Human Resources manager (AD 6)

The Innovative Health Initiative Joint Undertaking (IHI JU), based in Brussels, Belgium, is looking for a Human Resources manager (Temporary Agent, Grade AD6).

The purpose of this call is to fill one vacant post and establish a reserve list.

About IHI JU

The Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) aims to translate health research and innovation into real benefits for patients and society, and to ensure that Europe remains at the cutting edge of interdisciplinary, sustainable, patient-centric health research. Health research and healthcare increasingly involve diverse sectors. By supporting projects that bring these sectors together, IHI paves the way for a more integrated approach to healthcare, covering prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and disease management.

IHI is a partnership between the European Union and European industry associations representing the pharmaceutical, medical technology, biotechnology, digital health and vaccine industries, namely COCIR, EFPIA, EuropaBio, MedTech Europe, and Vaccines Europe.

IHI’s total budget is EUR 2.4 billion. Half of this comes from Horizon Europe, the EU’s research and innovation programme. The IHI industry partners have committed EUR 1 billion to IHI, and a further EUR 200 million can be committed by other organisations that decide to support the objectives of IHI in specific areas of research by becoming contributing partners. IHI builds on the successes of the Innovative Medicines Initiative, and the IHI Programme Office continues to manage projects launched under IMI.

Job description

As a member of the Administration and Finance Unit, the HR Manager reports directly to the Head of Administration and Finance (HoAF). He/she leads and coordinates the Human Resources (HR) team and is responsible for the strategic and operational management of HR activities, including workforce planning, recruitment and selection, learning and development, organisational culture, staff well-being, and personnel administration.

The Human Resources Team has the following high-level objectives:

• Recruit, retain and motivate staff;
• Provide a place for development and career growth;
• Ensure support for corporate culture and positive team spirit;
• Provide sustainable support to staff members;
• Provide strategic expertise to IHI JU’s management towards achieving the JU’s mission and objectives;
• Contribute to providing a safe working environment.

The HR Manager is responsible for coordinating the work of the HR team and will perform, among others, the following duties:

Strategic management

• Provide strategic HR advice and expertise to IHI JU management in support of the organisation's mission and objectives;
• Lead workforce planning activities, including the preparation of the Multiannual Staff Policy Plan and the Staff Establishment Plan (SEP), ensuring efficient allocation of human resources;
• Contribute to the preparation of the Annual Work Programme (AWP) and the Consolidated Annual Activity Report (CAAR).

Team management

• Plan, organise, supervise and coordinate the work of the HR team, ensuring the effective delivery of objectives and priorities;
• Allocate responsibilities within the team, monitor workload and performance, and adjust priorities where necessary.

Selection and recruitment

• Develop and implement the annual recruitment plan, identifying staffing needs and defining appropriate recruitment strategies;
• Coordinate recruitment and selection procedures in accordance with applicable EU Staff Regulations, internal rules and best practices;
• Organise and manage selection procedures for all categories of staff, including the preparation of documentation and communication with candidates;
• Provide expert advice on recruitment procedures and participate in selection boards.

Learning and development

• Design, implement, monitor and coordinate the organisation's learning and development strategy and annual training programme;
• Manage individual learning and development activities, including the administration of training requests and related databases;
• Monitor HR training contracts and liaise with external training providers;
• Analyse training needs, evaluate learning outcomes and provide management with relevant reports and recommendations;
• Coordinate the performance management cycle, including annual appraisals, objective-setting exercises and reclassification procedures;
• Manage and continuously improve the induction programme for new staff members.

Personnel administration and services

• Oversee administrative procedures related to staff onboarding, mobility and departure;
• Coordinate the administration of staff rights, benefits, contractual conditions and obligations;
• Ensure the timely processing of salaries, allowances and other HR-related financial transactions, while managing the HR budget in a sound and efficient manner.

General responsibilities

• Co-lead the HR Back Office Arrangements (HR BOA) and actively contribute to their implementation, including by leading the development of the inter-JU competency framework, supervising the drafting of guidelines for the organisation of joint and large-scale training activities, supporting the coordination of HR activities across the Joint Undertakings, and contributing to the implementation of the HR BOA Annual Work Plan;
• Ensure the correct application of the EU Staff Regulations and Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities (CEOS) as well as relevant implementing rules;
• Develop, review and update HR policies, procedures and implementing rules, ensuring their effective implementation;
• Advise and support management and staff on the interpretation and application of HR legislation, policies and procedures;
• Prepare and manage public procurement procedures and HR-related service contracts;
• Liaise with the European Commission, other EU institutions, agencies and Joint Undertakings on HR matters, and represent IHI JU in the EU Agencies Network (EUAN) and other relevant HR fora;
• Promote a positive organisational culture, employee engagement and staff well-being;
• Ensure compliance with HR-related data protection requirements in close cooperation with the Data Protection Officer.

Eligibility criteria

At the closing date of applications, candidates must meet the following requirements.

General conditions

• Be a national of a member state of the European Union;
• Enjoy full rights as a citizen;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the applicable laws concerning military service;
• Be physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post;
• Meet the character requirements for the duties involved;
• Have an excellent command of spoken and written English at level C1. Candidates must also have a satisfactory knowledge, at least B2 level, of another official EU language to the extent necessary for the performance of their duties.

Education

• Have a level of education corresponding to completed university studies of at least three years attested by a diploma.

Experience

• Have at least six years of relevant and proven professional work experience acquired from the time when the university degree giving access to the selection procedure was awarded.

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

Selection criteria

Candidates will be considered for the selection phase on the basis of the following criteria, to be fulfilled by the closing date for applications.

Essential criteria

• Suitability to perform the tasks described in the job description;
• Relevant experience in the following HR areas, preferably gained within an international environment:

• Strategic management;
• Staff selection and recruitment;
• Learning and development;
• Personnel administration and services;
• General HR responsibilities.

• Strong demonstrated professional knowledge and/or experience in dealing with the European Union Staff Regulations and CEOS, their implementing rules, policies and procedures;
• Demonstrated professional experience in project management related to Human Resources.

Advantageous criteria

• Experience and/or knowledge of HR IT applications, tools and/or databases;
• Demonstrated professional experience in financial and procurement procedures linked to Human Resources.

Behavioural competences

• Motivation to work in the Human Resources field and to contribute to the achievement of the JU’s mission and objectives;
• Excellent sense of confidentiality and integrity;
• Excellent interpersonal and collaborative skills;
• Excellent organisational and planning skills;
• Excellent communication skills and strong customer-oriented approach;
• Ability to handle many tasks simultaneously while delivering high-quality work under tight deadlines in a highly dynamic environment.

Appointment and reserve list

The recruitment will take place upon a decision of the IHI JU Executive Director.

The Executive Director of the IHI JU will select a successful candidate from the reserve list and offer them the post. A binding commitment can only be made after verification of all conditions and will take the form of a contract signed by the Appointing Authority of the IHI JU.

The successful candidate will be required to make a declaration of their commitment to act independently in the public interest and to make a declaration in relation to interests that might be considered prejudicial to his/her independence. Candidates must confirm their willingness to do so in their application.

Candidates should note that inclusion on the reserve list does not guarantee recruitment. Recruitment will be based on the availability of posts and budget. The IHI JU may decide at any time during the procedure not to pursue the recruitment.

The reserve list for this post will be valid until 31 December 2028 and may be extended at the discretion of the Appointing Authority of IHI JU.

Conditions of employment

The successful candidate will be recruited as a Temporary Agent AD 6, pursuant to Article 2(f) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities, for a period of three years. After an evaluation of the post holder's performance, and subject to budget availability, the term of office may be extended. The period of engagement will not in any case exceed the lifetime of IHI JU.

The basic monthly salary for AD 6, step 1 is EUR 6 961,29, subject to an annual review of remuneration provided for in Article 65(1) of the Staff Regulations, and to a Community tax deducted at source. Staff members are exempt from national taxation. In addition to the basic salary, staff members may be entitled to various allowances, in particular expatriation allowance (16% of basic salary), household allowance, dependent child allowance and education allowance.

A comprehensive welfare package includes pension scheme, medical, accident and occupational disease insurance coverage, unemployment and invalidity allowance, and travel insurance.