6.4.2018   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

CA 120/1


Directorate-General for Human Resources and Security

Publication of a vacancy for a Director function (Grade AD 14)

Directorate ‘Security’ (DG HR.DS), in Brussels

(Article 29(2) of the Staff Regulations)

COM/2018/10379

(2018/C 120 A/01)

 

We are

The Commission’s Security Directorate is part of the Directorate-General for Human Resources and Security and in charge of the institution’s internal security policy. This policy seeks to ensure that, in all its places of activity, people, assets and information are adequately protected against security and safety risks. Security policy supports the Commission in executing its mandate and meeting its institutional and legal obligations, including its duty of care towards staff. It also contributes to business continuity. Our ambition in this area for the coming years will be to maintain and further increase the quality of the work environment, whilst reinforcing effective protection against new threats in a period of scarce resources.

In response to the fast globalisation and increased complexity of security threats, the Commission is putting in place a wide range of enhanced security measures in order to guarantee effective protection of persons, information and assets in the coming years.

We are offering a high level position to meet these challenges ahead, to further shape and enhance the Commission’s security policy and to ensure its effective implementation.

We propose

The Commission is seeking to appoint a Director for the Security Directorate.

The successful candidate will be responsible for the safety, security and protection of staff, property, activities and information at all Commission places of employment. As such, he/she will manage and direct the development, implementation and evaluation of the Commission’s security policy, effectively respond to new, emerging threats, build synergies and establish effective cooperation with partners in other European Institutions and national security services.

The Security Director manages around 200 staff distributed over 4 units in both Brussels and Luxembourg, which deal with a very wide range of security issues from the physical protection of the Commission’s sites, including the management of the contract for the Commission’s security guard service in Brussels, through developing and checking on compliance with security standards on IT and information security, close protection, cyber defence, counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism activities. In his/her activities, the Director is supported by the Principal Security Adviser on security related issues.

In addition, the Directorate offers protection to members of the Commission and for visiting VIPs, a 24/24h response office, IT and technical security advice, security training for all parts of the Commission and an investigation service. It works closely with external security services in other EU Institutions, Member States and international organisations, to deliver on these responsibilities.

The Director’s annual budget responsibility amounts to approximately EUR 11 million for the security activities and EUR 35 million for the guards’ services in Brussels. The Security Directorate manages approximately 20 framework contracts and 300 specific contracts with private companies and launches on average 10 high value public procurement procedures per year.

In order to be effective, the Security Director has to be able to establish and maintain effective relations with other security services at national and international level as well as to other security agencies and to work closely with them, including communicating security issues and delivering the highest security standards. This represents a significant high-level management and leadership challenge.

We look for

The selected candidate will be an outstanding and dynamic professional who should fulfil the following selection criteria:

An established track record in the relevant aspects of security, preferably at an international level, including proven successful experience in high-level management and leadership in the domain;

Comprehension of the overall security context and issues related to security and an understanding of what is required for its effective implementation;

Excellent understanding of regulatory and policy aspects relevant to security and experience of leadership in this area;

Very good understanding of the EU Institutions and how they operate and interact, and of EU policies and international activities of relevance to the activities of the Directorate;

Ability to establish and maintain effective and authoritative relations and cooperation in the area of security with EU institutions, international, national and local authorities, international organisations at the appropriate and highest levels;

Experience of budgetary, financial and human resources management in a national, European and/or international context;

Capacity to provide a clear strategic vision of the role and future of the Directorate;

Ability to lead and motivate a large team in a European, multicultural and multilingual environment;

Excellent written and oral communication skills, being able to interact effectively and convincingly with the public as well as with internal and external stakeholders.

The selected candidate should hold, or be in the position to obtain, a valid security clearance certificate (TOP SECRET) from his/her national security authority (a personal security clearance is an administrative decision following completion of a security screening conducted by the individual’s competent national security authority in accordance with applicable national security laws and regulations, and certifying that an individual may be allowed to access classified information up to a specified level. Note that the necessary procedure for obtaining a security clearance can be initiated on request of the employer only, and not by the individual candidate).

Appointment to the post shall only take effect on condition that the selected candidate has obtained a valid security clearance certificate.

Candidates must (eligibility criteria)

Candidates will be considered for the selection phase on the basis of the following formal criteria to be fulfilled by the deadline for applications:

Nationality: candidates must be a citizen of one of the EU Member States of the European Union.

University degree or diploma: candidates must have:

(i)

either a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma when the normal period of university education is 4 years or more;

(ii)

or a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma and appropriate professional experience of at least 1 year when the normal period of university education is at least 3 years (this 1 year’s professional experience cannot be included in the postgraduate professional experience required below).

Professional experience: candidates must have at least 15 years’ postgraduate professional experience at a level to which the qualifications referred to above give admission.

Management experience: at least 5 years of that professional experience must have been gained in a management function at high level (1) and should be in direct relation to a field relevant for this position.

Languages: have a thorough knowledge of one of the official languages of the European Union (2) and a satisfactory knowledge of another of these official languages. Selection panels will verify during the interview(s) whether candidates comply with the requirement of a satisfactory knowledge of another official EU language. This may include part of the interview being conducted in this other language.

Age limit: not yet have reached regular retirement age, which for officials of the European Union is defined as being the end of the month in which the person reaches the age of 66 years (see Article 52 lit (a) of the Staff Regulations) (3).

Independence and declaration of interests

Before taking up their duties, candidates are required to declare they will act independently in the public interest and have no interests, which might be considered prejudicial to their independence.

Appointment and conditions of employment

The European Commission will select and appoint the Director according to its selection and recruitment procedures (see also the Compilation Document on Senior Officials Policy (4)). As part of this selection procedure, candidates who have been invited for an interview by the Commission’s Consultative Committee on Appointments will participate, beforehand, in an assessment centre run by external recruitment consultants.

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 (5).

Salaries and conditions of employment are those laid down in the Staff Regulations for AD 14 grade officials of the European Union. Candidates should note the requirement under the Staff Regulations for all new staff to complete successfully a 9-month probationary period.

The Director is based in Brussels.

Equal opportunities

The European Commission applies an active policy of equal opportunities (in particular with regard to gender), with the aim of further increasing the share of women in management functions and it particularly encourages applications from women.

Application procedure

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

If you want to apply, you must register via the internet by going to the website

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

and follow the instructions there concerning the various stages of the procedure.

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

To complete your application, you will need to upload a CV in PDF format and to fill out, online, a letter of motivation (maximum 8 000 characters).

Once you have finished your online registration, you will receive an electronic mail confirming that your application has been registered. The mail also contains a registration number which will be your reference number in all matters concerning your application. 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 online. 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 7 May 2018, 12.00 noon Brussels time, after which online registrations will not be possible anymore.

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 applicants

Applicants are reminded that the work of the selection committees is confidential. It is forbidden for applicants to make direct or indirect contact with members of these committees, or for anybody to do so, on their behalf.

Protection of personal data

The Commission will ensure that candidates’ personal data are processed as required by Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the EU institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data (6).


(1)  In their CVs applicants should indicate at least for these 5 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.

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

(3)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:01962R0031-20140701&from=EN

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

(5)  The selection panel will ensure that no undue advantage is given to native speakers of these languages.

(6)  OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1.