Head of Department: Veterinary Evaluation and Innovation Department (V-EI) - European Medicines Agency (Amsterdam)

About this position

The summary below is published by European Medicines Agency on the official vacancy notice. Our own analysis — salary realism, comparable openings, career trajectory, language profile — follows further down the page.

Key responsibilities

According to the vacancy notice, the role centres on the following duties:

• Provide scientific leadership for the Department and contribute to shaping veterinary regulatory science and innovation across the European Medicines Regulatory Network
• Manage operations, staff and overall resources across the two Services of the department (pharmaceuticals and biologicals)
• Build strategic thought-partnerships with leaders, stakeholders and staff
• Set and lead the Department strategy in alignment with the Division and Agency strategy and priorities
• Coach and mentor Heads of Service, staff and teams to deliver business results while paving the way for their growth and development
• Provide input and actively engage in the strategic planning process and strategic initiatives
• Translate strategic priorities of the Agency and the Division into concrete Departmental plans/work programmes
• Provide steering, guidance and operational management on strategic priorities and programmes to the Department

Are you eligible?

Check these requirements from the notice before investing time in an application:

• Education: University degree in life sciences of minimum four years obtained by closing date and 12 years from award date, or university degree in life sciences of three years obtained by closing date and 13 years from award date
• Experience: 9 years of professional experience in veterinary and/or human medicines' product development, lifecycle management and regulatory affairs, including relevant professional experience in the veterinary field; 7 years of professional experience in leadership and management at the level required to lead, manage and guide other managers, multidisciplinary teams and staff within a complex scientific an…
• Languages: English (C1), Another official language of the Europe… (B2)
• Key skills: High degree of competence in organising work, resources and procedures to achieve operational effectiveness, Experience and previous involvement in organising and leading high-impact strategic initiatives, Continuous improvement, Managing change and transition, Decision-making, Coaching and developing, Collaborative team leadership, Inspiring and engaging, Relating and networking, Talent management
• Eligibility: Full rights as a citizen of a European Union Member State, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway; fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service. For internal and inter-agency candidates: be an established member of temporary staff; be in grade AD9, AD10, AD11, AD12, AD13 or AD14 or in the case of an EMA temporary agent to be in grade AD08 and have a seniority of at l…

Contract and working arrangements

Contract duration: Temporary agent.

Hiring unit: Veterinary Evaluation and Innovation Department (V-EI).

Position overview

This is the official EU Careers listing for Head of Department: Veterinary Evaluation and Innovation Department (V-EI) at EMA based in Amsterdam (Temporary Agent).

Type of position:Temporary agent

Job Type:04 September 2026 at 23.59 CET

Job grade: AD 10

Inter-agency job grade: , Internal EMA job grade: AD08 (with 2 years seniority in the grade) and above

Type of position: Temporary agent

Selection procedure reference: EMA/AD/11525

Job title: Head of Department: Veterinary Evaluation and Innovation Department (V-EI)

Talent Pool:not applicable

Deadline for applications: 04 September 2026 at 23.59 CET

Monthly net Salary: 9.093,92 Euro(including local weighting)-1152/1424773633/#_ftn1)plusbenefits(see calculators on the right) (based on a fulltime contract (40hrs/week))

Location: Amsterdam; The Netherlands (relocation to take up duties is mandatory)

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About this role:

The Agency is looking to recruit a Head of the Veterinary Evaluation and Innovation Department, who will provide scientific leadership for the Department whilst leading its operations, people and overall resources, as a senior member of the Veterinary Division management team. The Department acts as the Agency’s scientific centre of excellence for evaluation and innovation of veterinary medicines, ensuring that veterinary medicines are safe, effective and can reach the EU market efficiently. Development of EU and international scientific guidance on quality, safety and efficacy of veterinary medicines used by regulatory networks and stakeholders is supported by specialist teams within the V-EI Department. The Department also provides advice to the European Commission, other EU agencies and international organisations on scientific aspects of veterinary medicines or substances under its areas of responsibility. Communication, diplomacy and negotiation skills are key to bring together decisive outcomes in collaboration with a broad range of stakeholders.

In this job you will:

• Provide scientific leadership for the Department and contribute to shaping veterinary regulatory science and innovation across the European Medicines Regulatory Network.

• Be responsible for the management of operations, staff and overall resources across the two Services of the department (pharmaceuticals and biologicals).

• Build strategic thought-partnerships with leaders, stakeholders and staff.

• Set and lead the Department strategy in alignment with the Division and Agency strategy and priorities.

• Coach and mentor Heads of Service, staff and teams to deliver business results while paving the way for their growth and development.

• Provide input and actively engage in the strategic planning process and strategic initiatives that are central to the Agency and the Division;

• Translate strategic priorities of the Agency and the Division (e.g. from the EU Medicines Agencies’ Strategy, and CVMP workplans) into concrete Departmental plans/ work programmes by driving collaboration across functions/ services/ offices;

• Provide steering, guidance and operational management on strategic priorities and programmes to the Department and keep the Department well-informed, motivated and accountable;

• Drive timely delivery of management reporting ensuring information from the relevant governance bodies and senior managers is well understood and cascaded;

• Lead and manage matrix activities as necessary (e.g. product teams, ad hoc task forces);

• Take responsibility for ensuring that organizational capabilities, required to meet department’s objectives, are planned and allocated appropriately;

• Establish and oversee departmental objectives and performance indicators; ensure the department delivers objectives effectively and efficiently and that all related activities are conducted in accordance with organisational policies, processes and standards;

• Recognise employees' strengths and value to successfully delegate responsibilities.

Link the full role description of the Head of Department outlining generic duties and responsibilities.

Specific duties & responsibilities

The specific tasks of an individual job holder, linked to this role description, are further detailed and referenced in:

- activities of the organisational entity within which the job holder carries out those tasks; - the set of annual performance and development objectives, which are established together with the reporting officer; - the requirement to comply with SOPs, WINs, Confidentiality Undertaking and other documentation relevant to the role and its scope. These will be agreed upon with the reporting officer upon assuming duties.

Apply if you fulfil these eligibility criteria:

To be eligible for consideration for this position, you are required to meet the following general and specific eligibility conditions:

General conditions:

1. Full rights as a citizen of a European Union Member State, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway;

2. Thorough knowledge of English (at least level C1 in speaking, writing and reading) and a satisfactory knowledge of another official language of the European Union (at least level B2 in speaking, writing and reading);

3. Fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service.

Specific conditions:

1. Possess a university degree in life sciences of minimum four years that must have been obtained by the closing date of this vacancy notice and 12 years from the time when a university degree was awarded on completion of a minimum of four years of study.

or

Possess a university degree in life sciences of three years that must have been obtained by the closing date of this vacancy notice and 13 years from the time when a university degree was awarded on completion of a minimum of thee years of study.

For general condition 1 and for specific conditions 1 and 2 you will be required to provide evidence in the application form and a proof at the interview stage. Failing to present these documents may result in the disqualificationfrom the selection procedure.

Only eligible candidates will be assessed by the Pre-selection Committee in accordance with the Assessment Criteria below.

Eligibility criteria for Internal and Inter-agency candidates

Applicable only to Inter-agency and Internal (AD08 and above) candidates

To be considered you will need:

- be a citizen of a European Union Member State, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway - be an established member of temporary staff as referred to in Article 2(f) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants. As regards inter-agency publication, Article 9 of the General Implementing Provisions (GIPs) on temporary staff 2(f) shall apply; - be in grade AD9, AD10, AD11, AD12, AD13 or AD14 or in the case of an EMA temporary agent to be in grade AD08 and have a seniority of at least two years in that grade; - already occupy a management function or have occupied such a function in the EU Institutions or Agencies. - possess the qualifications specified in the vacancy notice;

You will also need:

Experience

• Proficient level of expertise evidenced by 9 years of professional experience in veterinary and/or human medicines’ product development, lifecycle management and regulatory affairs, including relevant professional experience in the veterinary field at the level required to assist, consult with or lead other professionals in this area.

• Proficient level of expertise evidenced by 7 years of professional experience in leadership and management at the level required to lead, manage and guide other managers, multidisciplinary teams and staff within a complex scientific and regulatory environment;

• Experience in financial management and budgeting;

• Experience in managing a complex stakeholder structure within large international organisations.

• Solid understanding of current evolutions in the field of veterinary medicines and the EU regulatory system, including innovations in animal health and relevant horizontal legislation.

Skills & knowledge

• A high degree of competence in organising work, resources and procedures to achieve operational effectiveness.

• Experience and previous involvement in organising and leading high-impact strategic initiatives.

Competencies you need to have:

Role competencies

Continuous improvement Intermediate

Managing change and transition Intermediate

Core Managerial competencies

Decision-making Intermediate

Coaching and developing Advanced

Collaborative team leadership Intermediate

Inspiring and engaging Intermediate

Relating and networking Intermediate

Talent management Advanced

Visionary thinking and strategic planning Intermediate

Core competencies

Ethics and integrity Intermediate

Team collaboration Advanced

Customer centricity Advanced

Results orientation Advanced

Communication Advanced

Cross-cultural sensitivity Advanced

Continuous learning and self-development Intermediate

For more information about definitions of competencies and associated proficiency levels, please refer to the EMA Competency Framework:

https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/other/role-description-head-department_en.pdf

These are considered nice to have:

Education

Master in the field of Life Sciences; alternatively, certificates or diplomas showing attendance of specialisation courses on matters relevant to the role.

Experience

Good knowledge of the Agency’s governance and of the workings of the European medicines regulatory network and the EU institutions;

In risk identification and mitigation in the relevant professional area.

Facilitating alignment between IT development initiatives and the operational needs of business teams.

Skills & knowledge

Advanced user of MS Office, knowledge and understanding of modern technology and aptitude to learn other IT tools and systems used by EMA and the EU veterinary regulatory network (e.g. Union Product Database, IRIS).

Certificates

In Management / leadership.

Application timeline

This vacancy was first listed on 10 August 2026, today.

The application deadline is 4 September 2026, 23 days from today. Late applications are not accepted, so submit through the official EU Careers portal well in advance.

Last verified against the EU Careers feed on 10 August 2026.

Where to learn more

For headcount, mission, and other open vacancies at EMA see the EMA institution page; for the cost of living, correction coefficient, and other postings in Amsterdam see our Amsterdam location page.

New to EU careers? Our beginner's guide walks through entry routes, EPSO competitions, and what to prepare. For application logistics see application tips and EPSO competitions.