Head of Corporate Services

Head of Corporate Services

EU-Rail – Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking

Brussels, Belgium

EU-RAIL is organising a call for expression of interest aimed at establishing a reserve list of Temporary Agents 2(f) for a Head of Corporate services profile.

The Head of Corporate Services is a key middle manager in the organization, directly reporting to the Executive Director of EU-RAIL. S/he is responsible for leading the corporate services activities of the JU. S/he is expected to provide quality, efficiency, effectiveness and enhancement of the processes and outputs s/he is responsible for. With a service-minded approach s/he is expected to lead a team of indicatively eleven colleagues, including the Back Office for Accounting for Joint Undertakings.

More specifically, the Head of Corporate Services is responsible for the following activities:

Business Management and Planning

• Support to the Executive Director by providing sound advice on administrative, IT, and financial matters, and by contributing to the overall strategy and policies;
• In collaboration with the Head of Programme and of the System Pillar Unit, prepare and manage the different steps needed to implement the Programme (e.g., calls for proposals and/or tenders, from budget planning to administrative conclusion of relevant agreements/contracts; ensure subsequent periodic monitoring and follow-up of projects; prepare financial reports for reporting to the Governing Board);
• Ensure the proper implementation of the administrative aspects for EU-RAIL;
• Ensure business continuity of the operations within the unit;
• Ensure the effective implementation of the Internal Control Standards and follow-up of recommendations issued by the Court of Auditors; promote a risk management culture in the JU;
• Maintain constructive and professional relations with the EU-RAIL Members and stakeholders, as relevant.

Budget and Finance – Management and Planning of Budgetary and Financial Activities

• Manage the EU-RAIL budget in accordance with the EU Financial Rules and Regulation (annual budget preparation and presentation, follow-up and coordination, monitoring of expenditures, preparation of reconciled financial reports, etc.);
• Ensure effective planning and management of budget resources throughout the JU in agreement with the Executive Director; act as a sub-delegated authorising officer where appropriate;
• Contribute to the development of effective and efficient budgetary and financial resources management procedures of the JU;
• Ensure the smooth implementation of the accounting system and its technical evolution in coordination with the European Commission services (e.g., DGs BUDG/MOVE/SRD);
• Ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements;
• Ensure follow-up of budget execution and discharge procedure;
• Liaise with the Central Support Service and follow-up on ex-post control results.

Management of Unit Staff

• Supervise and ensure effective planning and implementation of the activities of the Corporate Service Unit (including monitoring of deadlines, progress, and objectives achievement);
• Develop, motivate, and manage a diverse and multidisciplinary team;
• Foster a culture of leadership by example – tone at the top – starting from the EU-RAIL values, towards a culture promoting the highest ethical standards in the workplace.

Back Office Arrangements for Accounting Services

• In collaboration with the Executive Director and with the support of the EU-RAIL Accounting Officer, responsible for the smooth and effective coordination, supervision, and implementation of the BOA for Accounting Services, of which EURAIL has the lead.

Document and Infrastructure management

• Ensure the effective management of the IT infrastructure and specific applications needed to support the activities of EU-RAIL;
• Ensure the effective follow up for the EU-RAIL’s physical infrastructure, equipment and facilities management;
• Define and update the EU-RAIL document management policy and follow-up its implementation;
• Organise efficient document management within the JU;
• Back-up the Document Management Officer (DMO) for the coordination and the follow-up of document registration and filling plan management in ARES.

Legal corporate services– Legal supervision

• Responsible for tendering and contracts setup and management, including contract laws and regulations in accordance with the EU procurement rules applicable to the general budget of the European Union;
• Supervise the work of the Legal Officer and provide the necessary support to the Executive Director and all EU-RAIL departments on all legal issues, in particular on European law, notably in relation to European transport policy and on legal matters related to public procurements and grants;

Take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the service.

WE LOOK FOR: ELIGIBILITY, QUALIFICATIONS, AND EXPERIENCE:

A) Eligibility criteria

At the closing date of applications, a candidate must:

• Be a national of a member state of the European Union;
• Be entitled to his or her full rights as a citizen;
• Have the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of duties¹;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the applicable laws concerning military service;
• Be physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post².

Moreover, in order to be eligible, candidates must:

• Have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma when the normal period of university is 4 years or more; Or
• Have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies attested by a diploma and at least one year of appropriate professional experience when the normal period of university is 3 years.

In addition the all of the above, candidates must:

• have an appropriate professional experience³ of at least 12 years;
• have a thorough knowledge of one of the official languages of the EU and a satisfactory knowledge of a second of EU language to the extent necessary to perform his/her duties.

All eligibility criteria must be fulfilled by the deadline for applications and maintained throughout the selection procedure and appointment.

B) Selection criteria

All eligible applications will be assessed and scored against the requirements listed below. Please note that non-compliance with at least one of the essential criteria will result in the exclusion of the candidate from the selection. Advantageous criteria constitute additional assets and will not result in exclusion, if not fulfilled.

1) Essential qualifications and experience

• Suitability to perform the tasks described in section 2 of this vacancy notice;
• Sound experience in public administration, preferably in an international/EU environment;
• Financial background and good knowledge of the EU Financial regulation and the expenditure lifecycle;
• Excellent knowledge of the financial and procurement rules applicable to EU-RAIL or to the general budget of the Union;
• Sound experience of personnel management (human resources);
• At least 5 years professional experience as team leader:
  • Applicants are invited to indicate the size of the teams managed as well as the years of management experience.
• A track record of delivering constructive solutions, successful business outcomes and exploiting synergies:
  • Applicants are invited to detail in their applications relevant examples of achieved outcomes.
• Very good knowledge of written and spoken English;
• Proficient user of MS Office and O365.

2) Advantageous qualifications and experience

• Experience in Horizon Europe and/or experience in H2020 or similar research funding or other financing programmes;
• Experience in audit management, standard compliance procedures and risk assessment;
• At least 6 years of professional experience in EU financial management;
• Good knowledge of the EU Staff Regulations, Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union and related implementing rules;
• Knowledge of EU research and transport policies;
• Proven experience in the preparation and implementation of Work Programmes, Work Plans and other strategic and/or operational documents for an organisation.

3) Behavioural competences

• Motivation – open and positive attitude:
  • Candidates are invited to structure their motivation letter in response to the vacancy notice and not to reiterate their CV.
• Leadership and people management skills;
• Managerial, planning and organisational skills;
• Ability to work under pressure and prioritise tasks in a demanding working environment;
• Ability to work within a team;
• Excellent communication and negotiation skills;
• High sense of discretion and confidentiality.

¹ Prior to the appointment, the successful candidate will be asked to provide a certificate of good conduct, confirming the absence of any criminal record.
² Before taking up his/her duties, the successful candidate will undergo a medical examination by one of the institutions’ medical officers, in order for EU-RAIL to establish that the candidate fulfils the requirement of Article 12(2) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants (CEOS).
³ Only appropriate professional experience acquired after achieving the minimum qualification stated in section A shall be considered. Where additional periods of training and study are accompanied by periods of professional activity, only the latter shall be considered as professional experience. Compulsory military service or equivalent civilian service accomplished after achieving the minimum qualification stated in section A. shall be taken into consideration. Internships will be taken into consideration if they are paid. Professional activities pursued part-time shall be calculated pro rata, on the basis of the percentage of full-time hours worked. A given period may be counted only once.

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