The heart and mind of effective project management: A spotlight interview with Janice Golding

Delivering projects that advance Sustainable Development Goals requires more than technical expertise; it demands leadership and the ability to navigate the unique complexities of diverse projects. In this Spotlight Interview we speak with Dr. Janice Golding, Global Head for Quality Assurance, Project Reviews and Oversight at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), who was the first guest of the Project Management Conversations series. 

Based at UNEP Headquarters in Nairobi, Janice leads results-based management and project cycle management, advising divisions and regional offices to ensure effective and efficient delivery. She previously served as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s Environment Country Head in South Africa and briefly, as Climate and Energy Policy Specialist at UNDP Headquarters in New York. She is a former public servant in South Africa’s Ministry of Environment. 

A South African national, she holds a doctorate from the University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute and is a certified UN practitioner in Business Operations Strategy.  

She continues to publish independent academic contributions across diverse climate and environmental topics. 

Your accomplishments thus far in your career are very impressive. Before we talk about leading and delivering projects, can you share something from your family culture or early experiences that shaped you as a leader? 

Janice Golding: I come from the beautiful city of Cape Town, at the southern tip of Africa. In my family culture, I was taught from a very young age to be disciplined, hardworking, and focused on humanitarian development and social progress. 

Looking back, when I grew up in the 1970s, South Africa was a very robust political time, with a strong focus on social progress and human development. These were among the elements that shaped me. My father was a liberation theologist - a Christian priest and a political activist. I remember going on protests with him and watching him advise families, hospitals, and even prisons.  

Looking back, many of those values are aligned with the ones enshrined in the UN Charter: social justice, progress, respect for human rights, and saving the world from the devastation of war. Those were the primary elements that shaped who I am today. 

When you think about the most effective project managers you’ve worked with, what qualities made them successful? 

Janice Golding: I've had the privilege of working with incredible project managers who were also remarkable individuals. The best among them were those who balanced intellect with compassion. They understood the UN mandate, had a strong passion for their projects, and a profound love for people. 

I’ve often found that project managers driven by a particular set of values go about their profession in a very effective way. Having a good attitude, good heart and soul - that’s very important. Because project management is not just about the mechanics of the results framework, the risks, the safeguards, and the evaluations, it’s also about how you do it. 

In-country experience and especially working directly with government over years makes a huge difference. When you’re on the ground - working with UN country teams and stakeholders - you can plan and deliver much more effectively.  

Experience in fragile, violent, and conflict-affected countries also matters. Such environments require you to make bold emergency and crisis decisions. Some of these decisions will be successful, while others may not be; nonetheless, you are often confronted with difficult choices. This experience compels you to become skilled in organizational planning, sound decision-making, and exercising judgment, even when all the information is not available. This invaluable experience is essential for personal and professional growth. 

And, of course, financial literacy is essential. If you’re managing a $5–50 million project, you must understand the numbers as well as the programmatic side.  

The most effective project managers I’ve seen prioritize less talk over action. Solid field experience, conviction, humility, and understanding of numbers as well as the organizational policies and procedures matter greatly 

The climate crisis is escalating, and the UNEP holds the environmental mandate within the UN. With nearly 700 active projects, its portfolio is expanding rapidly. In this context, UNEP has made a certification in project management mandatory for staff overseeing projects. Why was this important? 

Janice Golding: Certification in project management is mandatory and tailored to our policies - evaluations, recruitment, procurement, legal aspects, and the project cycle. We developed an online self-paced UNEP-certified course with the Staff College. 

It wasn’t difficult to secure buy-in. Once we said, “We want to do this with UNSSC,” it was a winner. The Staff College has substantial experience in developing these kinds of programmes. That was one of the key ingredients for our success.  

An important factor in our approach was establishing a solid evidence base. We needed to address three key questions: Why is it essential to professionalize project management? How can we achieve this quickly? And how can we ensure that project managers—responsible for projects valued at $5 million, $10 million, $20 million, or even $80 million—truly understand our organizational policies? These considerations led us to advocate for a mandatory project management course. 

Within four months of launching, 130 staff had completed the certification. Today, about eighteen months later, over 670 staff members - including UN Volunteers and senior directors - are certified. 

Beyond certification, you also created a project management community of practice. What does it provide? 

Janice Golding: We realized certification alone wasn’t enough - colleagues needed a peer learning network. The community of practice is open to everyone who has been certified. It’s a bespoke forum to share ideas and exchange best practices. In such a space, everybody is equal. And because everyone has been certified, there’s no confusion around terminology or understanding. 

It’s a space where everybody is equal and demand-driven. In the policy and programme division, we don’t just invent topics—we keep an ear to the ground and structure sessions around real issues, such as project extensions, delays in implementation, and partner management. 

We don’t usually write up or take notes afterwards; it’s very informal. Colleagues come away feeling inspired. They know who’s in the network, who they can reach out to. They don’t always need to knock on official doors - they can turn to any colleague in the community as a point of learning and exchanging. That’s one of the defining attributes of UNEP’s project management community of practice. 

Why should people invest in their ability to lead and deliver projects? 

Janice Golding: It saves us from a lot of heartache in our jobs. The project management function in the UN system is universal and very wide –involving colleagues ranging from from programme officers to senior directors  - behind the project management function is a massive responsibility. The project management function is the principal modality by which UN agencies deliver their mandate so it’s important to build on that and invest in upskilling, whether in humanitarian coordination, infrastructure, or logistics. 

Having a broad thematic base will always be beneficial, as there is a general formula for project management. It also makes one more employable. If you can manage projects in crisis settings, you can quite likely manage projects on energy efficiency standards and labeling, or on elections and good governance. There are huge advantages to investing in and formalizing the project management function. 

Thank you, Janice, for this insightful conversation! We would like to finish by asking - what do you love most about being a leader in the UN? 

Janice Golding: I love the UN. I embrace its principles and values, its mission-orientation, and the UN Charter. But most of all, I love working with amazing colleagues and building high-performing teams to transform the lives of those less privileged than we are.