Executive Director (Brussels)

[JonHart]

We are

The European Cybersecurity Industrial, Technology and Research Competence Centre (hereafter ‘the Centre’) was established by Regulation (EU) 2021/887 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) (hereafter ‘the Regulation establishing the Centre’). In accordance with the Article 3 of that Regulation, the mission of the Centre, and the related Network of National Coordination Centres, is to:

— strengthen leadership and strategic autonomy of the European Union (‘EU’ or ‘the Union’) in the area of cybersecurity by retaining and developing the EU’s research, academic, societal, technological and industrial cybersecurity capacities and capabilities necessary to enhance trust and security in the Digital Single Market, including by retaining and developing the confidentiality, integrity and accessibility of data;

— support EU technological capacities, capabilities and skills in relation to the resilience and reliability of the infrastructure of network and information systems, including critical infrastructure and commonly used hardware and software in the Union;

— increase the global competitiveness of the Union’s cybersecurity industry, ensure high cybersecurity standards throughout the Union and turn cybersecurity into a competitive advantage for other Union industries;

— undertake these tasks in collaboration with the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) and the Cybersecurity Competence Community, as appropriate.

— in accordance with the legislative acts establishing the relevant programmes, in particular Horizon Europe and the Digital Europe Programme, use relevant Union financial resources in such a way as to contribute to the mission mentioned above.

This mission is translated into objectives and tasks of the Centre, which are specified respectively in Articles 4 and 5 of the referred Regulation.

The Centre will be made up of 53 staff and will manage a budget of about EUR 200 000 000 (2).

We propose

We offer a senior manager position to lead a multidisciplinary team of professionals called to support a key priority area for the future of the EU.

The Executive Director shall be responsible for operations and for the day-to-day management of the Centre and shall be its legal representative. The Executive Director shall be accountable to the Governing Board of the Centre and perform her or his duties with complete independence within the powers assigned to her or him. The Executive Director shall be supported by the staff of the Centre.

In particular, the Executive Director shall carry out the following tasks in an independent manner:

— implement the decisions adopted by the Governing Board;

— support the Governing Board in its work, provide the secretariat for its meetings and supply all information necessary for the performance of its duties;

— after consultation with the Governing Board and the Commission, and taking into account the input of the National Coordination Centres and the Cybersecurity Competence Community, prepare and submit for adoption to the Governing Board the Agenda of the Centre; in accordance with the Agenda, adopt the draft multiannual work programme and the draft annual work programme of the Centre, including the calls for proposals, calls for expressions of interest and calls for tenders needed to implement the annual work programme and the corresponding expenditure estimates as proposed by the Member States and the Commission;

— prepare and submit for adoption to the Governing Board the draft annual budget, including the corresponding establishment plan referred to in point (l) of Article 13(3) of the Regulation establishing the Centre, indicating the number of temporary posts in each grade and function group and the number of contract staff and seconded national experts expressed in full-time equivalents;

— implement the annual work programme and the multiannual work programme and report to the Governing Board thereon;

— be responsible for administrative, financial and staff matters, including the implementation of the Centre budget, taking due account of advice received from the Internal Auditing Function, within the limits of the decisions referred to in points (e), (l), (t), (u), (v) and (w) of Article 13(3) of the Regulation establishing the Centre;

— approve and manage the launch of calls for proposals, in accordance with the annual work programme and administer the grant agreements and decisions;

— approve the list of actions selected for funding on the basis of a ranking list established by a panel of independent experts;

— submit the draft annual accounts and balance sheet to the internal auditing function, and subsequently to the Governing Board;

— establish and ensure the functioning of an effective and efficient internal control system and report any significant change to it to the Governing Board;

— ensure effective communication with the Union’s institutions and report, upon invitation, to the European Parliament and to the Council;

— perform any other tasks entrusted or delegated to her or him by the Governing Board.

The full list of tasks is laid down in Article 17 of the Regulation establishing the Centre.

We look for (selection criteria)

In accordance with Article 16 of the Regulation establishing the Centre, the Executive Director shall be a person with expertise and a strong reputation in the areas where the Centre operates. Accordingly, the selected candidate shall fulfil the following criteria:

Management skills:

— Experience in successfully setting up and managing teams, programmes and projects, notably in an international and multidisciplinary environment.

— Experience in the management of financial resources, notably in a European and/or international environment. Experience in the management of financial resources in the fields of research and innovation, information and communication technology and/or cybersecurity, and in relation to open calls for proposals, would be an asset.

— Ability to design and implement strategic vision in the domains relevant for the Centre, in view to deliver on the priorities as defined by the Governing Board, and to mobilise the support of stakeholders.

Specialist skills and experience:

— A good understanding of key cybersecurity issues, such as strategic, regulatory, policy, operational, technical, research, innovation and industrial matters, at national, European and international level. Knowledge of cybersecurity links to relevant information and communication domains (such as future networks, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, etc.) would be an asset.

— A good understanding of roles, responsibilities and cooperation mechanisms in the field of cybersecurity in the EU.

— Experience in research, development, innovation and uptake in relation to information and security technologies. In this regard, specific experience on cybersecurity would be an asset.

— Experience in cybersecurity communication contexts including crisis communications. Experience in cybersecurity awareness raising and in cybersecurity community support activities would be an asset.

— A good understanding of the EU Institutions, Bodies and Agencies, as well as the ability to efficiently interact with them and with Member States’ competent authorities.

Personal qualities:

— Excellent oral and written communication skills and proven ability and experience to communicate effectively and efficiently, orally and in writing, with both specialised and non-specialised interlocutors and audiences, and to cooperate with relevant stakeholders as well as to represent the Centre in external fora.

— Excellent interpersonal, decision-making, organisational and negotiation skills as well as the ability to build trusted working relationships with stakeholders relevant to the Centre.

Candidates must (eligibility requirements)

Candidates will only be considered for the selection phase on the basis of the following formal requirements to be fulfilled by the deadline for applications:

— Nationality: candidates must be a citizen of one of the Member States of the European Union.

— University degree or diploma: candidates must have:

— either a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma when the normal period of university education is 4 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 1 year when the normal period of university education is at least 3 years (this 1 year’s professional experience cannot be included in the postgraduate professional experience required below).

— Professional experience (3): candidates must have at least 15 years postgraduate professional experience at a level to which the qualifications referred to above give admission. At least 5 years of that professional experience must be in the area of the activities of the Centre.

— Management experience: at least 5 years of the post-graduate professional experience must have been gained in a high-level management function (4) relevant for this position.

— Languages: candidates must have a thorough knowledge of one of the official languages of the EU (5) and a satisfactory knowledge of another of these official languages. Selection panels will verify during the interview(s) whether candidates comply with the requirement of a satisfactory knowledge of another official EU language. This may include (part of) the interview being conducted in this other language.

— Age limit: candidates must be able to complete, at the deadline for application, the full mandate of 4 years (see also the first footnote in the section on conditions of employment) before reaching the retirement age. For temporary staff of the European Union, the retirement age is defined as being the end of the month in which the person reaches the age of 66 years (see Article 47 of the Conditions of Employment of other Servants of the EU (6)).

Further information / apply: https://ex.cndarine.com/campaign/url...d/66280929e78f