Assistant, Operations Division (2 posts)
🔍 Belgium
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- 241321 Requisition #
‘Pending Budget Approval’
‘The below Vacancy Notice is for the recruitment of two Assistant roles in the Operations Division: 1) Assistant in the Counter Terrorism Section; 2) Assistant in the Front Office.
1. SUMMARY
The mission of the Operations Division of the International Staff (IS) is to prepare NATO for the defence of Alliance territory, to prevent and manage crises at home and abroad, and to strengthen the capabilities of partners. The Operations Division advances the core tasks of the Alliance (Deterrence and Defence, Crisis Prevention and Management, Cooperative Security) by providing policy development and recommendations, situational awareness, advance planning, well-exercised and executed management of deterrence and defence activities, and outcome-oriented security capacity building programmes.
The Counter Terrorism Section coordinates Counter Terrorism (CT) related efforts across the Alliance. The team provides relevant policy guidance and support to Allies and seeks to enhance NATO’s dialogue and practical cooperation on Counter Terrorism related issues with International Organisations and partner countries. It also supports the work of the Secretary General’s Special Coordinator for CT in their duties.
The Front Office is responsible for the coordination of activities within and outside the Operations Division and provides support and advice to the Operations Division on organisational, budgetary, administrative, human resource and technical issues.
The incumbent will carry out the duties of Assistant, either under the direction of the Head, Counter Terrorism Section, or under the direction of the Executive Officer (XO) in the Front Office (FO). They are accountable for efficiently handling a wide range of support duties of an administrative, organisational, and financial nature. The Assistant plays an important role in knowledge management and in facilitating access to relevant information.
Due to the nature of the work of the Division, adaptability and availability to carry out tasks at short notice and under tight deadlines are major requirements in this particular area of work.
2. QUALIFICATIONS
ESSENTIAL
The incumbent must:
- have a good general education at least to higher secondary level;
- have at least 4 years' experience of administrative duties;
- have familiarity with various software packages, in particular the Microsoft Office suite or similar and be able to demonstrate skills in formatting and document manipulation;
- demonstrate a strong drive for teamwork;
- possess experience in organising conferences and/or programme administration;
- possess knowledge of, and experience in providing financial support;
- possess the following minimum levels of NATO’s official languages (English/French): V (“Advanced”) in one; I (“Beginner”) in the other.
DESIRABLE
The following would be considered an advantage:
- possess experience with Sharepoint and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems;
- previous working experience in a multicultural environment;
- a higher level in the other official language;
Planning and Execution
Assist with the day-to-day administration: arrange meetings and handle related details, such as necessary travel arrangements and mission coordination, as well as coordination of leave plans. Organise own workload to ensure the accurate and timely execution of duties.
Information Management
Administer the Section Head’s schedule. Answer enquiries and incoming calls. Draft memoranda and cover letters to documents. Type and format all kinds of documents, including tables of figures requiring careful presentation using the standard software packages used by NATO (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Take minutes at meetings as necessary. Oversee the paper flow into and out of the office including retrieving and organising correspondence/documents (including classified information). Maintain an effective follow-up and/or reminder system for pending actions within the Section.
Knowledge Management
Collect, categorise, and track relevant information required for various tasks and projects. Maintain well-structured paper and electronic filing systems, including on Sharepoint.
Stakeholder Management
Liaise with points of contact to ensure efficiency in daily management of workload and processes. Be the point of contact for initial requests of various nature. Maintain all lists of internal and external contacts.
Expertise Development
Conduct basic research on a variety of topics, as directed. Proactively develop skills in areas such as planning and organising, new technology, languages and effective communication. Liaise with other Assistants to leverage knowledge.
Organisational Efficiencies
Provide constructive suggestions to improve office procedures. Find ways to be faster, better and more effective in managing information and using office tools.
Financial Management
Ensure that proper financial procedures are followed for the budget, prepare the necessary financial documents, follow up on activities to ensure that financial files are correctly processed and maintain records of all financial transactions. Provide financial support to the management of projects implemented by the Section.
Perform any other related duty as assigned.
4. INTERRELATIONSHIPS
The incumbent works in a team with the other Assistants in the section and reports to the Head of the relevant Section. They will maintain close working relationships with other staff in the Operations Division, as well as throughout the Organization. The incumbent will deal on a regular basis with members of Delegations and Partner Missions, other International Staff Divisions and Directorates and the International Military Staff, as well as with officials from other countries and from international organisations.
Direct reports: N/a
Indirect reports: N/a.
5. COMPETENCIES
The incumbent must demonstrate:
- Clarity and Accuracy: Checks own work;
- Customer Service Orientation: Takes personal responsibility for correcting problems;
- Empathy: Listens actively;
- Flexibility: Acts with flexibility;
- Initiative: Is decisive in a time-sensitive situation;
- Organisational Awareness: Understands the Organization's structure;
- Teamwork: Expresses positive attitudes and expectations of team or team members.
In accordance with the NATO Civilian Personnel Regulations, the successful candidate will receive a definite duration contract of three years, which may be followed by an indefinite duration contract.
7. USEFUL INFORMATION REGARDING APPLICATION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS
Please note that we can only accept applications from nationals of NATO member countries. Applications 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: www.nato.int/recruitment
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More information about the recruitment process and conditions of employment, can be found at our website (http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/recruit-hq-e.htm)
Appointment will be subject to receipt of a security clearance (provided by the national Authorities of the selected candidate), approval of the candidate’s medical file by the NATO Medical Adviser, verification of your study(ies) and work experience, and the successful completion of the accreditation and 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 NATO’s sole discretion, and NATO reserves the right to take further steps in such cases as appropriate.