Project Officer for Experimentation

Contract type: Temporary agent

Directorate: Research, Technology and Innovation Directorate (RTI)

Group: N.A.

Grade: AD8

Level of Security Clearance: SECRET UE/EU SECRET

Management of staff: N.A.

Location: Brussels

Indicative starting date: 16/01/2027

Closing date for applications: 06/10/2026

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  • BACKGROUND THE AGENCY'S WAY OF WORKING THE RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION DIRECTORATE (RTI) DUTIES ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA SELECTION CRITERIA APPOINTMENT AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT FOR TEMPORARY AGENTS AT EDA INDEPENDENCE AND DECLARATION OF INTEREST EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES APPLICATION PROCEDURE DATA PROTECTION

1. BACKGROUND

The European Defence Agency (EDA) was established on 12 July 2004, and is governed by Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/1835 defining the statute, seat and operational rules of the European Defence Agency. The Agency has its headquarters in Brussels.

The main task of EDA is to support the Council and the Member States in their effort to improve the Union's defence capabilities in the field of crisis management and to sustain the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) as it currently stands and as it develops in the future.

The Agency is structured into four directorates. The Corporate Services Directorate (CSD) and three operational directorates: Industry, Synergies and Enablers (ISE); Capability, Armament & Planning (CAP); Research, Technology and Innovation (RTI).

2. THE AGENCY'S WAY OF WORKING

The Agency is an “outward-facing” organisation, constantly interacting with its shareholders, the participating Member States, as well as with a wide range of stakeholders. It works in an integrated way, with multi-disciplinary teams representing all of the Agency’s functional areas, to realise its objectives. Its business processes are flexible and oriented towards achieving results. Staff at all levels need to demonstrate the corresponding qualities of commitment, flexibility, innovation, and team-working; to work effectively with shareholders and stakeholder groups, formal and informal; and to operate without the need for detailed direction.

3. THE RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION DIRECTORATE (RTI)

The Research, Technology & Innovation Directorate (RTI) promotes and supports defence research at EU level. Based on the Overarching Strategic Research Agenda (OSRA), developed together with the Member States, the Directorate coordinates and plans joint research activities and the study of technical solutions to meet future operational needs.

The RTI Directorate provides support to Member States and to the European Commission for the Preparatory Action for defence research, including its implementation, and the research dimension of the European Defence Fund. The RTI directorate also ensures the promotion of innovation in defence and the exploitation of synergies at EU level with civil research in dual-use technology fields.

At present, the RTI Directorate comprises two Units, the EU-funded Defence Research Unit and the Technology & Innovation Unit, as well as the Hub for European defence Innovation (HEDI) and the RTI Coordination Team, with the following key tasks:

  • The EU-funded Defence Research Unit: upstream, implementation and downstream support linked to defence research activities funded by the EU budget under delegation by the European Commission.
  • The Technology & Innovation Unit: facilitation of the work of the Capability Technology Groups (CapTechs) and the Energy & Environment Working Group as well as development and management of ad hoc research activities based on sectoral Strategic Research Agendas.
  • HEDI: focal point for defence innovation, driving the development of military capabilities while strengthening cooperation between EU Member States and associated countries. HEDI’s mission is to turn promising ideas into usable defence capabilities faster, while supporting EU defence priorities and strengthening Europe’s technological edge. HEDI is expected to become a dedicated Defence Innovation Centre (designation subject to approval of forthcoming organisational structure).
  • The RTI Coordination Team: coordination of the RTI Directorate’s contributions to EDA’s transversal activities (such as capability development priorities (CDP), Capability Annual Review on Defence (CARD), Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), and Key Strategic Activities (KSA); overview of the Agency’s research portfolio.

4. DUTIES

Under the supervision of the line-manager responsible for Defence Innovation, the Project Officer forExperimentation will contribute to the following activities:

  • support the preparation, coordination and implementation of EDA experimentation activities aimed at assessing innovative solutions against Member States’ operational needs and capability priorities;
  • contribute to the planning and delivery of challenge-driven trials, including digital experimentation, modelling and simulation activities, field experimentation, demonstrations and operational experimentation campaigns;
  • assist in the development of experimentation plans, test objectives, scenarios, metrics, data collection approaches and evidence requirements, ensuring traceability between operational challenges, test activities and assessment outputs;
  • contribute to the preparation of technical and operational documentation for experimentation activities, including trial plans, participant guidance, evidence templates, risk registers, after-action reports and lessons learned;
  • assist in the collection, structuring and analysis of experimentation results, ensuring that outputs are usable for Member States;
  • support the coordination of participating companies, Member State representatives, technical experts, operational users and contractors involved in experimentation activities;
  • contribute to the development and continuous improvement of EDA experimentation methodologies, playbooks, templates and common approaches, in order to increase comparability, reproducibility and reusability of results across Member States;
  • contribute to the preparation of briefings, reports, presentations and other deliverables for Member States, EDA management and external stakeholders on experimentation activities and results;
  • support the organisation of workshops, planning meetings, demonstration events, visitor days and other activities linked to EDA experimentation campaigns;
  • contribute to activities related to the drafting, coordination, and implementation of high-level documents – such as Letters of Intents, Steering Board documentation, and similar strategic or policy-level deliverables;
  • represent the Agency during conferences and seminars;
  • take on additional tasks as required in the interest of the service.
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