข API documentationย
โข Integration test plans and test casesย
f) System testing, system integration testing and user acceptance testing (UAT)
โข System (unit) test scriptsย
โข System integration test scripts ย
โข User acceptance test scripts to meet acceptance criteriaย
โข Test reports for the different testingย
g) Post-Implementation Phase Deliverables
โข Transition to operation proceduresย
โข Operational Supportย
โข System Documentationย
h) As-built solution documentation
โข System administration guideย
โข Operations manualย
โข Maintenance procedures and schedulesย
โข Backup and disaster recovery documentation
4. Reporting ย
The Product Technical Owner will work under the supervision of the ERP Solution Manager (ESD / External Applications Team).ย
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5. Profile (e.g. area of specialization/expertise, specific knowledge/skills/experience)
a) Education and Certification
Required
โข University degree in information technology, computer science or a related field. Significant experience in the required field could be considered in lieu of the IT-related degree.
Desirable
โข Project Management certification (PMP, PRINCE2, or equivalent);ย
โข ITIL certification.
b) Experience
Required
โข 8 years of experience in piloting development teams;ย
โข 5 years of experience with configuring Indico solution;ย
โข 5 years of specific experience with Python language;ย
โข 5 years in managing containerized cloud environments (Docker / AWS);ย
โข Background in creating test scripts and conducting user acceptance sessions and reportingย
โข Experience in post-implementation support and continuous improvement initiatives;ย
โข Track record of successful stakeholder management at executive levels.
Desirable
โข Experience in change management and user adoption strategies;ย
โข Proven ability to manage project budgets, timelines, and resources.
c) Languageย
Required
โข Excellent communication skills; spoken and written English
d) Job Related Competencies
Required
โข Ability to architect and oversee the development of complex software solutions, ensuring alignment with business needs and technical standards.ย
โข Advanced knowledge of Python languageย
โข Strong problem-solving skills, with the ability to analyze business requirements and technological trends to inform solution design.ย
โข Excellent communication skills to facilitate collaboration between business and technical teams, and to ensure clear understanding of requirements and solutions.ย
โข Capacity to thrive in fast-paced, evolving environments, and to adapt solutions as business needs and technologies change.ย
โข Commitment to leading software and user acceptance testing and ensuring the delivery of high-quality, maintainable, and secure systems.ย
โข Proactive in identifying opportunities to enhance software development practices and processes.ย
โข Ensures alignment with organizational technical standards and participates in IT governance activities.
Desirable
โข Project Management skills
6. Duration of the Contract and Payment
Initial contract duration is 6 months, from March 2026 to August 2026 renewable depending on performance, needs and budget.
Applicants are requested to provide an indication of their remuneration expectations of a daily rate in either Swiss francs, Euros, or USD.
Payment will be made on a monthly basis, subject to submission of invoices by the Contractor, satisfactory completion of services and deliverables. ย ย
7. Other information
ICS contractors fall outside the coverage of employment contracts for WIPO Staff members and are not subject to the WIPO Staff Regulations and Rules. The contractor has no entitlement to vacation or sick leave, except for WIPO official holidays, or to medical insurance or staff pension. Absences from work will be deducted from the contractorโs payment on a pro-rated basis.
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