Job group: 1
Grade: G16/3
Duration of appointment: five years
Career path: Managerial
Location: The Hague/Munich
Application deadline: 05.09.2018

Applicants should be nationals of one of the European Patent Organisation’s member states (currently Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, France, Germany, Hellenic Republic, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom).

With almost 7 000 employees, the European Patent Office (EPO) is the second-largest public service institution in Europe. It supports innovation, competitiveness and economic growth across Europe through a commitment to high-quality and efficient services delivered under the European Patent Convention, its founding treaty. It has a yearly budget of EUR 2.3 billion, entirely financed by the fees paid by its users.

The EPO’s headquarters are in Munich and it has a branch in The Hague and offices in Berlin, Vienna and Brussels. Through its centralised patent granting procedure, inventors are able to obtain high-quality patent protection in up to 44 countries, covering a market of 700 million people. In 2017, it processed over 165 000 patent applications and granted over 105 000 patents. The EPO is also the world’s leading authority in patent information. It has built and operates the most comprehensive patent databases and generates tools that are used by most patent offices around the world. It boasts an extensive network of partners in patent offices and user assocations in particular.

The EPO is a highly diverse and multicultural environment with 35 different nationalities represented among its staff. The patent granting process can be conducted in the three official languages (English, French and German).

Appointed by the Administrative Council, the vice-presidents assist the President of the EPO in the implementation of established strategies and policies. The Vice-President Corporate Services (VP 4) is responsible for managing DG 4, the directorate-general that covers all the areas supporting the proper functioning of the EPO, in particular its patent granting process.

The Vice-President Corporate Services is responsible for an area comprising over 1 000 staff covering the following principal directorates:

•  Information Management: provision of all automation services for the EPO, including the setting up and maintenance of information systems and the production and management of tools for the Office
•  Finance: budget preparation and execution, preparation of annual financial statements, treasury and cash management, accounting
•  Human Resources: recruitment, training services for managers and employees, health and safety, internal communication, compensation and benefits, employment law
•  General Administration: buildings, facility management, physical security, language services
•  Central Procurement: organisation and optimisation of procurement and tenders procedures, invoicing

Main duties

•  Responsibility for the smooth functioning of the support functions in his/her domain and accountability for the directorate-general’s results
•  Ensuring that service delivery meets the needs of internal and external stakeholders in terms of timeliness, quality and service-orientation
•  Managing the directorate-general’s workforce and supervising its five principal directors
•  Acting as a member of the executive board of the EPO and representing the Office in meetings of the Administrative Council and its sub-committees
•  Representing the Office in meetings with external stakeholders (users, patent offices, international organisations)

Profile

•  At least 10 years’ experience in a European or international environment, in a role with a high level of responsibility
•  Effective people-management and strong leadership skills in a dynamic and multicultural environment (cross-functional leadership)
•  Ability to build a strong working relationship with management and staff
•  Results-oriented attitude with the capacity to perform and work under high pressure while ensuring quality is maintained at the highest standards
•  Effective communicator with strong ability to lead change while maintaining employee engagement and motivation

Minimum qualifications

•  Diploma of completed university studies at master’s level or – in exceptional cases – equivalent professional experience
•  Excellent knowledge of one official language and ability to understand the other two

Salary and benefits