Project Officer Cyber (Operations and Operational Validation)

EDA - European Defence Agency

Brussels, Belgium

€ 8.911,48 per month gross

DUTIES

Under the supervision of the Head of Unit Information Superiority, and in relation to the jobholder’s area of responsibility, the jobholder will be responsible for the following activities:

contribute to the preparation, review and implementation of the EU Capability Development priorities by identifying shared needs, collecting, analysing and harmonizing capability requirements, aggregating demand towards joint procurement, promoting and proposing collaborative projects within the jobholder’s area of responsibility, as well as interfacing with EU civilian and defence policies;
update when required the Priority Implementation Roadmaps, in conjunction with Member States’ representatives, and develop related projects as outlined in these Roadmaps;
coordinate relevant aspects of work related to the Agency’s Three-Year Planning Framework;
provide support to EDA management by contributing to relevant strategies and policies developed within, or addressed to, the Agency and by providing strategic-level analysis and advice on documents when requested and contribute to the preparation and conduct of meetings with Member States’ representatives and other institutions;
coordinate and/or chair relevant working groups of Member States’ experts in particular the Capability Planners Group Cyber and Capability Expert Group Cyber and of national and international organisations, collect requirements, analyse and develop project proposals;
liaise and maintain the appropriate links with stakeholders regarding Cyber Defence activities including with the European Commission and, where appropriate, other relevant institutions and bodies such as NATO.

In the area of Cyber Defence:

define project scope and objectives and oversee the development of design solutions for the full spectrum of cyber defence operations and validation initiatives;
determine functional requirements and specifications; evaluate and translate functional requirements into cyber defence-embedded solutions;
plan, design, and execute cyber defence testing of developed applications and systems, including systems in development to support validation of operational capabilities;
develop cyber defence operations use cases and systems design procedures and processes;
develop the full spectrum of cyber defence operation capability requirements across all DOTMPLFI aspects and lead validation efforts — including feasibility analysis, experiment design, and assessment;
support ongoing work on the implementation of the EU Capability Development Priorities Cyber Warfare Advantage & Readiness, and Full Spectrum Cyber Defence Operational Capabilities. This includes the generation of activities in Cyber experimentation, interoperability and standardisation;
develop the future orientation of cyber defence operations from a capability development prospect, operating with a cross-unit and cross-directorate approach and providing regular reports when required to inform the Agency’s management;
maintain/increase a technical and operational knowledge of the military and civilian Cyber Defence matters;
initiate and manage contracting processes for outsourced activities;
participate in relevant conferences, seminars, and other similar activities within the jobholder’s subject matter area.

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:

Professional:

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

a university degree (or equivalent academic degree) in a field relevant to the post (e.g. Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Defence Studies, Military Science, or a related technical disciplines);
at least six (6) years of professional experience relevant to the duties, acquired after the award of the minimum qualification required as a condition of eligibility;
knowledge of the cyber domain and of cyber activities for security and defence;
experience in cyber programmes management by national or international agencies (e.g. ESA, OCCAR);
knowledge of and familiarity with both current and future cyber, and cyber related, EU programmes and EU policies/directives that have a bearing on defence activities;
knowledge of and experience in the technical aspects of Cyber Defence;
a good understanding of EDA’s main tasks and functions and familiarity with the EU defence environment (especially CSDP) and with the European institutions;
a very good command of written and oral English.