1. BACKGROUND

The European Defence Agency (EDA) was established on 12 July 2004, and is governed by Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/1835 defining the statute, seat and operational rules of the European Defence Agency. The Agency has its headquarters in Brussels.

The main task of EDA is to support the Council and the Member States in their effort to improve the Union’s defence capabilities in the field of crisis management and to sustain the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) as it currently stands and as it develops in the future.

The Agency is structured into four directorates. The Corporate Services Directorate (CSD) and three operational directorates: Industry, Synergies and Enablers (ISE); Capability, Armament & Planning (CAP); Research, Technology and Innovation (RTI).

2. THE AGENCY’S WAY OF WORKING

The Agency is an “outward-facing” organisation, constantly interacting with its shareholders, the participating Member States, as well as with a wide range of stakeholders. It works in an integrated way, with multi-disciplinary teams representing all of the Agency’s functional areas, to realise its objectives. Its business processes are flexible and oriented towards achieving results. Staff at all levels need to demonstrate the corresponding qualities of commitment, flexibility, innovation, and team-working; to work effectively with shareholders and stakeholder groups, formal and informal; and to operate without the need for detailed direction.

3. THE RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION DIRECTORATE (RTI)

The Research, Technology & Innovation Directorate (RTI) promotes and supports defence research at EU level. Based on the Overarching Strategic Research Agenda (OSRA), developed together with the Member States, the Directorate coordinates and plans joint research activities and the study of technical solutions to meet future operational needs.

The RTI Directorate provides support to Member States and to the European Commission for the Preparatory Action for defence research, including its implementation, and the research dimension of the European Defence Fund. The RTI directorate also ensures the promotion of innovation in defence and the exploitation of synergies at EU level with civil research in dual-use technology fields.

The RTI Directorate comprises two Units and an RTI Coordination Team, with the following key tasks:

• The EU-funded Defence Research Unit: upstream, implementing and downstream support linked to defence research activities funded by the EU budget under delegation by the European Commission
• The Technology & Innovation Unit: facilitating the work of the Capability Technology Groups (CapTechs), the Energy & Environment Working Group; development and management of ad hoc research activities based on sectoral Strategic Research Agendas
• The RTI Coordination Team: coordination of the RTI Directorate’s contributions to EDA’s transversal activities (such as CDP, CARD, PESCO, and KSA); overview of the Agency’s research portfolio; provision of outlook for research activities and technology watch.

4. DUTIES

Under the supervision of the Research, Technology, Innovation (RTI) Director, the jobholder will oversee the RTI Coordination Team and contribute to the following activities:

• manage the R&T Ad Hoc project negotiation portfolio of the Agency and drive the continuous improvement of Ad Hoc processes providing a preferred collaboration framework to Member States;
• contribute to the Agency’s cross-directorate initiatives, tools, and activities and coordinate RTI inputs;
• notably, coordinate the RTI contribution to the CARD process, including R&T landscaping, consolidating data and priorities, collaborative opportunities, bilaterals in capitals, and inputs to the aggregated analysis and CARD report;
• support the Overarching Strategic Research Agenda (OSRA) with a focus on consistency across CapTechs, and the OSRA’s dissemination policy;
• manage the development and implementation of the Action Plan for Emerging and Disruptive Technologies (EDTs), in close coordination with innovation activities, notably with HEDI, and with relevant units and directorates;
• manage the EDA R&T Point of Contacts (PoC) community, providing a one-stop-shop to requests, ensuring readily available documentation and information, and maintaining the relevant fora up to date;
• monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) related to the Ad Hoc portfolio and defence R&T data in general;
• synthetize the strategic reflections related to EU R&T orientations, contribute to the RTI Directorate preparation of speeches, Food-For-Thought papers, presentations, contributions to briefings and documents;
• coordinate the communication strategy of the directorate in support of the media and communications unit;
• liaise with the Chief Executive’s Policy Office on the implementation of RTI horizontal tasks;
• liaise with the Capability, Armament, and Planning Directorate Coordination Cell and the Industry, Synergies, Enablers Directorate on tasks with a cross-directorate dimension (Ad Hocs, PESCO, CDP, PIR, KSA, CFM, etc.);
• liaise with the Corporate Services Directorate (Procurement/Contracting, Legal, Finance, PMO) related to the Ad Hoc project portfolio, Operational Budget studies, Project Portfolio Management (PPM), IT-tools, Ad Hoc invoicing, etc.;
• support the CapTechs in view of Ad Hoc processes, cross-directorial tasks, and documentation/templates;
• represent RTI in several EDA internal groups, notably EUCI Business Requirements Review Steering Group, the IT Coordination Committee (ITCC), and the network of Data Protection Contact Points (DPCP);
• take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the service.

Duties may evolve according to the development of EDA’s structure and activities, and the decisions of EDA management.

5. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

To be considered eligible to take part in this selection procedure, on the closing date for the submission of applications candidates must satisfy all the eligibility criteria as specified below:

• be a national of a Member State participating in the Agency;
• be entitled to their full rights as citizens;
• have fulfilled any obligations imposed on them by the laws concerning military service;
• produce the appropriate character references as to their suitability for the performance of their duties (extract from the “judicial record” or certificate of good conduct will be requested prior to recruitment);
• be physically fit to perform their duties;
• have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1 oral and written) of one of the languages of the participating Member States and a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2 oral and written) of another of these languages to the extent necessary to discharge their duties;
• have no personal interest (financial, family relationship, or other) which could be in conflict with disinterested discharge of their duties within the Agency;
• hold, or be in a position to obtain, a valid Personnel Security Clearance Certificate (national or EU PSC at SECRET UE/EU SECRET level). Personnel Security Clearance Certificate (PSCC) means a certificate issued by a competent authority establishing that an individual is security cleared and holds a valid national or EU PSC, and which shows the level of EUCI to which that individual may be granted access (SECRET UE/EU SECRET), the date of validity of the relevant PSC and the date of expiry of the certificate itself. Note that the necessary procedure for obtaining a PSCC can be initiated on request of the employer only, and not by the individual candidate;
• have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma when the normal period of university education is four years or more, or a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma and appropriate professional experience of at least one year when the normal period of university education is at least three years or be a graduate of a national or international Defence College; or where justified in the interests of the service, professional training of an equivalent level.

Only diplomas that have been awarded in EU Member States or that are the subject of equivalence certificates issued by the authorities in the said Member States shall be taken into consideration. In the latter case, the authority authorised to conclude contracts of employment reserves the right to request proof of such equivalence.

For diplomas awarded in non-EU countries, a NARIC recognition is required: https://www.enic-naric.net/

Qualifications/diplomas awarded until 31/12/2020 in the United Kingdom are accepted without further recognition. For diplomas awarded after this date (from 01/01/2021), a NARIC recognition is required.

For native English speakers, your ability to communicate in another EU language will be tested during the selection process. To assess your foreign language levels, see: https://europa.eu/europass/en/common-european-framework-reference-language-skills

6. SELECTION CRITERIA

A. Essential

Only applications meeting all essential selection criteria will be assessed.

(1) Professional

Candidates will be required to demonstrate the following qualifications:

• a University degree (or equivalent academic degree) in a field relevant to the post;
• a minimum of 8 years of relevant professional experience, acquired after the award of the qualification required as a condition of eligibility;
• extensive experience in defence R&T projects, including collaboration in international and EU institutional frameworks;
• good knowledge of the EU defence ecosystem including EU institutions, programmes & policies, and practical experience in cooperating with EU defence institutional stakeholders (European Commission/DG DEFIS, EUMS, etc.), Ministries of Defence of the EU Member States, European research organizations, academia, and defence industries;
• a track record of support to R&T management activities and project portfolio management, including good technical, legal, and organizational understanding, as well as excellent communication skills;
• a results-oriented individual with a track record of delivering successful business outcomes, combined with an investigative mindset, analytical, attention to detail, and with a proactive collaborative approach working across teams;
• experience in group management (i.e. organising meetings, workshops, fora, etc.) and involvement in transversal defence R&T activities;
• experience in setting up or streamlining processes;
• a very good command of written and spoken English.

(2) Personal

All staff must be able to fit into the Agency’s way of working (see para. 2). Other attributes important for this post include:

• ability to coordinate work across team members and contribute to effective collaboration;
• strong planning, analytical and organizational skills;
• ability to work in a team and independently in his/her area of responsibility;
• results-orientation and strong motivation;
• flexibility and innovativeness;
• genuine commitment to the Agency’s objectives;
• strong sense of duty and responsibility;
• strong communication (written and oral), networking and presentation skills.

B. Desirable

The following will be considered an advantage:

• knowledge and understanding of military capability development and defence research prioritisation processes;
• experience in project management methodologies and in the whole lifecycle of a project (from inception to results delivery);
• knowledge of intergovernmental negotiation processes, the legal framework relevant to European defence R&T collaboration, and national staffing processes;
• work experience in Ministry of Defence or Armed Forces.