Project Officer UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems)

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Position description

DUTIES

Under the supervision of the Head of the Air Domain Unit, the Project Officer will contribute to the following activities:

• foster Defence cooperative activities among EU Member States for the collaborative development and procurement of Member States’ Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) capabilities. This includes in particular to:
  • act as primary EDA point of contact for UAS activities from a capability development and armament procurement perspective, providing expertise both internally and externally. This requires maintaining this level of expertise also through continuous operational and armament monitoring, as well as participating in specific events in the domain;
  • explore and promote collaborative opportunities for UAS capability development and procurement within the EU, including support to Member States in maturing these opportunities into concrete cooperative projects in the context of all EU initiatives and instruments related to Capability Development (CDP, CARD, PESCO, EDF, SAFE, EDIP, PCAs…). This includes preparing Business Cases, presenting to Member States detailed options for cooperative projects and thus launching the projects entrusted for management to the Agency;
  • support Member States, as appropriate, in the execution of capability development / armament procurement projects, ensuring coordination and minimizing duplication of efforts, including by establishing and running EDA ad hoc supporting projects;
  • plan, coordinate and manage all EDA activities related to the development or procurement of UAS capabilities, including outsourced activities funded by the EDA Operational Budget;
  • monitor EDA-wide UAS related activities, including in the field of R&T, Innovation, protection of critical infrastructures, to ensure a cross-Directorate coordination and a proper CAP contribution to activities of the Hub for Innovation (HEDI), the EDA Autonomous Systems Ad Hoc Working Group (and its Action Plan APAS), and to Action Plans on Emerging Disruptive Technologies.
• ensure strong coordination with the Project Officers in charge of the Capability Development.
• Priorities Air Combat, Airborne Command & Inform and Air Transport, as UAS capabilities are embedded in these priorities and must be addressed in a consistent manner with their implementation. In particular, the Project Officer UAS will place strong emphasis on sharing information with these Project Officers, aligning work with existing or ongoing activities and coordinating any envisaged changes or further developments.
• contribute, as far as UAS are concerned, to the conduct, enhancement, implementation of all initiatives related to Capability Development and Defence acquisition in which the Unit and the Directorate are involved, including the contribution to:
  • the preparation of CARD dialogues, the analysis of CARD findings, and the elaboration of concrete recommendations;
  • the assessment of PESCO Project proposals and to the support of these Projects when requested by Member States;
  • other elaboration of the Work Programmes of the European Commission’s Defence related funding programmes and all associated documents.
• contribute to all activities related to the drafting, coordination, and implementation of high-level documents – such as Letters of Intents, Steering Board documentation to Ministries of Defence, and similar strategic or policy-level deliverables – as well as the development, execution, and follow-up of relevant Action Plans;
• establish and/or maintain the appropriate dialogue with other relevant entities involved in activities related to UAS Capability Development and defence procurement areas;
• represent the Agency during conferences and seminars;
• take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the Unit.

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

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.

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. 

SELECTION CRITERIA

Essential

Only applications meeting all essential selection criteria will be assessed.

Professional

Candidates will be required to demonstrate the following qualifications:

• a university degree (or equivalent academic qualification) in a field relevant to the position (e.g. Air academy, Aerospace Science);
• at least six (6) years of military experience related to UAS, acquired after obtaining the minimum qualification required for eligibility (see criteria section above);
• a proven experience in military capability development and/or in project/programme management;
• a track record of relevant professional experience in the field of international cooperation;
• a demonstrated knowledge of and familiarity with the international Defence environment in general;
• a good understanding of EU institutions, their functioning, and of their defence-related frameworks and initiatives (such as CDP, CARD, PESCO, EDF, EDIP or equivalent);
• a very good command of written and spoken English.

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:

• a demonstrated capacity to perform effectively in complex and rapidly evolving environments where frameworks, priorities and knowledge are still being defined;
• proven intellectual agility and curiosity, with the ability to rapidly acquire expertise in new and technically complex domains;
• strong collaborative mindset and ability to integrate effectively into a small, high-tempo team where roles are broad and interdependencies are high;
• excellent coordination and interface management skills, with the ability to proactively align work with adjacent domains and stakeholders;
• results-orientation, initiative and strong personal motivation;
• genuine commitment to European multilateral defence cooperation and to the objectives of the Agency.

Desirable

The following will be considered an advantage:

• proven experience in UAS with concrete achievements in operational, conceptual or technical activities;
• substantial professional experience acquired as a military pilot of manned aircraft, or as a pilot of NATO Class II or NATO Class III UAS in a military aviation context;
• experience in an early stage of emerging capability domain, including domain structuring, concept development or study management in a defence context;
• experience in an EU or NATO organisations, international/multinational headquarters or Agency.

Application instructions

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