Officer, Innovation and Technology Adoption

Brussels - Belgium

Monthly Salary: Not Disclosed

Posted on: Yesterday

Vacancies: 1 Vacancy

Job Summary

The Defence Industry Innovation and Armaments Division (D2IA) leads on the rapid development and delivery of cutting-edge and interoperable defence capabilities working with innovation ecosystems and industry across the Alliance to meet NATOs deterrence and defence needs.

The Innovation Directorate is responsible for driving forward and cohering NATOs innovation agenda ensuring that the Alliance understands the policy and capability implicationsboth opportunities and risksof Emerging and Disruptive Technologies (EDTs). The Directorate contributes to eliminating barriers to innovation whether these are policy or process-related constraints and structures the Alliances engagement with Allied innovation ecosystems.

The Innovation and Technology Adoption Section is dedicated to bridging policy and real-world adoption of new technological products increasing their military credibility through dedicated programmes and integrating new technological products in Allied defence planning and capability development.

The incumbent will support the Head in the effort of implementing the work of the Innovation and Technology Adoption particular the incumbent will focus on supporting the coordination of efforts across the NATO Enterprise on innovation.

In particular the incumbent will:

Plan coordinate and implement work strands of the Rapid Adoption Action Plan (RAAP) including the operationalisation and coordination of NATO Innovation Ranges and NATO Innovation Badges operational experimentation activities etc.;
Plan coordinate and support pilot initiatives including Task Force X endeavours;
Support the integration of pilot initiatives within wider NATO policies and programmes including the NATO Defence Planning Process (NDPP) and High Visibility Projects (HPVs) etc;
Work with a wide network of stakeholders from the NATO Enterprise Allies and industry.

AND EXPERIENCE

ESSENTIAL
The incumbent must:

hold a university degree from an institute of recognized standing preferably with a focus on technology engineering or an innovation-related field;
have at least 3 years professional experience in the field of security capability and technological development etc.;
have excellent drafting skills and experience in preparing background and speaking notes for senior management;
have solid knowledge of and/or experience in project development and management in the field of innovation and technology;
demonstrate excellent collaboration and communication skills;
possess the following minimum level of NATOs official languages (English/French): VI (Proficiency) in one; II (Elementary) in the other.

DESIRABLE
The following would be considered an advantage:

experience working in a multilateral environment or an environment with a variety of stakeholders from multi-cultural backgrounds;
knowledge of the Alliances political and military consultative processes key security policy issues on its agenda and capability development processes.

ACCOUNTABILITIES

Project Management
Support the delivery of Rapid Adoption Action Plan; Develop and implement projects related to innovation and associated program work liaise and collaborate with other programmes relevant in this field. Be responsible for the development of exercises hackathons events trainings and workshops including in collaboration with entrepreneurial actors. Ensure the initiatives comply with best practices and international standards.

Policy Development
Contribute to the development of policy strategy and conceptual papers developed by colleagues and Allies on emerging and disruptive technologies and innovation;

Expertise Development
Apply and expand professional experience in the innovation and technology fields relevant to defence and security issues. Keep abreast of and learn more about opportunities and risks of emerging and disruptive technologies to support political and operational decision making in order to support the units effort to ensure that NATO is able to make a significant contribution in broader discussions beyond the Alliance on innovation. Provide staff support to the Units studies reports and other documents.

Stakeholder Management
Consult and coordinate closely with other divisions of the NATO International Staff the International Military Staff NATO Strategic Commands the Science & Technology Organization DIANA and other NATO bodies and agencies.

Information Management
Be responsible for the development and application of assessment tools and techniques. Ensure cross-sectional and divisional collaboration. Enhance coordination and harmonise the different aspects of work. Prepare documents and inputs including tables of figures requiring careful presentation on innovation activities.

Knowledge Management
Support the development of articles briefings and web stories on innovation activities. Provide input to different public documents which are being used in relation to innovation efforts. Support public diplomacy efforts.

Representation of the Organization
Brief and lecture visiting groups represent the Alliance at meetings conferences workshops and seminars and present papers as directed and at the appropriate level.

Perform any other duty as assigned.

The incumbent reports to the Head Innovation and Technology Adoption Section. The incumbent will develop close working relationships with other sections and units of the division and will coordinate closely with other divisions of the NATO International Staff the International Military Staff the Science & Technology Organization DIANA NATO Strategic Commands in particular Allied Command Transformation and national delegations as necessary.

Direct reports: N/A
Indirect reports: N/A

The incumbent must demonstrate:

Analytical Thinking: Sees multiple relationships.
Clarity and Accuracy: Checks own work.
Conceptual Thinking: Applies learned concepts.
Customer Service Orientation: Takes personal responsibility for correcting problems.
Impact and Influence: Takes multiple actions to persuade.
Initiative: Is decisive in a time-sensitive situation.
Organisational Awareness: Understands organisational climate and culture.
Teamwork: Expresses positive attitudes and expectations of team or team members.

6. CONTRACT

Contract to be offered to the successful applicant (if non-seconded): Definite duration contract of three years; possibility of renewal for up to three years during which the incumbent may apply for conversion to an indefinite duration contract.

Contract clause applicable:

In accordance with the contract policy this is a post in which turnover is desirable for political reasons in order to be able to accommodate the Organisations need to carry out its tasks as mandated by the Nations in a changing environment for example by maintaining the flexibility necessary to shape the Organisations skills profile and to ensure appropriate international diversity.

The maximum period of service foreseen in this post is 6 years. The successful applicant will be offered a 3-year definite duration contract which may be renewed for a further period of up to 3 years. However according to the procedure described in the contract policy the incumbent may apply for conversion to an indefinite contract during the period of renewal and no later than one year before the end of contract.

If the successful applicant is seconded from the national administration of one of NATOs member States a 3-year definite duration contract will be offered which may be renewed for a further period of up to 3 years subject also to the agreement of the national authority concerned. The maximum period of service in the post as a seconded staff member is six years.

Serving staff will be offered a contract in accordance with the NATO Civilian Personnel Régulations.

NOTE:Irrespective of previous qualifications and experience candidates for twin-graded posts will be appointed at the lower grade. Advancement to the higher grade is not automatic and will not normally take place during the first three years of service in the post.

Under specific circumstances serving staff members may be appointed directly to the higher grade and a period of three years might be reduced by up to twenty four months for external candidates. These circumstances are described in the IS directive on twin-graded posts.

7. USEFUL INFORMATION REGARDING APPLICATION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS

Please note that we can only accept applications from nationals of NATO member must be submitted using e-recruitment system as applicable:

For NATO civilian staff members only: please apply via the internal recruitment portal (link);
For all other applications: you apply to any position we encourage you to click here and watch our video providing 6 tips to prepare you for your application and recruitment process.
Do you have questions on the application process in the system and not sure how to proceed Click here for a video containing the information you need to successfully submit your application on time.
When submitting your application please ensure that your Taleo Candidate Profile is updated and that your CV is correctly uploaded in the Taleo attachments section.
More information about the recruitment process and conditions of employment can be found at our website ( will be subject to receipt of asecurity clearance(provided by the national Authorities of the selected candidate) approval of the candidatesmedical fileby the NATO Medical Adviser verification of your study(ies) and work experience and the successful completion of theaccreditationand notification process by the relevant authorities.
NATO will not accept any phase of the recruitment and selection prepared in whole or in part by means of generative artificial-intelligence (AI) tools including and without limitation to chatbots such as Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer (Chat GPT) or other language generating tools. NATO reserves the right to screen applications to identify the use of such tools. All applications prepared in whole or in part by means of such generative or creative AI applications may be rejected without further consideration at NATOs sole discretion and NATO reserves the right to take further steps in such cases as appropriate.

8. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

NATO is committed to diversity and inclusion and strives to provide equal access to employment advancement and retention independent of gender age nationality ethnic origin religion or belief cultural background sexual orientation and disability. NATO welcomes applications of nationals from all member Nations and strongly encourages women to apply.

NATO is committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible working environment where all candidates living with disabilities can fully participate in the recruitment and selection process. If you require reasonable accommodation please inform us during your selection process.

Candidates will be required to provide documented medical evidence to support their request for accommodation.

Building Integrity is a key element of NATOs core tasks. As an employer NATO values commitment to the principles of integrity transparency and accountability in accordance with international norms and practices established for the defence and related security sector. Selected candidates are expected to be role models of integrity and to promote good governance through ongoing efforts in their work.

Due to the broad interest in NATO and the large number of potential candidates telephone or e-mail enquiries cannot be dealt with.

Applicants who are not successful in this competition may be offered an appointment to another post of a similar nature albeit at the same or a lower grade provided they meet the necessary requirements.

The nature of this position may require the staff member at times to be called upon to travel for work and/or to work outside normal office hours.

The organization offers several work-life policies including Teleworking and Flexible Working arrangements (Flexitime) subject to business requirements.

Please note that the International Staff at NATO Headquarters in Brussels Belgium is a non-smoking environment.

For information about the NATO Single Salary Scale (Grading Allowances etc.) please visit ourwebsite. Detailed data is available under the Salary and Benefits tab.

NATO does not charge any application processing training interviewing testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. For more info please click here.

Required Experience:

Unclear Seniority