VN 25/28 Lead Project Controller
EUMETSAT is Europeโs meteorological satellite agency, operating a fleet of satellites delivering weather and climate-related satellite data and images to our users worldwide; helping protect lives, property and industries.
Within our Project Planning and Control Competence Area (PPC CA), the Lead Project Controller is responsible for financial, budget, cost planning and control activities for two Divisions โAltimetry Missions Development Division (ALT) and Copernicus Mission Development Division (CMD), responsible for the definition and development of Altimetry missions and new Copernicus/Sentinel Missions until their hand over to operations.
In this role, the successful candidate will lead a small team of skilled Project Controllers while collaborating closely with core technical teams across the organization. They will oversee all budget and financial planning activities, ensuring accuracy and effective implementation. As the primary point of contact for budget control, they will partner closely with programme management, providing leadership in resource planning, control, and reporting.
Duties
The main duties will be as follows:
- Deliver project planning and control services to the supported divisions, following documented processes and manage the project control team allocated to these tasks;
- Oversee project cost estimation and establish financial planning, taking into account complex contribution agreements with partner organisations (EC, ESA, etc.);
- Monitor the implementation of the yearly budget, assess in-year and multi-year cost planning, analyse deviations and identify risks and recovery actions. Provide progress reporting to management, including performance indicators and analysis of deviations and trends;
- Develop financial planning scenarios as result of project changes and programme risks and evaluate related financial impact, identifying recovery actions and providing cost-at-completion and analysis of margins;
- Prepare financial meetings with partners, and coordinate such activities with involved project controllers;
- Coordinate and deliver inputs to the EUMETSAT budget and financial planning process, including medium and long-term human resource needs;
- For activities funded by the Copernicus budget, provide consolidated financial reports to the Copernicus Programme Office;
- Support the Project Planning and Control Competence Area Manager and contribute to the overall harmonisation and improvement of project planning and control processes, standards and methodologies, working practices and tools.
LOCATION Darmstadt, Germany
QUALIFICATIONS
University degree in Engineering, Economics or equivalent in a relevant discipline
LANGUAGES
The official languages of EUMETSAT are English and French. Candidates must be able to work effectively in English and have some knowledge of French.
DEADLINE
19 May 2025
Duties
The main duties will be as follows:
- Deliver project planning and control services to the supported divisions, following documented processes and manage the project control team allocated to these tasks;
- Oversee project cost estimation and establish financial planning, taking into account complex contribution agreements with partner organisations (EC, ESA, etc.);
- Monitor the implementation of the yearly budget, assess in-year and multi-year cost planning, analyse deviations and identify risks and recovery actions. Provide progress reporting to management, including performance indicators and analysis of deviations and trends;
- Develop financial planning scenarios as result of project changes and programme risks and evaluate related financial impact, identifying recovery actions and providing cost-at-completion and analysis of margins;
- Prepare financial meetings with partners, and coordinate such activities with involved project controllers;
- Coordinate and deliver inputs to the EUMETSAT budget and financial planning process, including medium and long-term human resource needs;
- For activities funded by the Copernicus budget, provide consolidated financial reports to the Copernicus Programme Office;
- Support the Project Planning and Control Competence Area Manager and contribute to the overall harmonisation and improvement of project planning and control processes, standards and methodologies, working practices and tools.
Skills and Experience
- Proven experience in project planning and control activities and in managing resource allocation, preferably in an engineering environment with multi-year projects;
- Experience of team management, including planning and monitoring of activities and keeping critical skills up-to-date;
- Proven knowledge and practice of administrative processes based on an integrated financial system (e.g. SAP) and strong MS Excel proficiency.
- Knowledge on Power BI and similar reporting tools will be considered an advantage;
- Proactivity, strong capability for independent and analytical thinking and seeing the big picture while maintaining a focus on details
- Very good interpersonal, written and oral communication skills, with a proven ability to apply these to interact with management and stakeholders as well working within, and across, teams;
- Experience working in a matrix-based organisation would be an advantage.
Employment Conditions
The initial contract will be of 4 yearsโ duration, with subsequent 5 year contracts being awarded thereafter, subject to individual performance and organisation requirements. There is no limit to the amount of follow-up contracts a staff member can receive up to the EUMETSAT retirement age of 63 and there are certainly opportunities to establish a long career perspective at EUMETSAT.
This post is graded A2/A4 on the EUMETSAT salary scales. The minimum basic salary for this post is EURO 7340 per month (net of internal tax but excluding pension contribution and insurances) which may be negotiable on the basis of skills and experience. The salary scale provides for increments on the anniversary of taking up employment, and scales are reviewed by the EUMETSAT Council with effect from 1 January each year. In addition to basic salary, EUMETSAT offers attractive benefits. Further information, including salary details, is available on the EUMETSAT web site.
EUMETSAT is committed to providing an equal opportunities work environment for men and women.
Please note that only nationals of EUMETSAT Member States may apply. The EUMETSAT Convention requires that Staff shall be recruited on the basis of their qualifications, account being taken of the international character of EUMETSAT.About EUMETSAT
EUMETSAT is Europeโs meteorological satellite agency. Its role is to establish and operate meteorological satellites to monitor the weather and climate from space - 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This information is supplied to the National Meteorological Services of the organisation's Member States in Europe, as well as other users worldwide.
EUMETSAT also operates several Copernicus missions on behalf of the European Union and provide data services to the Copernicus marine and atmospheric services and their users.
As an intergovernmental European Organisation, EUMETSAT has 30 Member States (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.)