Staff Officer

1.SUMMARY

The mission of the Operations Division of the International Staff is to prepare NATO for the defence of Alliance territory, to respond to crises at home and abroad, and to strengthen the capabilities of partners. The Operations Division advances the core tasks of the Alliance (Collective Defence, Crisis Management, Cooperative Security) by providing situational awareness, advance planning, well-exercised and executed crisis response, and outcome-oriented defence and related security cooperation programmes.
Under the authority of Director for Operations, the Crisis Response Systems and Exercises (CRSE) Section provides direction and coordination on the elaboration of the Alliance’s crisis management and response system policy, organisation and procedures, including on high level exercising and on lessons learned.
The incumbent will be assigned duties by the Head, CRSE Section to assist in providing coordinated policy advice and recommendations to the Council Operations and Exercise Committee (COEC), the Operations Policy Committee (OPC) and associated bodies. S/he will support the maintenance, revision, implementation, and North Atlantic Council-level exercising of the NATO Crisis Response System (NCRS), as well as the maintenance and review of the NATO policy for lessons learned. S/he will support the review of policy and programmes, cooperation with political, military and civil crisis management experts from allied and partner capitals, the Strategic Commands and relevant international organisations (IO), in particular the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU). S/he will also support the development, co-ordination, planning, conduct and after-action reporting to the Council on high-level crisis management exercises, short notice exercises, as well as scenario-based discussions.

2. QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

ESSENTIAL

DESIRABLE

3.MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES

Policy Development
Support the development of initiatives, policy, doctrine, guidelines and procedures to further the implementation of NATO’s core tasks: Collective Defence, Crisis Management and Cooperative Security, to help inform strategic political and military decision-making and planning. Draft papers, briefs and recommendations on crisis management procedural policy in support of the effective maintenance of the NCRS, high-level exercising and lessons learned for consideration in the appropriate allied conferences, the COEC, the OPC, the Civil Emergency Planning Committee (CEPC), as well as the Council and Defence Policy Planning Committee (DPPC) and other committees, as required.

Information Management
Share information with NATO and partner delegations, NATO Military Authorities (NMAs) and other bodies, following set procedures and according to the need with International Organizations.

Expertise Development
Apply expertise to activities across the crisis spectrum. Contribute to the conduct of seminars, workshops, exercises and other activities for NATO colleagues, national civil and military planners, including interaction with International Organisations, as required.

Knowledge Management
In cooperation with various stakeholders (inside and outside NATO, as required) develop, enhance and shape knowledge related to crisis management, high level exercising, and lessons learned to improve awareness of the Alliance and of international actors.

Stakeholder Management
Liaise and cooperate with NMAs and national representatives with regard to crisis management, collective defence procedures and high-level exercises, as well as relevant military exercises. Develop contacts and cooperation designed to enhance planning capabilities and cooperation. Support the conduct of activities with NATO partnerships. Develop contacts and networks to support political/military activities designed to deepen cooperation with international organisations, and to enhance partner countries’ crisis management capabilities and cooperation and to support activities within such countries through the preparation and coordination of expert meetings and visits.

Representation of the Organisation
Represent the Section at NATO and in various national, regional, and international settings, including giving presentations at conferences, workshops, and seminars and supporting dialogue with government, the NMAs and civilian and military representatives of nations.

Project Management
Support additional relevant projects as deemed necessary by divisional management and relevant to Alliance objectives.
Perform any other related duty as assigned.

4. INTERRELATIONSHIPS

The incumbent reports to Head, Crisis Response Systems and Exercises (CRSE) Section and through him/her, to the Director for Operations. S/He is also required to maintain close working relationships with other sections of the Operations Division, in particular the Plans Section, including the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC), and with the Operations and Intelligence Branches of the IMS and the SCs. He/she will also coordinate with other Divisions of the International Staff, the International Military Staff, the Situation Centre, the NATO Strategic Commands and national delegations, as necessary and be prepared to establish appropriate coordination with other non-NATO entities when so directed
Direct reports: N/A
Indirect reports: N/A

5. COMPETENCIES

The incumbent must demonstrate:

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 Organisation’s 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 Organisation’s 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 NATO’s 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.

7. RECRUITMENT PROCESS

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.

Building Integrity is a key element of NATO’s 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 our website. Detailed data is available under the Salary and Benefits tab.