Contracts Officer
JOB DETAIL
Vacancy in the Directorate of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness.
ESA is an equal opportunity employer, committed to achieving diversity within the workforce and creating an inclusive working environment. We therefore welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics. Applications from women are encouraged.
This is a non-renewable post for a limited duration of 4 years and is classified A2-A4 on the Coordinated Organisations’ salary scale.
Location
ESA Headquarters, Paris, France
Description
Contracts Officer in the Space Transportation and HQ Contracts Division, Contracts Department, Directorate of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness (D/CIC)
Contracts Officers work in the Contracts Department in the Directorate of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness. This opportunity is for a Contracts Officer position in one of the Contract Services in Paris responsible for the implementation of space transportation activities.
As an ESA Contracts Officer, you will have the crucial role of supporting the Project and/or Programme Managers in conducting all procurement and contractual aspects of ESA projects in the domain of space transportation and general procurement. You will also have the responsibility of ensuring that procurement activities are executed in compliance with the legal and industrial policy requirements set out in ESA’s Procurement Regulations.
You will be considered as part of the team of your assigned projects, but with an independent hierarchical reporting line to the relevant Head of the Contracts Service. This secures an appropriate level of independence to ensure impartiality, transparency and compliance within the procurement process.
Duties
Your tasks and responsibilities will include:
- preparing the various elements of the relevant procurement and contract documentation in close cooperation with the Technical Services responsible;
- providing guidelines to apply the relevant and up-to-date legal and industrial policy measures throughout the tendering and contractual implementation processes;
- organising and coordinating with all relevant ESA internal stakeholders all stages of procurement, including the issuing of the invitation to tender, ensuring that the proposals are duly evaluated and the contract is negotiated with the selected economic operators;
- monitoring the implementation of the contracts under your responsibility in accordance with the applicable contractual and industrial policy rules including the negotiation of all amendments to the contract;
- building a value-added relationship of trust with the Project Managers/Technical Officers and their respective teams, advising them on all procurement-related matters.
Technical competencies
Behavioural competencies
Result Orientation
Operational Efficiency
Fostering Cooperation
Relationship Management
Continuous Improvement
Forward Thinking
Education
A master’s in law, economics or from a business school is required for this post.
Additional requirements
• Excellent communication skills, in verbal and written form;
• Customer orientation with sound judgement in solving problems;
• Ability to interact with multiple international actors and to work collaboratively in a team to achieve organisational goals;
• Excellent planning and organisation skills and the ability to manage several tasks efficiently in parallel;
• Strong capacity to adapt to a fast-paced environment
• Knowledge of French and English and the ability to understand and formulate contractual/legal texts in both languages
• Ability to understand issues of a technical and management nature;
• Discretion and integrity.
The following would be considered as an asset:
• Good academic knowledge of contract law, procurement law and/or international business law
Other information
For behavioural competencies expected from ESA staff in general, please refer to the ESA Competency Framework.
For further information please visit: Professionals, What we offer and FAQ
The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.
The Agency may require applicants to undergo selection tests.
At the Agency we value diversity and we welcome people with disabilities. Whenever possible, we seek to accommodate individuals with disabilities by providing the necessary support at the workplace. The Human Resources Department can also provide assistance during the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss this further please contact us at [email protected].
Please note that applications are only considered from nationals of one of the following States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Canada, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia.
According to the ESA Convention, the recruitment of staff must take into account an adequate distribution of posts among nationals of the ESA Member States*. When short-listing for an interview, priority will first be given to internal candidates and secondly to external candidates from under-represented Member States*.
In accordance with the European Space Agency’s security procedures and as part of the selection process, successful candidates will be required to undergo basic screening before appointment conducted by an external background screening service.
In principle, recruitment will be within the advertised grade band (A2-A4). However, if the selected candidate has less than four years of relevant professional experience following the completion of the master’s degree, the position may be filled at A1 level.
*Member States, Associate Members or Cooperating States.
