Grade: A
Location: Songdo, Incheon, Republic of Korea
Deadline: 17 August 2026 (11:59 PM KST)
Recruitment Managed By: Korn Ferry
Introduction
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) stands at the center of the global climate finance architecture as the largest dedicated multilateral climate fund. With a portfolio spanning 360 projects across 134 countries and over USD 20.5 billion committed to date, the organization plays a defining role in enabling developing countries to pursue low-emission, climate-resilient development pathways. The scale of ambition is expanding rapidly, with an additional USD 12.8 billion pledged for the 2024–2027 cycle and a long-term vision to grow into a USD 50 billion fund by 2030.
What distinguishes GCF is not only its financial scale, but its mandate to operate with flexibility, innovation, and a high tolerance for calculated risk. It convenes governments, private sector actors, and civil society to mobilize capital flows at a level that can meaningfully address climate change. Within this context, the Chief Strategy and Impact Officer (CSIO) role is one of the most influential positions in global climate governance, shaping how strategy translates into measurable, real-world outcomes.
About the Organization
Established in 2010 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), GCF was created by 194 countries to channel climate finance where it is needed most. Its country-driven model ensures that investments are aligned with national priorities, while its financing instruments allow it to engage both public and private sector partners. Beyond funding, GCF plays a crucial role in strengthening institutional capacity through its Readiness Programme, enabling countries to manage their own climate futures more effectively.
Headquartered in South Korea, the organization brings together a highly diverse workforce representing nearly 80 nationalities. This diversity is not incidental; it is essential to the Fund’s ability to operate globally, navigate complex political environments, and design solutions that are locally relevant yet globally scalable.
Position Objective
The CSIO serves as the intellectual and strategic backbone of the Green Climate Fund. Reporting directly to the Executive Director and operating as a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the role is responsible for shaping the Fund’s long-term direction while ensuring that its impact is rigorously measured, communicated, and continuously improved.
This is not a purely internal strategy role. It extends outward into global influence, requiring the individual to engage with evolving climate science, geopolitical developments, and financial innovation. The CSIO must ensure that GCF remains adaptive and forward-looking in a rapidly changing landscape, while also maintaining alignment between strategy, operations, and measurable outcomes.
What You Will Do
At its core, this role is about integrating strategy, evidence, and influence into a coherent system that drives global climate action. The CSIO leads the development and implementation of GCF’s Strategic Plan, ensuring that it reflects the latest scientific insights, economic realities, and policy developments. This involves not only setting direction but also ensuring that strategy is effectively cascaded into operational plans, budgets, and performance frameworks.
A central responsibility lies in overseeing monitoring, evaluation, and learning functions. This includes building systems that capture impact data, translating that data into actionable insights, and embedding a culture where decision-making is informed by evidence. The role requires transforming complex datasets into narratives that demonstrate GCF’s value to stakeholders, including governments, donors, and the broader international community.
The CSIO also plays a critical role in policy development, ensuring coherence across the organization and alignment with Board-level priorities. This involves close collaboration with other senior leaders to deliver timely, high-quality policy outputs that support the Fund’s mission.
Resource mobilization is another major pillar of the role. Working closely with the Executive Director, the CSIO leads efforts to secure funding through replenishment cycles and strategic partnerships. This includes engaging sovereign donors, private sector actors, and multilateral institutions, as well as representing GCF at high-level global forums such as the Conference of the Parties (COP).
In parallel, the role oversees communications, ensuring that GCF’s work is effectively conveyed to global audiences. This is not limited to traditional messaging but extends to shaping the Fund’s narrative as a leader in climate finance and impact delivery.
Leadership and Influence
The CSIO is expected to operate as a global thought leader, influencing discourse across climate finance, policy, and sustainable development. This involves engaging with multilateral organizations, research institutions, and private sector stakeholders to advance new ideas and partnerships. Internally, the role requires inspiring and guiding a diverse team, fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and continuous learning.
Leadership in this context is both strategic and human. The CSIO must be capable of building high-performing teams, mentoring senior staff, and creating an environment where talent can thrive. At the same time, the role demands the ability to navigate complex political and institutional dynamics with tact and credibility.
What You Need
This position requires a depth of experience that reflects its global significance. Candidates should bring at least 20 years of relevant professional experience, including a minimum of 10 years in senior leadership roles. A strong track record in developing and executing global strategies—particularly in climate finance, sustainable development, or international development—is essential.
Technical expertise must include a deep understanding of climate policy, financing mechanisms, and impact evaluation systems. Familiarity with global frameworks such as the UNFCCC and IPCC is highly advantageous, as is experience engaging with private sector investment in climate solutions.
Equally important are leadership capabilities. The ability to manage large, diverse teams, communicate complex ideas clearly, and influence high-level stakeholders is critical. The role also requires a strong commitment to inclusion, ethical leadership, and the broader mission of sustainable development.
Reality of the Role
This is a high-stakes leadership position operating at the intersection of politics, finance, and science. Decisions made in this role can influence billions of dollars in climate investments and affect the lives of vulnerable communities worldwide. The environment is fast-paced and often complex, requiring resilience, adaptability, and a capacity to make decisions under uncertainty.
Why This Role Matters
The effectiveness of global climate finance depends not only on the availability of resources but on how strategically and efficiently those resources are deployed. The CSIO ensures that GCF remains impactful, relevant, and accountable in its mission. By aligning strategy with measurable outcomes and amplifying the Fund’s influence globally, this role directly contributes to advancing climate action at scale.
Application Process
This recruitment is being managed by Korn Ferry. Qualified candidates will be contacted and screened directly by the firm. Candidates who have previously applied do not need to reapply, as existing applications will remain under consideration.
Apply Here
Bottom Line
This is one of the most senior and influential strategy roles in global climate finance. It is designed for a leader who can combine vision with execution, data with narrative, and global influence with organizational impact. For the right candidate, it offers a rare opportunity to shape how the world finances and delivers climate solutions at scale.