(Associate) Industry Specialist - Transport and Logistics, Washington DC

(Associate) Industry Specialist – Transport and Logistics Job #: req38040 Organization: IFC Sector: Transportation Grade: GF Term Duration: 3 years 0 months Recruitment Type: International Recruitment Location: Washington, DC,United States Required Language(s): English Preferred Language(s): Closing Date: 8/24/2026 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

Description

Build a career with impact. Working at the World Bank Group (WBG) provides a unique opportunity to help countries solve their greatest development challenges. As one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries, the WBG is a unique partnership of five global institutions dedicated to ending poverty, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, the WBG works with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges.

The Knowledge Bank’s Transport and Logistics Solutions and Impact team is responsible for ensuring that the right mix of best practice, investment and advisory solutions are made available to public and private sector clients and WBG operational teams in the Transport and Logistics sectors. 

The team is looking to recruit an (Associate) Industry Specialist (AIS) covering the Transport and Logistics sectors.  The AIS will provide knowledge and criteria regarding business feasibility, assessment or diagnosis of the assigned projects. Also involved in the supervision of WBG’s ongoing transport investments along with other Industry Specialist colleagues from the Transport and Logistics Group. The AIS will bridge operational experience with knowledge management, ensuring that lessons learned and innovative solutions are captured and shared across the World Bank Group and its clients.
The selected candidate will be based in Washington DC and will report to the Manager for Transport and Logistics Solutions and Impact. The position will have a global focus and some travel may be required.

Duties and Accountabilities:

Among other duties, the (Associate) Industry Specialist will provide support to investment or advisory activities by evaluating transport projects, providing sector advice and guidance, and monitoring transport portfolio. More specifically:

•   Upstream-related activities:
o  Identify opportunities for advisory services to clients at various stages of project development, including early-stage business development and pipeline creation.
o  Support the development of the sector strategy and the creation of new business opportunities.
o  Advise Transport and Logistics Policy and Regulation Unit and other investment teams within the WBG in early stage assessment of investment proposals from a technical, managerial, commercial and development impact perspective.

•   Investment-related activities:
o  Apply sector knowledge in appraising new investment proposals across transport and logistics subsectors (ports, roads, railways, urban transit, airports, transportation logistics & warehousing, shipping and barging, airlines, electric mobility), providing independent assessment of project feasibility, risk and impact, including supporting senior specialists within the Knowledge Bank Transport and Logistics Group in such appraisals.
o  Liaise with client’s technical staff, project engineers, consultants and lenders’ engineers as needed.
o  Review and analyze major contracts, including EPC, O&M, and Concession agreements.
o  Develop market assessments, revenue projections, cost benchmarks, and operational parameters to inform financial models prepared by investment teams.
o  Draft Terms of Reference, hire and supervise technical and market consultants as necessary.
o  Prepare timely project appraisal reports alone or collaborating with other specialists, including risk assessment, mitigation measures and impact evaluation.

•   Portfolio-related activities:
o  Provide technical supervision of WBG’s portfolio of transport sector investments, including field inspection as necessary.
o  Identify and assist in resolving operational weaknesses and take notes of lessons learned and best practices to apply on future projects.

•   Other activities:
o  Support other specialists in their duties when necessary.
o  Maintain an active WBG network that provides visibility of WBG activities relevant to the sector, and coordinate activities as appropriate.
o  Keep updated on sectoral and industry news, trends, related technology developments and cost references.
o  Develop industry knowledge to share within WBG and with external clients as part of WBG’s knowledge management programs in a permanent format (lessons learnt, industry trends, basic technical knowledge, benchmarking, etc.) 
o  Collaborate with operational teams of the Transport and Logistics Policy and Regulation Unit and with other teams of the WBG to integrate knowledge into project design and implementation. 

Selection Criteria

•   Master’s degree in Civil Engineering, Transport Engineering or an equivalent technical discipline is required,
•   At least 5 years of professional experience in the transport or logistics industry, with direct exposure to at least one subsector and broad knowledge/familiarity with others.
•   Experience working with or on private sector transport projects is required, preferably in emerging markets.
•   Demonstrated experience in technical due diligence, project appraisal, feasibility assessment, or technical advisory roles is strongly preferred.
•   Good understanding of market, operations, economics, subsectors and key players within the transport sector.
•   Strong oral and written communication skills; fluency in English required
•   Ability to produce clear and concise written inputs for investment reports, management briefings and knowledge materials in English.
•   Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to work effectively in multicultural, multidisciplinary teams.
•   Ability to travel to/work in emerging market countries.

WBG Culture Attributes:

1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

Learn more about working at the World Bank and IFC including our values and inspiring stories.