Project Officer GOVSATCOM

In accordance with the Rules applicable to national experts and military staff on secondment to the European Defence Agency (Council Decision (EU) 2016/1352), Seconded National Experts are seconded to the Agency while remaining in the service of their national employer and continue being paid their national salary by that employer.

Therefore, to be considered in the selection process, candidates for SNE posts must be sponsored by their national authorities. Confirmation is required in the form of a letter of sponsorship addressed to the Agency as far as possible by the closing date for the receipt of applications and in any case before a decision is taken by EDA on the candidate to be selected for a secondment.

The Rules are available on the EDA website http://www.eda.europa.eu - vacancies.

To qualify for secondment to the Agency, experts shall:

• have worked for their employer on a permanent or contract basis for at least 12 months before their secondment;
• remain in the service of their employer throughout the period of secondment and continue to be paid by that employer;
• have at least three years' full-time experience in defence, administrative, scientific, technical, operational, advisory or supervisory functions relevant to the performance of the duties assigned to them. Before the secondment, the employer shall supply the Agency with a statement of the expert's employment covering the previous 12 months;
• be nationals of a participating Member State or falling within the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 1 of Council Decision (EU) 2016/1352 of 4 August 2016;
• have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1 oral and written) of one official language of one of the participating Member States and a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2 oral and written) of another of these languages for the performance of their duties.

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-langu…

Candidates will be required to demonstrate the following qualifications:

(1) Professional

Candidates will be required to demonstrate the following qualifications:

• relevant experience in leadership positions in project/programme management in an international organisation or a large-scale government or public sector organisation;
• proven experience and a track record of successful business outcomes with a focus on space/SatCom projects;
• very good knowledge of the EU Space/SatCom industry (especially the capabilities that SatCom Service Providers can support) and of the governmental SatCom resources under the control of EU Member States;
• insight into the objectives and the state of play of the different space-related initiatives at EU level (EU Space Programme Regulation and its implementation);
• good knowledge of the various SatCom activities pursued by the European Commission (EU GOVSATCOM, IRIS², Horizon Europe, EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence, Strategic Compass, Action Plan on Synergies between the civil, space and defence industries, etc.);
• knowledge of, and/or proven experience in, EU CSDP Missions and Operations and their required SatCom support, and management of related projects/programmes;
• knowledge of European public procurement directives and experience in drafting procedural and procurement-related documents, notes and briefs;
• good understanding of EDA’s main tasks and functions;
• 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 work in a team and independently in his/her/their area of responsibility;
• ability to work effectively in a multinational environment and multicultural team;
• reliability and capacity to work under pressure with little supervision;
• good communication and organisational skills;
• strong analytical and problem-solving skills;
• excellent interpersonal and negotiation skills;
• results-orientation and strong motivation;
• flexibility and innovativeness;
• genuine commitment to the Agency's objectives.

B. Desirable

The following will be considered an advantage:

• prior experience in an EU context, including relevant experience in space-related topics, with a specific focus on Satellite Communication;
• knowledge of EU (civil and military) space-related activities;
• familiarity with the international defence environment (especially Common Security and Defence Policy) and the EU defence community, including government, industry, institutes and academia;
• knowledge of the opportunities and benefits that space services offer, especially what SatCom can offer for defence users as well as the risks and threats that space and SatCom are experiencing today;
• familiarity with the legal provisions applicable to space.

We are looking for a Project Officer GOVSATCOM.

Under the supervision of the Head of Unit Operations, Training and Exercises, the jobholder will be responsible for the following activities:

• manage the relationships between all stakeholders to enable the operational management of the EDA GOVSATCOM Pooling and Sharing Demonstration (GSC Demo) project;
• manage the EDA GSC Demo Service Catalogue and the SatCom Service Management Tool;
• manage the GOVSATCOM user requests from order to fulfilment, including order handling, order development and delivery, and post-order management including related contractual and budgetary work, as well as work on invoices and payments;
• maintain the GOVSATCOM customer contact center including user helpdesk;
• prepare the periodic capability reviews of the EDA GSC Demo project and report to the governance organisation on the status of EDA GSC Demo project;
• liaise with the SatCom Market project and analyse potential for synergies between the SatCom Market project and the EDA GSC Demo project;
• act as technical point of contact for contributing Members of the GSC Demo project;
• analyse and manage outputs from the EDA GSC Demo project;
• support the EU SatCom Market Project Officer to provide business continuity and assume his tasks within his/her means and capabilities. 
• support the EDA Programme Manager Satellite Communication in the field of developing the EDA SatCom activities, by providing regular feedback and input on GSC Demo and EU SatCom market user uptake:
  • on details of demand and capability requirements that are met;
  • on capability requirements that cannot be met;
  • on recommendations how to close capability gaps;
  • closely liaise with, and provide input to, the EU GOVSATCOM project and the Union Secure Connectivity project (IRIS²) as prepared by the European Commission under MFF 2021-2027.
• general support to the DiS Forum and contribution to all capability works strands (CARD, PESCO, EDF, CDP, etc.) with regards to SatCom matters;
• contribute to the implementation of the key area “SatCom” in the current version of the Capability Development Plan through the management of the existing and identification of new cooperative projects related to Satellite Communications, specifically GOVSATCOM and contributing to the related Priority Implementation Roadmaps;
• take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the service.

Duties may evolve according to the development of the EDA GOVSATCOM Pooling and Sharing demonstration phase structure and activities, and the decisions of EDA management.

The Project Officer GOVSATCOM will be appointed by the Chief Executive.

Secondment will be as a member of the Seconded National Expert staff of the Agency for a three-year period. Renewal is possible within the limits set out in the EDA SNE Rules. The successful candidates will be seconded as AD10/AD11 equivalent.

Applications are invited with a view to establish a reserve list for the post of Project Officer GOVSATCOM at EDA. This list will be valid until 31/12/2025, and may be extended by decision of the Chief Executive. During the validity of the reserve list, successful candidates may be offered a secondment in EDA according to their competences in relation to the specific requirements of the vacant post. Inclusion on the reserve list does not imply any entitlement of secondment to the Agency.