Two Project Officer positions - Advancing the cyber programme of action

Ref.: EUISS (2024) TEMP 01

Status: Temporary Staff Member

Place of employment: Brussels

Starting date: As soon as possible

Duration: The successful candidate will be offered a full-time contract for one year, with the possibility of an extension within the limits of the duration of the Action itself, currently foreseen to end 30 June 2025.

Salary: The monthly salary for these full-time positions is EUR 4.000, subject to national taxes and social insurance.

Place of employment: Brussels

Job description

The EUISS is leading the “Advancing the Cyber Programme of Action (PoA)” project. The action into the framework established by the Multilateralism and Digitalization programme by the European Commission (DG INTPA), with a specific focus on cybersecurity and cyber diplomacy. It aims at supporting the EU diplomatic effort until the end of the current Open Ended Working Group on ICT (July 2025). In this context the action is structured around the willingness to promote an open, free, and secure cyberspace.

The PoA constitutes an ideal mechanism to advance a norms-driven, value-oriented approach to cybersecurity. The mechanism would consist in a permanent body within the UN General Assembly’s 1st Committee on cyber issue as the next step to advance the agreed upon Framework for Responsible State Behaviour. The proposal describes it as the hub for discussions and negotiations around the applicability of existing international law, voluntary norms, confidence-building measures and capacity building activities. It ensures regular institutional dialogue and currently enjoys broad support and interest. In this context, the action aims supporting the elaboration of the PoA through inclusive workshops and consultations involving UN Member States and the multistakeholder community.

The EUISS is looking for two highly motivated and dynamic individuals with a great sense of responsibility to support the implementation of the “Advancing the Cyber Programme of Action”. The Project Officers will be part of the project’s front office and contribute to research outputs, event organisation and coordination, communication, and outreach. Moreover, they will ensure timely information sharing and communication with the authorising officer. They will report to the Project Director and work closely with the team and partner institutions. Both position also involve occasional missions.   

Main responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Project Director, the Project Officers will oversee and carry out:

Research support

• Support the delivery of the project’s research and analytical outputs on Cyber Diplomacy and multilateral engagements, under the supervision of the Project Director;
• Liaise with external authors to ensure timely delivery of commissioned research and analytical outputs;
• Prepare research dossiers, background materials, data collections, analysis and visualisation, as agreed with the Project Director;
• Aid with publication editing and assist with formatting project documents and presentations, as needed.
• Other related duties as required.

Event coordination

• In cooperation with partners and the EUISS team, support the logistics of physical and/or online working level, high-profile public and closed-door events in collaboration with the Events and Communications Coordinator;
• Contribute to the preparation of press releases after the events; prepare activity reports; ensure follow-up with partner organisations, event participants and other stakeholders after the event;
• Support the Administration and Finance Coordinator maintaining an updated and accessible repository of all the activities carried out under the project, including a database of participants invited to the events.

Communication and outreach

• In cooperation with partners and the EUISS team, design and implement outreach activities that strengthen the visibility and impact of the project’s deliverables;
• Under the supervision of the Project Director and the Project Coordinator, implement a stakeholder relations strategy to maintain contacts with EU institutions, Member States, Partners Countries, civil society, experts and private sector.
• In cooperation with the Events and Communications Coordinator, contribute to the project’s communication activities through the website, social media, and other channels. Create, maintain and expand a distribution list and ensure that the project’s activities and deliverables are communicated to a targeted audience;
• Contribute to the production and delivery of communication materials, such as brochures, videos, social media threads, press releases, etc.

Eligibility criteria

On the closing date for applications, candidates must fulfil all the following conditions:

• Be a national of a member state of the European Union;
• Enjoy full rights as a citizen attested by a recent extract from judicial record and/or certificate of good conduct;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by national law on military service;
• Be physically fit to perform the required duties.

Selection criteria

Professional experience

• At least 1 year of work experience in international affairs, preferably in a research institution, think-tank, or international organisation.
• At least 1 year of work experience in an entity dealing with the external dimension of cybersecurity (including capacity building and cyber diplomacy)
• Prior experience working with/on EU institutions and/or United Nations processes.
• Experience in Cyber Diplomacy, UNGA First Committee Affairs and EU programming will be considered an advantage
• Demonstrated experience in project implementation, including the coordination of project partners from the EU, national governments, civil society and the private sector;
• Demonstrated experience in research for policy.

Qualifications and skills

• A master’s degree, preferably in Political Science, International Relations, Security Studies, or other disciplines relevant to this position;
• Qualitative and quantitative research skills, ability to collect/analyse data;
• Proficient use of common IT tools and Microsoft technologies (Word, Excel, PowerPoint);
• Excellent communication skills, and ability to liaise effectively with different stakeholder groups;
• Ability to work under pressure and to deliver to high standards under tight deadlines;
• Teamwork skills as well as the ability to independently organise and prioritise a number of parallel tasks;
• Excellent command of spoken and written English; knowledge of French will be an asset.

Procedure

All interested candidates must complete the online application form, and attach:

• A detailed CV in English (with a clear indication of educational attainment and professional experience);
• A cover letter in English addressed to the EUISS Director.

Applications received by email, fax or post will not be considered. Only correctly and fully completed applications will be accepted.

The deadline for submitting applications is Monday 22 April 2024, 12:00 CEST.

All eligible applications will be scrutinised by a Selection Committee. Candidates whose applications best match the selection criteria will be invited for an interview. In addition, a second interview or written tests may be carried out.

Following the interviews, the successful candidates will be offered a contract of one year with a four-month probationary period.

All applicants will be informed of the results of their application by the end of the selection procedure.

The EUISS is an equal opportunities employer and accepts applications without distinction on the grounds of age, race, political, philosophical or religious conviction, sex or sexual orientation and regardless of disabilities, marital status or family situation.

Any queries related to this selection procedure have to be submitted to EUISS Human Resources via the online contact form and indicating the reference of the vacancy notice.

The processing of personal data by the EUISS is governed by 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) N° 45/2001 and Decision N° 1247/2002/EC. By submitting an application, the applicant consents to the processing of the personal data contained in the application form and the supporting documents enclosed therewith, in the sense of Article 5.1 (a) of the Regulation. The personal data in question is collected by the EUISS for the sole purpose of this selection process.