Vacancy Notice

for the Executive Director of the European Medicines Agency (EMA)

Amsterdam (Temporary Agent — Grade AD 14)

COM/2019/20037

(2019/C 165 A/01)

 

We are

Established by Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1), the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is responsible for coordinating the authorisation, supervision and pharmacovigilance of medicinal products for human and veterinary use in the European Union (EU) through the work of its scientific committees and a large expert network put at its disposal by Member States.

For further information, please consult the following website: http://www.ema.europa.eu/

We propose

The Executive Director is the legal representative and public face of EMA and is accountable to the EMA Management Board, set up under Article 65 of the EMA Regulation. She/he will lead and manage EMA and take overall responsibility for its operations ensuring the achievement of EMA’s objectives.

The Executive Director shall be completely independent in the performance of his/her duties, without prejudice to the respective competencies of the European Commission and the Management Board.

The Executive Director will be responsible for:

—	the day-to-day administration of EMA, which involves a budget in 2018 of around EUR 338 million and 810 members of staff,

—	managing EMA in line with its Regulation, the applicable legislation in force as well as the decisions of its Management Board,

—	taking general responsibility for managing EMA’s staff effectively and efficiently, and fostering a good team spirit and working environment,

—	managing all the Agency resources necessary for conducting the activities of its committees, including making available appropriate scientific and technical support;

—	drawing up EMA’s Strategy and draft work programmes, and reporting on their direction and policy setting procedures to the Management Board,

—	reporting on the implementation of the work programmes and decisions adopted by the Management Board,

—	taking general responsibility for the overall performance of the tasks assigned to EMA including supervising the quality of its internal control and management systems,

—	preparing and executing EMA’s budget in line with Financial Framework Regulation (2) for agencies and ensuring that it is managed efficiently and in accordance with the principle of sound financial management,

—	taking general responsibility for the financial matters of EMA including, inter alia, final accounts and financing decisions,

—	representing EMA and communicating with the range of stakeholders and the public on all matters within the Agency’s remit,

—	ensuring cooperation with the European Commission, the European Parliament and Member States as well as with competent bodies in Member States carrying out similar tasks to those of EMA,

—	ensuring that the time-limits laid down in Union legislation for the adoption of opinions by the Agency are complied with,

—	ensuring appropriate coordination between its committees,

—	exercising the responsibilities set out, in Regulation (EC) No 1901/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3), for paediatric investigation plans and waivers.

—	providing the secretariat for the Management Board.

We look for (selection criteria)

Candidates should have:

a)

Management experience, and in particular: — Solid leadership skills, being able to lead an important organisation, both at a strategic and at operational management level, in a dynamic and changing scientific environment, — excellent capacity to develop and implement a strategic vision, to set objectives and to motivate and lead large teams in a multicultural and multilingual environment, and taking into account the Agency’s relocation to its new headquarters, — very good decision-making skills, including the capacity to take decisions in a complex political environment and in emergency situations, — proven experience in budgetary, financial and human resources management in a national, European and/or international context, — a demonstrable appreciation of promoting EMA’s guiding principles of openness, transparency, independence and scientific excellence.

b)

Technical knowledge, and in particular: — very good knowledge of European pharmaceutical legislation, — experience and practice in one or more of the following areas: healthcare science, medicine, medical sciences, pharmacology, pharmaceutical sciences, veterinary sciences would be an asset. Ideally this experience should have been acquired in a national, European or international public administration involving contacts with the pharmaceutical industry, — good understanding of the European institutions and how they operate and interact.

c)

Communication and negotiations skills, and in particular: — ability to communicate efficiently and fluently in a transparent and open manner with stakeholders, including press, the public, European, international, national and local authorities, international organisations, etc., — solid experience of negotiating at high level in an international environment, — excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to maintain appropriate relations with EU institutions and with Member States’ competent authorities to ensure the proper functioning of the European medicines network.

Assets:

—	a university degree as a physician, pharmacist or veterinarian could be considered an advantage,

—	experience gained in a multicultural environment.

Applicants must (eligibility criteria)

In order to be considered for the selection phase, applicants must fulfil the following criteria by the closing date for applications:

—	Nationality: Applicants must be a national of a Member State of the European Union or be a national of a country from the European Economic Area.

—	University degree or diploma: Applicants must have either:

—	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 (this one year’s professional experience cannot be included in the postgraduate professional experience required below).

—

Professional experience (4): Applicants must have at least 15 years postgraduate experience at a level to which the qualifications referred to above give admission; of these 15 years of professional experience, at least five years of the professional experience gained in the domain of the Agency’s activities.

—	Management experience: of these 15 years of professional experience, at least five years of the professional experience gained in a high level management function (5).

—	Languages (6): Applicants must have a thorough knowledge of one of the official European Union languages and a satisfactory knowledge of another of these languages to the extent necessary for the performance of their duties.

—	Age limit: At the deadline for applications, applicants must be able to complete the full five-year mandate in accordance with Article 47(a) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (7).

Independence and declaration of interests

The Executive Director will be required to make a declaration of commitment to act independently in the public interest and to make a declaration in relation to interests which might be considered prejudicial to his/her independence. Applicants must confirm their willingness to do so in their application.

Due to the particular nature of the functions, applicants invited to preselection interviews will be required to sign a declaration relating to their current or future interests that might be considered prejudicial to their independence.

In accordance with Article 16 of the Staff Regulations (8), which provisions apply by analogy to Temporary Agents, the Executive Director shall, after leaving the service, continue to be bound by the duty to behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance of certain appointments or benefits.

This includes the obligation to inform the Management Board of EMA sufficiently in advance of the intention to engage in an occupational activity, whether gainful or not, within two years of leaving the service. If that activity is related to the work carried out during the last three years in service and could lead to a conflict with the legitimate interests of EMA, the Management Board may, having regard to the interests of the service, either forbid from undertaking it or give its approval subject to any conditions it thinks fit.

Selection and appointment

The Executive Director will be appointed by the Management Board of EMA on the basis of a list drawn up by the European Commission, after having made a statement to and answering questions from the European Parliament.

The European Commission will organise a selection procedure in accordance with its selection and recruitment procedures (see: Document on Senior Officials Policy (9)). To this end, it will set up a preselection panel, which will analyse all applications, proceed with a first verification of each applicant’s eligibility and, taking into consideration the selection criteria mentioned above, will identify those with the best profile for the specific requirements of the post for a first interview. Following these interviews, the preselection panel draws up a list of applicants in view of possible further interviews with the European Commission’s Consultative Committee on Appointments (CCA). The CCA, on the basis of the conclusions of the pre-selection panel, will invited a number of applicants for an interview Applicants who are called for an interview with the CCA participate in a full-day management assessment centre run by external recruitment consultants.

Taking account of the results of the interview and the report of the assessment centre„ the CCA, draws up a shortlist of applicants it considers suitable to exercise the function of Executive Director of EMA.

Applicants who are shortlisted by the CCA will then be interviewed by the Member of the Commission responsible for Health and Food Safety (10).

Following these interviews, the European Commission adopts a list of applicants, which will be communicated to the Management Board of EMA. Applicants should note that the inclusion on the list of the European Commission does not guarantee appointment.

The Management Board of EMA may decide to interview the applicants on the Commission list and appoint one of them as Executive Director. However, before appointment by the Management Board, the nominated applicant will be asked to address the relevant committee of the European Parliament and to reply to questions.

Applicants may be required to undergo further interviews or tests in addition to those indicated above.

For functional reasons and in order to complete the selection procedure as quickly as possible in the interest of the candidates as well as that of the institution, the selection procedure will be carried out in English and/or French only (11).

Equal opportunities

The European Union applies a policy of equal opportunities and non-discrimination in accordance with Article 1d of the Staff Regulations (12). It takes great care to avoid any form of discrimination in its recruitment procedures and actively encourages applications from women.

Conditions of employment

The Executive Director will be appointed as a staff of EMA as a temporary agent at grade AD 14 pursuant to Article 2(a) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (13) for a five-year period, which may be renewed once.

The place of employment is Amsterdam (14), where EMA is based.

Application procedure

Before submitting your application, you should carefully check whether you meet all eligibility requirements (‘Candidates must’), particularly concerning the types of diploma, high-level professional experience as well as linguistic capacity required. Failure to meet any of the eligibility requirements means an automatic exclusion from the selection procedure.

If you want to apply, you must register via the internet on the following website and follow the instructions concerning the various stages of the procedure:

https://ec.europa.eu/dgs/human-resources/seniormanagementvacancies/.

You must have a valid email address. This will be used to confirm your registration as well as to remain in contact with you during the different stages of the procedure. Therefore, please keep the European Commission informed about any change in your email address.

To complete your application, you need to upload a CV in PDF format and to fill out, online, a letter of motivation (maximum 8 000 characters). Your CV and your letter of motivation may be submitted in any of the official languages of the European Union.

Once you have finished your online registration, you will receive an electronic mail confirming that your application has been registered. If you do not receive a confirmation mail, your application has not been registered!

Please note that it is not possible to monitor the progress of your application on-line. You will be contacted directly by the European Commission regarding the status of your application.

If you require more information and/or encounter technical problems, please send an email to: HR-MANAGEMENT-ONLINE@ec.europa.eu

Closing date

The closing date for registration is 13 June 2019, 12.00 noon Brussels time, following which registration is no longer possible.

It is your responsibility to complete your online registration in time. We strongly advise you not to wait until the last few days before applying, since heavy internet traffic or a fault with your internet connection could lead to the online registration being terminated before you complete it, thereby obliging you to repeat the whole process. Once the deadline for the submission of registrations has passed, you will no longer be able to introduce any data. Late registrations are not accepted.

Important information for candidates

Candidates are reminded that the work of the different selection committees is confidential. It is forbidden for candidates to make direct or indirect contact with their individual members or for anybody to do so on their behalf. Any query has to be addressed to the secretariat of the respective panels

Protection of personal data

The Commission will ensure that candidates’ personal data are processed as required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council. This applies in particular to the confidentiality and security of such data (15).

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(1)  Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 laying down Union procedures for the authorisation and supervision of medicinal products for human and veterinary use and establishing a European Medicines Agency (OJ L 136, 30.4.2004, p. 1) (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:136:0001:0033:en:PDF).

(2)  Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1271/2013 of 30 September 2013 on the framework financial regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 208 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 328, 7.12.2013, p. 42).

(3)  Regulation (EC) No 1901/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on medicinal products for paediatric use and amending Regulation (EEC) No 1768/92, Directive 2001/20/EC, Directive 2001/83/EC and Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 (OJ L 378, 27.12.2006, p. 1).

(4)  Professional experiences shall be taken into account from the date on which the person fulfils the minimum qualifications for engagement. Any given period may be counted only once and years of studies or professional experience shall not overlap with other periods of studies or professional experience. Professional activities pursued part-time will be calculated pro-rata on the basis of the certified percentage of full-time hours worked.

(5)  In their CVs applicants should indicate at least for these five years during which high level management experience has been acquired: (1) title and role of management positions held, (2) numbers of staff overseen in these positions, (3) the size of budgets managed, and (4) numbers of hierarchical layers above and below and number of peers.

(6)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:01958R0001-20130701&qid=1408533709461&from=EN

(7)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:1962R0031:20140101:EN:PDF

(8)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:1962R0031:20140101:EN:PDF

(9)  https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/compilation-of-the-senior-official-policy-at-the-european-commission_en.pdf

(10)  Unless the Member of the Commission concerned, in line with the Commission Decision of 5 December 2007 (PV(2007) 1811), has delegated this task to another Member of the Commission.

(11)  Selection panels will ensure that no undue advantage is given to native speakers of these languages.

(12)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:1962R0031:20140101:EN:PDF

(13)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CONSLEG:1962R0031:20140101:EN:PDF

(14)  The correction coefficient applicable to the remuneration and pensions of officials and other servants of the European Union for The Netherlands is set at 109,9 % as from 1 July 2018. This coefficient is subject to an annual revision.

(15)  Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC (OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39).