DIRECTOR-GENERAL

RECRUITMENT FOR THE POST OF DIRECTOR-GENERAL

International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL)

The Council of INL is seeking an experienced, inspirational and dynamic leader to serve as INL’s next Director-General.

INL  is the first and only Intergovernmental Organisation (IGO) in the world entirely focused on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, created with the aim to become a global centre of excellence in applied nanotechnology research and to attract some of the world’s best scientists and engineers. INL was established by a joint decision of the Governments of Portugal and Spain and has been operating since late 2010, following a total investment of 100 M€.

Job Reference: Ref.11.22.60

Appointment: INL Council

Duty Station: INL

Location: Braga, Portugal

Period of mandate: 4 years (extendable)

Open Date for Applications: November 24th, 2022

Closing Date for Applications: December 20th, 2022 (23h00 Lisbon time)

Expecting date for Nomination: February 2023

Job Duties for the role of Director-General

The Director-General is responsible for the overall leadership, strategic direction and management of the multidisciplinary and international community of INL. Moreover, the Director-General is the spokesperson for INL and serves as an advocate and communicator with all stakeholders and interested parties including worldwide scientific community, policy makers, industry groups, funding organisations, the media and the general public. The Director-General is supported by the Deputy Director-General also appointed by INL’s Council.

At a time of unprecedented opportunities in the nanotechnology and more generally, key enabling technologies, the future Director-General will work with INL Council to fulfil the strategic course for INL in accordance with the INL 2030 Strategic vision and to ensure it sustains and evolves its missions according to the needs of the scientific community in the member states, and to consolidate and strengthen its position as Europe’s centre of excellence in nanotechnology and nanoscience research.

The main job duties will include:

• Implementation and execution of Council decisions, and to provide accurate information on INL’s activities and high-level scientific expertise to internal and external advisory bodies.

• Guide and oversee the evolution of INL’s role, missions and programmes according to the needs of the scientific community and broader society with respect to the nanotechnologies.

• Conduct INL activities with the aim of achieving the full potential of the Laboratory and supporting the sciences in Europe for the benefit of all stakeholders.

Mandatory Qualifications

Education

• PhD in a relevant field of science.

Experience & Skills

• Outstanding track record in research and service provision in any area of nanotechnology.
• Broad interest in and understanding of the role of nanotechnology in society.
• Excellent overview of the European science research and policy landscape.
• Proven record of senior management of significant experience, preferably international, in research and academic administration.
• Demonstrated experience in innovation and transfer/co-creation of knowledge with industry.
• Demonstrated record of successful fundraising, programme development, faculty recruitment and mentoring, and organisational management.

Other Skills

• Leadership style that is both inclusive (participatory) and directive.
• Effective communication skills and the ability to interact and negotiate productively with many categories of people at different levels, both inside and outside INL.
• Fluent written and spoken English, other languages, in particular Spanish and Portuguese, are an advantage.

What we offer

INL offers attractive conditions and benefits appropriate to an international research organisation, including:

• Appointment of a mandate of 4 years, with possible extension.
• Diplomatic status, including tax benefits and other privileges.
• Remuneration package comprising competitive economic conditions, allowances and benefits.
• Financial and administrative support for relocation and installation, including family members.

How to Apply

The application is made online by clicking on the “Apply” button and must be made in English, by submitting the following PDF files in the respective sections:

a)    Cover Letter with Curriculum Vitae, including the evidence of the required leadership skills and industry/innovation activities, together with a list of 20 key research publications (upload in “Add CV” section).

b)    Application Form duly completed (download form here  and upload in “Add Portfolio” section).

Important note: Applications must be submitted before the announced deadline. Incomplete applications including the failure to provide mandatory documents or providing inaccurate information will result in the application not being considered. More supporting documents may be required during the selection process.

How the Selection Process works

The selection process will be carried out by an Evaluation Panel nominated by the INL Council, composed of well-reputed international and external experts in research and administration with an extensive knowledge of INL.

A. Applications eligibility check

This stage will be carried out based on the mandatory requirements and requested documents.

B. Assessment

This stage will evaluate the eligible applications based on their CV and other submitted documents. The best ranked candidates will be shortlisted for the interview stage(s).

C. Interview(s)

The interview(s) may be done online or onsite. Other further formalities may be required to support the application at this stage.

D. Nomination

The selected candidate will be nominated and formally offered the position, including the disclosure of the contractual conditions.

Additional Information

Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination Principle

INL follows a non-discrimination and equal access principle, wherefore no candidate can be privileged, benefited, impaired or deprived of any rights whatsoever, or be exempt of and duties based on any possible discriminatory issues.

Data Protection

Your personal data will be used for the purposes of managing recruitment and selection related activities. Consequently, your personal data may be used in relation to the evaluation and selection of applicants, including all stages of the recruitment and selection process.

Confidentiality Treatment of the applications

All applications will be treated as strictly confidential during the overall process. The submitted documents will be consulted only by authorised parties. Such parties will use all preserved information exclusively for purposes of this recruitment and selection process.

Closing date Extension

The advertisement deadline may be extended at any time without previous notice in order to improve the suitability and effectiveness of the recruitment process.

Overview of INL

Establishment of INL

INL is founded under an international legal framework similar to that of other International Research organizations like CERN, EMBL or ESA and headquartered in Braga, a northern region of Portugal. INL is also the first research organization in Europe, with an international legal status, entirely focused on the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology. INL is currently supported by the contributions of the Governments of Portugal and Spain, as well as by its service activities and the obtention of competitive funds.

The construction of the INL building started in May 2008 and was concluded at the end of 2010. The state-of-the-art facility (global investment over 100M€) extends over a total campus area of 47000 m2. The INL building was designed for a total staff of 400 people, including Principal Investigators (PIs), staff researchers, visitors, research fellows, PhD students, support engineers and administration support staff. It currently hosts approximately 400 persons.

Mission & Purpose of INL

INL aims to foster the use of nanotechnology to address the grand challenges of today, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals as identified by the United Nations.  The Vision of INL is to be a recognised, leading, global, nanotechnology innovation hub.  In order to implement the INL 2030 Strategic Vision and the global Mission of “Exploring Interfaces”, the scientific driving forces are clustered into six main areas based on identified societal challenges, in order to support an ecosystem of research, technology, and innovation of interdisciplinary nanotechnology applications.  These Research, Technology, and Innovation (RTI) Clusters are: Precise Personalised HealthTech, Foodture, Clean Energy, Sustainable Environment, SDNS – Smart Digital NanoSystems, and AMC – Advanced Materials and Computing.

INL was created with aim of boosting Nanotechnology research and its impact in society, at a regional, Iberian and an international level, starting by putting together a world class research infrastructure, attracting top principal investigators (PIs), creating new know-how and intellectual property, collaborating with existing companies as well as stimulating the creation of new spin-off start-ups. INL was conceived to assure world-class research excellence in all of its activity areas and to:

• Develop partnerships with the industry and foster the transfer of knowledge into economic value and jobs.
• Train researchers and contribute to the development of a skilled workforce for the nanotechnology industry, through the implementation of joint training program with universities and RTD centres.
• Attract international companies to the region.
• Develop a regional technology transfer system for the service of local industry.