1. REF. : CDT-AD 10-2008/07
HEAD OF THE GENERAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT (M/F)
GRADE : AD 10 (AT 2B)
DEPARTMENT : GENERAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT : LUXEMBOURG
The Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union was established in 1994 to provide translation
services for the various bodies of the European Union. It is based in Luxembourg. Since its establishment, the
Centre’s workload has increased considerably, and it now employs about 200 staff.
The newly established General Affairs Department will be responsible for the implementation of two Strategic
Priorities of the Translation Centre, namely, ‘Market and promote our service, and satisfy our clients’, and ‘Spirit of
innovation’ as approved by the Centre’s Management Board in March 2008. The General Affairs Department will
also play a major role regarding the implementation of the Centre’s 2nd mission – participation in interinstitutional
cooperation activities. The General Affairs Department will consist of the Client Coordination Section, the Project
Management Office and the Interinstitutional Cooperation and Public Relations Group.
Established in June 2007, the Client Coordination Section is currently under the responsibility of the Director of the
Centre. It liaises with the present 39 clients of the Centre via its network of 10 client coordinators with the aim of
helping to ensure the highest quality of both products and services.
The Interinstitutional Cooperation and Public Relations Group will start its activities on 1st January 2009. It will be
responsible for establishing and coordinating relations with Member State universities, disseminating information on
the achievements of the Centre to stakeholders, as well as organising training and promotional events.
The Project Management Office will be a horizontal division which will provide services to the Centre’s departments
and sections. Its main mission will be to ensure the successful and sustainable implementation of all major cross-
border projects of the Centre.

2. 1) Job description
Reporting directly to the Director, the Head of General Affairs Department will be responsible for the strategic
planning and day-to-day managing of activities pertaining to the three divisions of the department. Moreover, the
Head of General Affairs Department will directly lead the Project Management Office and Interinstitutional
Cooperation and Public Relations group as there will be no middle managers involved.
2) Nature of the duties
The main tasks and responsibilities will include:
Drafting and implementing the work programme of the General Affairs Department in line with the strategies
and policies of the Centre;
Assisting and providing advice to the Director in tasks relating to the organisation and management of the
department, based on the work programmes of the Centre and the General Affairs Department;
Identifying, planning, coordinating and supervising operations, as well as managing the staff of the General
Affairs Department;
Defining appropriate project management methodology for the Centre, adapting it to the Centre’s needs, and
coaching the staff of the Centre on it;
Managing the Centre’s project portfolio, overseeing compliance with the financial parameters associated with
it, both in terms of project and operational costs; ensuring that projects are consistent with quality criteria and
delivered on time and within budget;
Investigating and introducing new technologies that support project management; delivering business
solutions providing greater effectiveness and resulting in improved quality services for the clients;
Further consolidating the Centre’s client base by marketing the Centre’s services within the European
institutional setup, with the potential aim of extending the client base outside;
Planning and organising events to foster relations with clients and other stakeholders, and increase the
visibility of the Centre;
Attending working meetings and external events in order to represent the Centre and increase its visibility at
interinstitutional level, as well as in the Member States;
Participating in exchanges of information with a view to rationalising resources, harmonising working methods
and benefiting from the experience of other organisations.
1. SELECTION CRITERIA:
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3. To be eligible to take part in this selection procedure, the applicant must, on the closing date for applications, meet
the following requirements:
a) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:
be a citizen of a Member State of the European Union;
qualifications: have a level of education which corresponds to completed university attested by a
diploma when the normal period of university education is four years or more,
or
a level of education which corresponds to completed university attested by a diploma and appropriate
professional experience of at least one year when the normal period of university education is at least
three years;
knowledge of languages: produce evidence of a thorough knowledge of one of the languages of the
Communities and of a satisfactory knowledge of another language of the Communities to the extent
necessary for the performance of his duties;
professional experience: since obtaining the above-mentioned qualifications, have acquired at least
12 years’ full-time, graduate-level professional experience of which 5 years’ full-time managerial
experience in domains concerned by this publication.
b) REQUIRED COMPETENCIES:
Candidates must have a very good knowledge of English and a good knowledge of French, or vice
versa;
Candidates must possess very good general knowledge of IT and project management
methodologies;
Candidates must have a proven record of experience in liaising with stakeholders, international
partners, Member State organisations, clients, etc;
Candidates must be able to demonstrate at least 3 years of experience in project management.
Experience in a similar managerial position within a private company would be considered an advantage.
c) PERSONAL SKILLS REQUIRED:
Management/Leadership skills: candidates must be able to involve and motivate all members of the
department, while contributing to the development of know-how and human skills in an attempt to
improve performance; they must be able to mobilise human potential by delegating responsibilities, in
particular by relying on middle management and using the department’s resources;
Communication skills: candidates must be good communicators at all levels and in a multicultural
environment, able to communicate easily in the working languages of the Centre (French/English),
convey information and hold meetings; they must be good team players who are open to the opinions
of fellow team members; articulate and persuasive speakers and writers.
Sense of responsibility: candidates must have a good sense of responsibility and be committed to
excellence, discretion, maintaining confidentiality and a desire to achieve goals whilst respecting
deadlines, budgets and the quality standards laid down by the Centre; they must be prepared to
rectify any inadequate performance; they must be able to take ultimate responsibility for the
department’s actions.
Organisational skills: candidates must be able to identify strategic goals, be forward-thinking and able
to anticipate future requests, opportunities and constraints; they must be able to manage multiple
activities involving people both within and outside the department (setting of priorities, planning
activities, etc.); they must be methodical and have a sense of initiative.
These skills will be assessed during the interview.
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4. 2. SELECTION PROCEDURE:
a) PRESELECTION STAGE:
The preselection stage will be carried out in two parts:
• The first will be based on the above-mentioned eligibility criteria (point 1. a), and is intended to
establish whether the applicant meets all the mandatory eligibility criteria and all formal
requirements laid down in the application procedure. Applicants who do not do so will be rejected.
• The second part will take into consideration professional experience, language knowledge and all
other points specified under desirable competencies (point 1. b). This part will be marked on a
scale from 0 to 20 (pass mark: 10).
The selection committee will invite for interview the 20 applicants who obtain the best marks in the pre-selection
stage.
b) SELECTION STAGE:
The selection stage follows the procedure described below. It consists of an interview with the selection committee
to assess applicants' suitability to carry out the duties described above. The interview will also focus on applicants'
specialist knowledge and their ability to work in a multicultural environment.
The interview will be marked out of 20 (pass mark: 12).
After the interviews, the selection committee will draw up a reserve list in alphabetical order. Applicants should note
that inclusion on a reserve list does not guarantee recruitment.
The reserve list will be valid until 31 December 2010 and may be extended at the discretion of the Translation
Centre’s Appointing Authority.
3. RECRUITMENT:
Depending on the budgetary situation, selected applicants may be offered a temporary staff contract (2b) for three
years, renewable once for one year, in accordance with the Conditions of employment of others servants of the
European Communities. This position is considered as a permanent post. Therefore, the possibility will be provided
to the applicant to be nominated as official at the condition that he successfully passed a competition. Subject to
the level of confidentiality of the work carried out, the selected applicant may be required to apply for security
clearance.
The successful applicants will be recruited in the function group/grade AD 10. The basic monthly salary for the
grade AD 10 (step 1) is 7.543,05 EUR. In addition to the basic salary, members of staff may be entitled to various
allowances, such a household allowance, an expatriation allowance (16% of basic salary), etc.
In addition, in order to be eligible and before being appointed, the applicant must:
have fulfilled any military service obligations imposed on them by law;
meet the character requirements for the duties involved (enjoy full rights as a citizen)1;
undergo a medical examination carried out by the Translation Centre’s medical officers in order to
satisfy the requirements of Article 28(e) of the Staff Regulations of Officials of the European
Communities.
1 Applicants must provide an official certificate confirming that they do not have criminal record.
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5. 4. APPLICATION PROCEDURE:
For applications to be valid, applicants must submit, in an A4-format envelope, the following documents:
the application form, duly signed and dated, which is available at: www.cdt.europa.eu
supporting documents regarding the formal requirements indicated in the application form;
a reasoned letter of application;
copies of reference documents confirming the required qualifications, experience and skills.
Applications will at no stage be returned to the applicants.
CLOSING DATE: APPLICATIONS MUST BE SENT NO LATER THAN 9/01/2009.
Please note that in order to be considered, all applications received must be dispatched within the deadline, date as
postmark. We strongly recommend that applications be sent by registered mail.
PLEASE SEND YOUR APPLICATION TO:
Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union - Human Resources Section
Ref.: CDT- AD 10- 2008/07 - HEAD OF THE GENERAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT.
1, rue du Fort Thüngen
L-1499 LUXEMBOURG
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
The Translation Centre is an equal opportunities employer and accepts applications without distinction on the
grounds of age, race, political, philosophical or religious conviction, gender or sexual orientation and regardless of
disabilities, marital status or family situation.
INDEPENDENCE AND DECLARATION OF INTEREST
The jobholder will be required to make a declaration of commitment to act independently in the public interest and
to make a declaration in relation to any interests that might be considered prejudicial to his/her independence.