EIGE – Procurement Assistant

The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE)^[1] is organising a call for applications with a view to establishing a reserve list for the post of Procurement Assistant.

The registration of applications will begin on 22 July 2021 and will close on 23 August 2021 at 13:00 Eastern European Time.

The Institute

Based in Vilnius, Lithuania, EIGE is a decentralised agency of the European Union (EU) entrusted with specific objectives envisaged to contribute and strengthen the promotion of gender equality.

To achieve its goals, the Institute collects and analyses comparable and reliable information at EU level and develops appropriate methodological tools for the integration of gender equality into all EU policies. It fosters the exchange of good practices and dialogue between stakeholders and raises EU citizen awareness of this policy area by providing technical assistance to EU institutions, in particular the European Commission, as well as the authorities of the Member States.

In the course of its work to promote and strengthen gender equality, EIGE supports policy-makers with high quality research and comparable data relevant to their work.

Job profile & duties

Reporting to the Head of Administration and working closely with the Procurement Officer and different project managers, the Procurement Assistant shall contribute to, and facilitate the development, implementation and monitoring of the Institute’s procurement function in line with its annual procurement plan.

The jobholder shall play a key role in enabling colleagues from different teams to carry out procurement procedures. This will involve consolidating and enhancing the quality of support provided by procurement function in accordance with related financial procedures as well as the applicable regulatory framework and service requirements. 

The responsibilities include the following:

• Support the initiation, coordination and management of procurement procedures in line with work priorities;
• Maintain knowledge of all organisational rules and EU Regulations affecting procurement;
• Support in ensuring the timely implementation of the annual procurement plan;
• Assist project managers across the Institute with the management of calls for tender as well as contract administration including extensions, renewals and amendments;
• Assist with requests for services and order forms for ongoing framework contracts, calls for expression of interest for external experts and other routine administrative tenders;
• Keep track administratively of procedural information in an organised and accessible manner (e.g. monitor project phases);
• Contribute to the improvement and update of procurement processes, templates and guidelines;
• Support in preparation of reports and documents for various audits;
• Support on the job training (including training sessions) of other colleagues in procurement matters;
• Provide support in dealing with matters, such as data protection, intellectual property rights;
• Implement other relevant tasks assigned by the Head of Administration and the Procurement Officer.

Qualifications and experience required

Eligibility requirements

Engagement as a Contract Agent requires:

• a post-secondary education attested by a diploma, or a secondary education attested by a diploma^[2] giving access to post-secondary education plus appropriate professional experience of three years;
• EU Member State nationality;
• a good command, both spoken and written, of at least two official EU languages;
• entitlement to full rights as a citizen;
• no obligations imposed by national laws concerning military service;
• medically certified fitness to perform duties linked to the post.^[3]

Selection criteria

Essential

• at least one year experience in  public procurement ;
• a good knowledge of administrative and procurement procedures and guidelines;
• excellent knowledge of  English, the predominant working language of the Institute.

Advantageous

• Knowledge of financial and procurement rules and procedures applicable to EU institutions and bodies, by training or experience;
• Experience in the area of EU public procurement processes within EU institutions/bodies;
• Previous exposure to international and/or multicultural work environments;
• Awareness of and support for gender equality.

Other competencies

• a high level of IT literacy and familiarity with relevant software applications;
• the ability to work in a problem solving manner and to learn and work in a proactive, autonomous way;
• a team player who is self-critical towards her/his own performance and shares learning and information as part of a multicultural and multidisciplinary organisation;
• the mind-set to be attentive to detail and to see through to conclusion specific tasks;
• the ability to work under pressure and within tight deadlines ensuring that deadlines and quality standards are met.

Selection procedure

The selection procedure includes the following steps:

• Only duly completed applications submitted electronically within the deadline will be taken into consideration.
• Each duly completed application will be examined with a view to establishing that the candidate meets all eligibility criteria.
• Eligible applications will be evaluated by the appointed selection committee based on selection criteria defined in this vacancy notice. Depending on the number of applications received, the selection committee may apply stricter requirements within the selection criteria noted above.
• The best-admissible candidates will be short-listed for interview.
• Interviews and written tests will be in English.
• During the interview, the selection committee will examine the candidates’ profiles and assess their relevancy for the post in question. On the day of the interview, candidates may also be required to undergo a competency assessment exercise.
• On the day of interviews, candidates will be requested to present originals and/or copies of documents detailing citizenship in particular a copy of identity card, passport or other official document specifying citizenship.
• If at any stage of the procedure, it is established that information in the application has been knowingly falsified, the candidate shall be disqualified from the selection process.
• Successful candidates will be included in a reserve list which will be valid for 12 months. The validity of this list may be extended. Each candidate will be informed by letter whether or not s/he has been placed on the reserve list. However, inclusion of candidates on the reserve list does not guarantee recruitment.
• EIGE’s Director will appoint the selected jobholder from the reserve list, taking into account a gender balanced, geographically diverse organisation.

The internal proceedings of the selection committee are confidential and any contact with its members is strictly forbidden. Soliciting on behalf of a candidate can lead to immediate disqualification.

For applications to be valid, candidates must complete an EIGE application form. It is to be forwarded electronically to eige.hr@eige.europa.eu. The subject title should include the vacancy reference number.

Applicants are requested not to attach any supporting documents at this stage. Only candidates invited to an interview will be asked to present copies of documents for verification. Applications will not be returned to candidates but will be kept on file by the Institute in line with its data protection obligations.

Please note that the time between the closing date for the submission of applications and the end of the process to short list candidates for the interview may be several weeks.

Due to the large volume of applications only candidates selected for the interviews will be contacted.

Employment conditions

The place of employment is Vilnius, Lithuania. EIGE operates from a modern and fully computerised office space based in the city’s Old Town.

The jobholder shall work in a multicultural environment where social dialogue is considered very important. EIGE applies a participatory approach to its work and encourages an open dialogue between management and staff. Colleagues work closely together as much of the work is organised around cross-unit project teams. EIGE is committed to the principle of zero tolerance towards harassment at work.

Working time is based around flexitime and core working hours as defined in the EU’s Staff Regulations. In addition to training and development opportunities, EIGE offers various support and wellbeing measures for staff members and their families, such as contributions to schooling costs.

For reasons related to the Institute’s operational requirements, the chosen candidate will be expected to be available at short notice. A contract in Function Group II under Article 3a pursuant to the conditions of employment of other servants of the European Union shall be offered, subject to a nine month probation period. The duration of the contract will be three years and may be renewed not more than once for a fixed period. Any further renewal shall be for an indefinite period.

The pay of a Contract Agent consists of the basic remuneration as well as various allowances^[4] depending on personal situation of the jobholder. This post is graded either at grade 4 or grade 5^[5] depending on the experience of the chosen candidate. For information, the current gross basic salary before deductions and the correction coefficient weighting of 76.6 for Lithuania, starts at approximately €2,169 for grade 4 and at approximately €2,454 for grade 5. Salaries are exempt from national taxation but are subject to tax at source. Deductions for medical insurance, pension and unemployment insurance also apply.

Independence & declarations of interest

The jobholder will be required to enter into a commitment to act independently in the public interest and to make complete declarations of any direct or indirect interests that might be considered prejudicial to his/her independence. Candidates must confirm their willingness to do so in their application.

Equal opportunities

The Institute applies a policy of equal opportunities in line with the formal requirements noted in section 3.1.

Applications are accepted without distinction on any grounds of age, birth, disability, ethnic or social origin, genetic features, membership of a national minority, political (or any other) opinion, property, religion, sex or sexual orientation.

Appeal procedures

If a candidate considers that s/he has been adversely affected by a particular decision, s/he can lodge a complaint under Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union and Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union, by writing to The Director, European Institute for Gender Equality, Gedimino Prospektas 16, Vilnius, Lithuania LT01103.

The complaint must be lodged within three months. The time limit for initiating this type of procedure (see Staff Regulations as modified by Council Regulation No 723/2004 of 22nd March 2004 published in the Official Journal of the European Union L 124 of 27th April 2004) starts to run from the time the candidate is notified of the act adversely affecting her/him.

Pursuant to Article 195(1) of the Treaty establishing the European Community and in accordance with the conditions laid down in the Decision of the European Parliament of 9 March 1994 on the Staff Regulations and the general conditions governing the performance of the Ombudsman’s duties, published in Official Journal of the European Union L 113 of 4 May 1994, it is also possible to write to: The European Ombudsman, 1 Avenue du Président Robert Schuman, CS 30403 67001 Strasbourg Cedex, France.

Further details on appeals

Protection of personal data

As the body responsible for organising the competition, the EIGE ensures that applicants’ personal data are processed as required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC. This applies in particular to the confidentiality and security of such data.

Personal data shall thus be processed solely for the purpose of the selection procedure. EIGE’s privacy statement on the personal data processing.

Lithuania & life in Vilnius

Lithuania is a member of the Schengen Area and it borders Latvia, Belarus, Poland and the Kaliningrad region of Russia. Its western coastline – noted for its fine beaches, dunes and majestic pines – straddles the Baltic Sea.

Vilnius has an estimated population of just over 550,000 people. In addition to ample green spaces, it is beautifully situated on the banks of the river Neris, offering excellent opportunities for outdoor activities. Vilnius has impressive Baroque, Gothic, Renaissance and Russian architecture as well as one of Europe’s largest medieval old towns, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1994. It has been a university city since the Middle Ages.

Today it is the centre of the country’s politics, business, science, culture and entertainment and it attracts an increasingly varied assortment of local and international events. The city centre of Vilnius is compact, clean and safe. In addition to hosting a number of international schools, Vilnius has a well-developed infrastructure and ambitious future plans.

The city is easy to get around, has a good standard of living and an excellent working environment. EIGE’s premises are situated in the Europe House on the main thoroughfare of Vilnius City, Gedimino Prospektas, with easy access to amenities, both leisure and educational. 

Further information is available at http://www.vilnius-tourism.lt/en/tourism and https://investlithuania.com/why-lithuania/lifestyle .

 

[1] Established by the European Parliament: the Council Regulation (EC) No 1922/2006 of 20 December 2006 (OJ L 403/9 of 30.12.2006).

[2] The secondary education diploma giving access to higher education may be replaced by a certificate of adequate professional training of not less than three years on condition that there was no similar professional training giving access to higher education at the time it was issued, or successful completion of intermediary education plus two years’ relevant specialisation and at least five years of appropriate professional experience.

[3] Prior to recruitment, the successful candidate will be medically examined for the purposes of Article 12(2) (d) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities.

[4] For example: expatriation, household, education, dependent child, installation, accreditation, etc.

[5] The higher salary can apply subject to verification of documented work experience.