Vacancy in the Directorate of Internal Services.
ESA is an equal opportunity employer, committed to achieving diversity within the workforce and creating an inclusive working environment. We therefore welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics. Applications from women are encouraged.
This post is classified A2-A4 on the Coordinated Organisationsโ salary scale.
Location
ESEC, Redu, Belgium
Description
Space infrastructure is becoming ever more critical, and ensuring cyber resilience on ESAโs space and ground systems is essential. In line with this vision, ESA, under the lead of the ESA Security Office (ESO โ ESAโs overall Security Authority), is creating a new centre for cyber security which will safeguard its systems against cyber threats, extending from ESA infrastructure around the globe to satellites in orbit.
The new centre is called C-SOC, the ESA Cyber Safety and Security Operations Centre. Its operations are planned to begin in 2024 and will be distributed across two sites: the European Space Security and Education Centre (ESEC) in Belgium and the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Germany. The C-SOC will operate in synergy with ESAโs Computer Emergency Response Team (ESACERT).
You will be responsible for C-SOC operations at ESEC. You will report to the Head of the IT Security Section, which is part of ESAโs IT Department. For certain tasks, you will report functionally to ESO.
Duties
You will be expected to autonomously manage the C-SOC function at ESEC, including the related industrial service contracts. In particular, you will:
- ensure the proper operation of the C-SOC, including the service team (industrial contract) at ESEC, based on well-defined and monitored SLAs and KPIs;
- ensure that the C-SOC detects threats and vulnerabilities in a timely manner and continually improves monitoring and detection methods and services;
- ensure that the required maintenance of C-SOC tools and services takes place to maintain all C-SOC systems in an operational condition;
- establish, together with your counterpart at ESOC, the overall coordination between the C-SOC service teams at ESEC and ESOC;
- establish, together with the ESACERT Manager, the overall coordination between the C-SOC service teams and ESACERT, including complementary technical tools and processes and incident handling;
- act as the ESA interface for ESEC C-SOC users (tenants) in respect of tenant or systems onboarding and supervise the resulting activities, ensuring value, adherence to the budget and correct timing;
- act as the ESA interface for ESEC C-SOC users (tenants) in respect of service management, evolution and escalations;
- act as the main interface for ESO with regard to ESEC C-SOC matters, including proactively proposing improvements, increasing C-SOC maturity, contributing or providing strategic and tactical cyber threat analysis and proposing evolution activities for C-SOC and the overall ESA cyber security operations based on C-SOC metrics and experience;
- report on C-SOC operational performance and risks;
- report, based on ESEC C-SOC operations, on overall operational cyber resilience and security risks to the ESO and other ESA internal and external stakeholders upon request;
- represent the C-SOC for all matters under its competence and authority;
- continually improve C-SOC services, capabilities and efficiency and its capacity to detect new threats and react in a timely manner to an ever-evolving threat landscape;
- perform other duties as necessary to ensure the proper functioning, representation and service delivery of the (ESEC) C-SOC.
In addition to your C-SOC-related duties, you will also act as Deputy ESACERT Manager.
Technical competencies SOC (security operations centre) operations managementService managementCustomer and stakeholder relationship managementKnowledge and in-depth experience of cyber security processes and tools used in a typical SOC environment, including security monitoring, endpoint detection and response, vulnerability management, SIEM management, SOAR, threat hunting, threat intelligence and digital forensicsSecurity incident handling and response processSecurity and overall IT solution acquisition, development and maintenanceTechnical management
Behavioural competencies
Result Orientation
Operational Efficiency
Fostering Cooperation
Relationship Management
Continuous Improvement
Forward ThinkingEducation
A master's degree in computer science, cyber security, or a related domain with transferable skills, knowledge or competencies, is required for this post.
Additional requirements
You should have at least five years of professional experience, including at least three years of experience in an operational cyber security function, for example in a CERT, SOC or CSIRT, in a medium-sized or large organisation.
Experience in international organisations and relevant professional certifications will be considered an asset.
You should be eligible for personnel security clearance from your national security authority.
Other information
For behavioural competencies expected from ESA staff in general, please refer to the ESA Competency Framework.
For further information please visit: Professionals, What we offer and FAQ
The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.
Applicants must be eligible for security clearance by their national security administrations.
The Agency may require applicants to undergo selection tests.
At the Agency we value diversity and we welcome people with disabilities. Whenever possible, we seek to accommodate individuals with disabilities by providing the necessary support at the workplace. The Human Resources Department can also provide assistance during the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss this further please contact us email contact.human.resources@esa.int.
Please note that applications are only considered from nationals of one of the following States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Canada, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia.
According to the ESA Convention, the recruitment of staff must take into account an adequate distribution of posts among nationals of the ESA Member States*. When short-listing for an interview, priority will first be given to internal candidates and secondly to external candidates from under-represented Member States*.
In accordance with the European Space Agencyโs security procedures and as part of the selection process, successful candidates will be required to undergo basic screening before appointment conducted by an external background screening service.
In principle, recruitment will be within the advertised grade band (A2-A4). However, if the selected candidate has less than four years of relevant professional experience following the completion of the masterโs degree, the position may be filled at A1 level.
*Member States, Associate Members or Cooperating States.