Calling Europe’s Innovation Leaders to Join the EIT Governing Board

Calling Europe’s Innovation Leaders to Join the EIT Governing Board

EIT - European Institute of Innovation and Technology

Budapest, Hungary

Do you want to help Europe transition to a greener, healthier, and more sustainable future? You can make that future happen as one of four new EIT Governing Board members.

The Call for Expression of Interest is now open to anyone with a strong track record of bridging the worlds of business, innovation, and academia. Apply by 23.59 CET, 29 October 2023 and help drive Europe’s ability to innovate.

Download the Call for Expression of Interest.

Online Application Form.

About the Governing Board and what we’re looking for in a candidate

The EIT Governing Board consists of 15 European innovation leaders and an observer from the European Commission who each stay on for four years in office. The Board provides the EIT’s strategic leadership and is independent in its decision-making. More specifically, the Board is responsible for the selection, designation, funding, and evaluation of the EIT’s Knowledge and Innovation Communities.

We are looking for candidates that have:

• At least five years of professional experience in at least one of the following areas: research and innovation, business or education;
• A strong track record and widespread reputation in at least one of the following lines of work: innovator, academic, scientist, entrepreneur, business leader or investor;
• A strong track record of knowledge triangle integration (i.e. cooperation among business, research, and education) to foster innovation at the European or global level; and
• A strong track record of building governance frameworks in large organisations or in impact investment or leading effective communication campaigns;
• Excellent knowledge of English.

About the EIT, Europe’s largest innovation network

The EIT empowers innovators and entrepreneurs across Europe to deliver unique solutions to pressing global challenges like food systems, energy, and raw materials. The Institute stimulates innovation by building long-term sustainable European partnerships – EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities – uniting businesses, higher education institutions, and research centres.

Building a supportive environment and pipeline to success for talent and ideas

With more than 70 EIT Innovation Hubs in every European country (and beyond!) and 3 200 partners across sectors as diverse as healthcare and manufacturing, the EIT Community has everything innovators and entrepreneurs need to thrive. The Institute offers a wide range of activities to help entrepreneurs turn their ideas into products, services, and jobs. Those include entrepreneurial education programmes, start-up incubation and acceleration support, and innovation-driven research projects.

A model that gives results

Since 2010, the EIT Community has brought over 1 670 new products and services to the market, trained thousands of entrepreneurs, and has backed over 5 600 start-ups and scale-ups that have attracted EUR 6 billion in external investment. Meet some of the EIT Community supported entrepreneurs here.

Find out more about the EIT and discover some of the innovations it powered.

About the EIT Governing Board Advisory Group overseeing your application

The EIT Governing Board’s Advisory Group consists of EIT Governing Board members: Attila Vegh (chair), Stefan Dobrev (member), and Pia Sandvik (member).

The Advisory Group identifies a list of potential candidates and will guarantee the independence, transparency, legitimacy, and credibility of the process. More information about the members of the Group is available here.

The EIT Governing Board’s decision on the appointment of the Advisory Group is available here.

About the Selection Procedure

The selection procedure for EIT Governing Board members begins with a Call for Expressions of Interest. Each member will serve for a four-year term of office, which may be extended by the Commission once by a two-year period. Members are appointed in a personal capacity, acting independently and in the public interest.

Following the closure of the Call on 29 October 2023, the Advisory Group will evaluate the submissions and interview the highest-scoring candidates. It will then prepare a shortlist of candidates to be proposed as new members. The EIT Governing Board will assess and approve the shortlist and forward it to the European Commission.

The new members of the Governing Board will be appointed through a Commission Decision. In its appointments, the Commission gives regard to the balance between higher education, research, innovation, and business experience as well as to gender and geographical balance.

More information is available in the EIT Governing Board’s decision on the selection procedure here.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Q: Are the members of the Governing Board exclusively EU citizens?

A: No. There is no criterion regarding nationality in the requirements set in the Call for expression of interests.

Q: Is it necessary to be a current resident of Europe to be able to apply for the call?

A: No. There are no requirements set in the Call for expression of interests as to where candidates are based geographically.

Q: Is it required to have proficiency in all three components (business, education, research) of the knowledge triangle?

A: Having a strong track record in any of the three components is essential as per the first Selection criterion in Article 8 of the Call for expression of interests. Ideally, candidates will also have a strong track record of knowledge triangle integration, which pre-supposes experience with more than one side of the knowledge triangle. Please see the Call for expression of interests, Article 8 on Selection criteria for more information.

Q: Can applicants not selected for the shortlist of the candidates in the previous selection processes apply again?

A: Yes. There is no limitation as to whether candidates in previous selection processes can apply again.

Q: Can a candidate who has some links with KICs or EU bodies apply for this position?

A: In line with Article 6 of the Call for expression of interests, conflict of interest pursuant to the Code of Conduct of the EIT Governing Board constitutes an exclusion criteria. Candidates are requested to provide information on their links with KICs in the respective part of the online application form. A preliminary assessment of the information submitted will be undertaken by the EIT. The Advisory Group will take a decision, based on the preliminary assessment, on whether or not the candidate in question shall be excluded based on the conflict of interest situation. Candidates will be informed about the outcome in due time.

Q: What are the responsibilities and conditions in this role?

A: The responsibilities of the Board are described in detail in Article 3 of the Call for expression of interests. Being a member of the EIT Governing Board (GB) is not a full-time position. There are four half-day/one-day meetings per year and GB members may assume additional roles, such as being member of the GB’s Advisory Groups, or may undertake additional tasks, such as representing the EIT in external events. Members receive honoraria for their participation in the GB meetings in line with the provisions of the relevant GB Decision.

Q: Can the application be updated before the deadline?

A: The application can be saved as a draft and updated any time before 23.59 CET, 29 October 2023.

Download the Privacy Notice.

Application deadline: 23.59 CET on 29 October 2023

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