We are hiring a new Operations Officer!

The CETAF General Secretariat is looking to hire a new professional to join its team in Brussels:

Operations Officer  (Full-Time) 

A bit about CETAF

CETAF is Europe’s network of research-performing organizations. The members of our community are natural history museums, botanical gardens and biodiversity research centres from across Europe that hold a wealth of biological and geological collections, including animals, plants, fungi, rocks and genetic resources. The collections of our 74 institutions from 24 European countries comprise an estimated 1.5 billion specimens, including over 80% of the world’s described species. This unprecedented resource serves to drive scientific research and public engagement worldwide.

The General Secretariat of CETAF is committed to implementing the CETAF strategic vision, enabling the deployment of our mission and bringing the values of the community into scientific excellence, thus helping the society tackle the major environmental challenges we face. We advocate, engage and work closely with other European and international actors to preserve biodiversity and geodiversity on our planet. We participate in EU-funded projects and initiatives that support scientific research and promote taxonomy as a fundamental discipline in support of others such as ecology, genetics or biochemistry. 

Job brief

A successful Operations Officer (m/f/x) will implement the overall operation of CETAF as a Belgian non-profit organisation by executing the financial and administrative tasks to secure adequate and efficient functioning of CETAF. They will also provide support to the CETAF staff and the Executive Director in all required organisational activities.

If you have previous experience in office management within a small non-profit organisation or a similar environment (and ideally in EU-funded projects), we would love to meet you. We are looking for a highly motivated professional to work with research organisations in the field of environmental sciences in an international context. 

Our ideal candidate is rigorous, precise, and well-organised. He or she maintains a professional office environment with due regard for confidentiality and security. Computer literacy, organisational competencies and financial skills are required.  Proactiveness, compliance, reliability, self-organisation, respect for procedures, attention to details, personal integrity, time-management and anticipation are absolutely key. He or she will report directly to the Executive Director. The candidate should hold at least a bachelor’s degree (or have equivalent relevant working experience or training) and a minimum two years of working experience.

Responsibilities

• Day-to-day handling and monitoring of financial and administrative tasks related to CETAF and its initiatives (e.g. expenses, budgets, invoices).
• Supporting the CETAF staff with the administrative and organisational activities.
• Providing IT support & initiating trouble-shooting procedures.
• Management of office infrastructure, including placing orders and supplies stocking.
• Implementing the onboarding support for new staff.
• Correspondence on HR topics with an external Social Secretariat.
• Supporting the organisation of in-house and external events, including scheduling, arranging travel and accommodations, and booking meeting spaces.
• Supporting the Executive Director in the development of tasks.

Main requirements

• Formal education and/or training in a related field such as business or public administration (or equivalent relevant working experience).
• Minimum of 2 years of working experience in a similar position, preferably for a non-for-profit organisation. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English. All other European languages, especially French, are a plus.
• Experience in implementing office procedures, financial and administrative reporting in non-profit organisations.
• Solid knowledge of office management software like MS Office (MS Excel and MS Word, specifically) and databases. 
• Good computer literacy and experience with office software for time recording, conducting surveys and accounting systems.
• Authorised to work in Belgium.

The ideal candidate will have the following specific competencies:

• Ability to identify problems and provide solutions;
• Service-provision oriented;
• Able to work well in an international environment;
• Well-organised with an eye for detail;
• Ability to work independently and in a team;
• Ability to take initiative, prioritise and work under set deadlines;

General Conditions

• Start date: ASAP
• Work pattern: Full Time (38 hours per week)
• Contract: Long term
• Workplace: 

CETAF General Secretariat

c/o Royal Belgian Institute for Natural Sciences

Rue Vautier, 29, 1000 Brussels, Belgium

• We offer you:

• Competitive salary;
• Friendly and dynamic working environment;
• Minimum one day of teleworking per week
• Possibility of teleworking abroad (15 days per year)
• International team;
• A unique office location (inside a natural history museum);
• Travel opportunities;

If interested, please send your CV and motivation letter (in English, addressed to the CETAF Executive Director, Ana Casino) to info@cetaf.org, with the subject line “Operations Officer” by Friday, 22 September 2023. Incomplete applications WILL NOT be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to an interview (in-person interviews are preferred but virtual are also possible).