In his report on strengthening the accountability of the UN released in August 2005 (A/60/312), the Secretary-General outlined a new set of procedures for the appointment of senior UN officials to ensure a more transparent and vigorous process in the selection of qualified candidates.

http://www.un.org/reform/report_on_accountability.pdf

Procedures: a Senior Appointment Group is established, which is a standing advisory body, to review candidacies and make recommendations. The Chef de Cabinet is then responsible for establishing an interview panel with members from this Group. A list of finalists is then submitted to the Secretary-General and the Deputy Secretary-General for final consideration. For senior appointments that involve intergovernmental bodies (UNDP, UNHCR, etc) clear job descriptions and required competencies are established for all posts against which candidates can be judged. Shortlists are then drawn up from a list of nominations submitted by Member States and relevant institutions as well as lists developed through an informal process of outreach. There are also plans to implement a more systematic process for reference-checking.