Director of Capability, Armament and Planning (CAP)

DUTIES

The Capability, Armament and Planning (CAP) Director is accountable to the Chief Executive as Head of the CAP Directorate.

Supported by the Heads of Unit and Office, the jobholder will be responsible for providing strategic leadership and direction to the Agency’s activities in capability development, defence planning, strategic analysis and armaments cooperation, supporting Member States in collaboratively planning, developing and acquiring defence capabilities that respond to their needs and to agreed EU defence priorities.

The CAP Directorate leads EDA’s work on the Capability Development Plan (CDP) and the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD), supports capability development across the Air and Space, Land and Maritime domains and relevant strategic enabling and support areas. Together with Member States and with the contribution of relevant EU institutions and bodies, the Directorate operates the EU Capability Development Planning System (EU-CDPS) and supports the implementation of agreed capability priorities through collaborative activities, projects and programmes.

Reporting to the Chief Executive, the CAP Director will have overall managerial responsibility for the Directorate and provide strategic advice on capability development, defence planning, strategic analysis and armaments cooperation. The jobholder will drive cooperation with Member States and engage with relevant EU institutions, bodies and international partners, ensuring that agreed priorities are translated into coherent and effective capability outcomes.

More specifically, the jobholder will be responsible for the following activities:

• translate the Agency’s mission, strategy, work programme and priorities into a coherent vision, objectives and deliverables for the Directorate;
• provide strategic vision, direction and leadership for the Directorate, ensuring coherence across its capability development, defence planning, strategic analysis and armaments cooperation activities;
• lead and oversee capability development activities across the Air and Space, Land and Maritime domains, as well as in the areas of resilience and support, strategic enablers and cyber, ensuring that they address Member States’ current and future capability needs and contribute to agreed EU defence priorities;
• steer the development and implementation of the Capability Development Plan (CDP), including the identification and prioritisation of common capability needs and priorities at EU level;
• lead EDA’s work on the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD), supporting the analysis of Member States’ defence plans and the identification of recommendations and opportunities for European cooperation;
• provide strategic direction and oversee EDA’s contribution to Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), in close cooperation with the European External Action Service (EEAS), including the EU Military Staff;
• steer the implementation of agreed capability priorities through collaborative roadmaps and preparatory activities, including the harmonisation of capability requirements, the development of business cases and the identification and development of collaborative capability and armaments projects and programmes, as well as opportunities for aggregation of demand and joint procurement in close cooperation with the Procurement, Support, Industry and Interoperability Directorate (PSII);
• provide strategic leadership for the Directorate’s contribution to the Annual Defence Readiness Report, ensuring together with the EDA Policy and Management Office (EPMO) robust capability analysis and actionable recommendations, and drive support for the development and implementation of initiatives within the Priority Capability Areas (PCAs), including EDPCIs, in close cooperation with Member States and relevant EU institutions and bodies;
• promote coherence and synergies between national, EU and multinational defence planning and capability development activities, including relevant links with PESCO, the European Defence Fund (EDF), the EU Defence Readiness objective and other EU initiatives;
• build and sustain strong cooperation with Member States, the European Commission, the Council, the EEAS, OCCAR, NATO and other relevant European and international organisations and partners in the fields covered by the Directorate;
• ensure the Directorate’s effective contribution to EDA’s transversal activities and close cooperation with EDA’s other Directorates;
• lead, motivate and develop the competences and skills of the Directorate’s staff and evaluate or contribute to the evaluation of their performance;
• plan and organise the work and the financial and human resources of the Directorate, ensuring the effective and efficient use of allocated resources;
• manage the Directorate’s budget through sound planning and monitoring of allocated resources;
• take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the service.

Duties may evolve depending on the development of the EDA’s structure and activities and decisions of EDA management.

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:

The candidate will be required to demonstrate that he/she has:

• a minimum of fifteen (15) years of relevant professional experience, acquired after the award of the academic qualification required as a condition of eligibility;
• substantial professional experience in multinational working environments, including in a managerial position, with a proven track record in leading multinational and multidisciplinary teams at senior and/or middle-management level and fostering cooperation across diverse national and organisational contexts;
• very good knowledge of and substantial professional experience in defence planning and capability development, including the identification and prioritisation of capability needs and the development of collaborative opportunities;
• broad knowledge of capability development across multiple operational domains and/or strategic enabling areas, with a good understanding of cross-domain dependencies and requirements;
• good knowledge of the European institutional and defence cooperation framework, including relevant EU defence policies, programmes and initiatives and the main EU capability-development planning processes;
• sound knowledge of collaborative capability development and armaments cooperation in a European or multinational context, including the harmonisation of requirements and the development of cooperative projects or programmes;
• proven experience in translating defence priorities, capability requirements or planning outcomes into strategic recommendations, collaborative initiatives or capability-development activities;
• proven experience in providing strategic advice to senior management and representing defence planning, capability development and/or armaments matters at a high level, both internally and externally;
• a good understanding of EDA’s role, main tasks and functions and of its interaction with Member States, EU institutions and relevant international partners;
• 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 inspire, motivate and develop multidisciplinary teams;
• ability to develop strategic relations with internal and external stakeholders, using negotiation, influencing and diplomatic skills in a complex political and institutional environment;
• result-orientation and strong intrinsic motivation, combined with proactivity and a “can-do” attitude;
• integrity and a genuine commitment to ethical standards and principles in the public service;
• flexibility and innovativeness, with the ability to adapt effectively to changing circumstances;
• excellent analytical and strategic-thinking skills;
• resilience and the ability to manage competing priorities effectively while maintaining calmness under pressure;
• excellent communication skills, including strong public-speaking, presentation and chairing skills;
• genuine commitment to the Agency’s mission and objectives.