Head, Land and Maritime Section

The Defence Industry Innovation and Armaments Division (D2IA) is responsible for facilitating the development and adoption of cutting-edge innovative and interoperable capabilities critical to ensuring the Alliances ability to undertake the full spectrum of missions and operations. It leads the development of innovation policies drives the adoption of emerging and disruptive technologies and engages with innovation ecosystems in support of NATOs Capability Targets.

The Armaments and Major Capability Programmes (AMCP) Directorate supports consensus decision making at NATO Headquarters on a wide range of joint land air and maritime capabilities required for the full range of the Alliances missions. The Directorate supports NATO Defence Planning activities and related capability initiatives. To that end it provides capability-related advice to NATO Committees and the Organizations senior particular the Directorate supports the work of the Conference of National Armaments Directors (CNAD) and the Aviation Committee (AVC) to include their subordinate structures. Specific responsibilities include policy programmes and capability development support and oversight in the areas of Aerospace Joint Intelligence Reconnaissance Surveillance (JISR) as well as the development of specific proposals for multinational capability delivery tailored toward the requirements of individual Allies while ensuring their proper integration within the broader NDPP approach and contribution to the provision of a coherent NATO-wide multinational capability delivery agenda.

The Land and Maritime Section provides expertise through policy advice coordination and programmatic support to both Allies (ostensibly through the Conference of National Armament Directors substructure) and across the NATO enterprise with respect to both Land Maritime and joint capability development and delivery.
The incumbent must be able to work in both political and military/operational contexts and comfortably switch between the two.
Within general guidance the incumbent is required to:
Manage and lead the LMS accordingly and oversee its broad portfolio in relation to NATOs Land and Maritime capability development and delivery ambitions;
Support NATOs joint capability initiatives notably through the development and execution of a coherent coordinated strategy and subsequent implementation plan(s) capitalising on nations and NATOs existing joint capabilities and networks ensuring coherence with ongoing implementation efforts and seeking synergies with national Land and Maritime capability development programmes;
Support and participate within multiple NATO committees and working groups on Land and Maritime and joint matters;
Organise and at times matrix manage intra-staff coordination conducted as task forces or integrated project teams and composed of members from the International Staff (IS) the International Military Staff (IMS) the Strategic Commands and NATO Agencies and bodies;
Monitor progress of multinational and common funded Land and Maritime projects and initiatives;
Foster collaboration in the standardisation development and production of Land and Maritime systems within the Alliance and as appropriate with partner nations;
Fulfil the role of Vice-Chair of NATOs Army Armaments Group and of NATOs Naval Armaments Group;
Support the Director Armaments and Major Capability Programmes as required.

Key challenges facing the successful candidate for this post during the next 2-3 years will include:

1)Collaborating with other NATO entities nations and communities of interest to address critical capability shortfalls across both Land and Maritime domains and in the realm of joint capabilities in terms of quality and quantity;
2)Reconciling the desire to decrease the time and bureaucracy between capability development and delivery cycles in order to deliver relevant war winning joint Land and Maritime capabilities;
3)Managing the CNAD expert community such that the structures and national representation of both the NATO Army Armaments Group and the NATO Naval Armaments Group remain relevant and responsive to NATOs interoperability and capability delivery challenges; and
4)Any other challenges the candidate may foresee.

As part of this application you are kindly requested to attach a MS Word document summarizing your views on these 4 key challenges and explain how you would address them if selected for the position. Please limit yourself to maximum 1 x A4 page per challenge (4 A4 pages into total)

Please note that the competition for this post is provisionally scheduled as follows:
Pre-selection testing mid-December 2025;
Final selection mid-February 2026 in Brussels Belgium.

2. QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

ESSENTIAL
The incumbent must:

hold a university degree from an institution of recognised standing or equivalent qualification;
have at least 10 years of experience in capability development issues including in Joint Land or Maritime policy and capability areas out of which at least 5 years in team management and coordination;
possess significant knowledge of and operational experience in joint multi-domain Land or Maritime capabilities and concepts extant or under development within the Alliance;
have experience in working in an international environment preferably comprising both military and civilian staff;
have experience of managing and leading diverse multi-national groups;
possess the necessary skills in the preparation and chairing of both formal and informal meetings for a multinational audience;
be politically literate and able to demonstrate an ability to effectively communicate at an operational technical and political level;
have excellent written and oral briefing skills;
possess the following minimum levels of NATOs official languages (English/French): V (Advanced) in one; II (Elementary) in the other;
be flexible to travel and work outside of normal office hours.

DESIRABLE
The following would be considered an advantage:

broad knowledge of the NATO Defence Planning framework;
knowledge of NATO civilian and military defence organisations;
experience working in a strategic military environment;
attended national or NATO senior command and staff college or equivalent.

3. MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES
Policy Development
Align direct and review policy development relating to NATO Land and Maritime which includes procurement initiatives and co-operative ventures relevant to NATOs broader strategic ambitions. Lead on and contribute to the development of documents promoting standardization and interoperability in the areas of Land and Maritime and joint capabilities.

Expertise Development
Serve as the principal advisor for all Land and Maritime capability matters to the Director Armaments and Major Capability Programmes and the whole D2IA Division. Ensure the correct application of expertise within the Section is maintained and developed through benchmarking and keep abreast of the latest technological developments in the fields of LMS. Conduct analyse and make recommendations for their application. Support funding implications analyses for proposed programmes. Draft present and defend the content of reports on land and maritime policy programme development and implementation for a variety of audiences.

Project Management
Ensure that project/programme deliverables are attainable and guide their progress. This should be done by drawing all relevant Land or Maritime-related programmes and initiatives together in a coherent coordinated manner in order to facilitate timely capability delivery. Help align and focus all associated staff efforts in order to facilitate capability delivery. Identify risks and undertake contingency planning/initiate remedial action as required in close coordination with all relevant stakeholders.

Knowledge Management
Support consultations and decision making in NATO committees and any other groups such as Integrated Project Teams or Task Forces to whom the incumbent will be assigned. Assist NATO committees and senior management in the preparation of specialist documents including capability requirement documents and standardization documentation and agreements support follow-up actions for committees meetings and in some cases take responsibility for implementing meeting decisions. Obtain reviews reports and information on the development and procurement of Land Maritime or joint systems. Internally ensure that the design and implementation of LMS knowledge management systems (Land and Maritime areas on the Divisional Team Site (DTS) and the LMS portal) includes mechanisms to allow for the collection and distribution of high-quality relevant content to those that need it.

Stakeholder Management
Balance potentially conflicting stakeholder interests or programmes. Organise consultations among all relevant stakeholders in the NATO staffs ask relevant information from the various NATO entities involved in joint Land or Maritime capability development and propose action as required. Liaise with government military and industry representatives of NATO Nations to develop coherent approaches. Monitor the work of other groups involved in related activities and liaise with them on a regular basis.

Planning and Execution
Ensure that the management and resolution of Land and Maritime related issues promotes long-term stability and cooperation in line with NATOs mission. Assist the Director in exercising staff coordination authority (across the NATO enterprise) in support of the coherent delivery of joint Land or Maritime capabilities to the Alliance.

Representation of the Organization
Align Land and Maritime communication efforts to ensure consistency across NATOs interests. Represent the Organization up to the requisite level of authority. Participate/lead in meetings seminars exercises conferences and workshops providing briefings expertise and assistance in Land and Maritime-related issues and Alliance goals and objectives.

People Management
Lead plan direct and supervise the work of the Section coaching and mentoring assigned staff members thereby enabling them to meet their performance objectives and grow in their jobs. Promote transparency in decision-making equal access to opportunities for all staff and ensure that all staff under their responsibility are clear on organizational and divisional objectives. Provide regular and fair feedback on performance informally as appropriate and via the HQ Performance Review and Development (PRD) system. Identify possible development and mobility opportunities for team members. Promote integrity professionalism and accountability through a sound and inclusive leadership culture. Participate in people management activities across the Directorate as directed.

Vision and Direction
Propose strategic goals and formulate objectives for the Directorate in concert with the divisional objectives and ensure follow-up and implementation. Assist in the overall development of such goals and objectives.

Perform any other related duty as assigned.

The incumbent reports to the Director Armaments and Major Capability Programmes and conducts a large part of work accountabilities with minimal supervision. As Head the incumbent supervises the work of the members of the LMS and works in very close co-operation with members from the IS the IMS the Strategic Commands NATO Agencies and bodies and particular the incumbent organises/leads intra-staff coordination conducted in the form of task forces or integrated project teams. The incumbent also liaises with other groups and agencies both internal and external to NATO that work in fields related to those for which s/he is responsible.
Direct reports: 9
Indirect reports: N/a.

The incumbent must demonstrate:

Achievement: Sets and works to meet challenging goals;
Change Leadership: Personally leads change;
Conceptual Thinking: Clarifies complex data or solutions;
Developing Others: Provides in-depth mentoring coaching and training;
Impact and Influence: Uses indirect influence;
Initiative: Plans and acts for the long-term;
Leadership: Positions self as the leader;
Organizational Awareness: Understands organisational politics;
Self-Control: Stays composed and positive even under extreme pressure.