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Information and Configuration Manager

The European Southern Observatory · Garching, BY, Germany

The Systems Engineering Department is responsible for providing Systems Engineering expertise for the development of the future Extremely Large Telescope and its sub-systems. The Department is also responsible for the design and development of advanced optical and infrared instrumentation for the telescopes of ESO's La Silla-Paranal Observatory and for the ELT.

We are looking for a highly motivated and experienced Information & Configuration Manager, to further develop and actively contribute to configuration and asset management at ESO. This will be a unique role with a mix of defining business processes, implementing the required functionalities in the relevant tools, supporting projects in information & configuration management, and contributing to asset & technical change management during the integration phase of the ELT. In this role, you will work at the interface of engineering & business management, and engage with colleagues throughout ESO to foster and improve information management. You are interested not only in new technical and managerial challenges, but also in developing your interpersonal skills within an international environment.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

You will have the following main duties:

  • Developing processes and infrastructure for information, configuration, and asset management.
  • Defining requirements and support the implementation of configuration and asset management tools and the interfaces between existing and/or future tools.
  • Defining, implementing, controlling, and continuously improving configuration management plans for projects.
  • Supporting projects and engineering teams in configuration & asset management.
  • Ensuring configuration and asset data integrity, consistency, and transfer between tools during the construction phase of the ELT.
  • Contribute to preparing the EAM system (IBM MAXIMO) for the ELT AIV and early operation.
  • User training and communication with internal and external partners.

Reports to:

The Head of the Observatory Systems Group.

Key Competences and Experience:

  • Having to interact with internal and external partners, you excel at building strong and effective links with other teams from different cultural backgrounds and disciplines, and be prepared to reach consensus without losing sight of the main goal of the project.
  • A vision and excellent communication skills to foster Configuration Management throughout the organization.
  • Ability to work autonomously or constructively within a team, monitor the progress of your own work.
  • Ability to make decisions which consider the technical nature of the problem as well as time and budgetary constraints.

Essential Competences and Experience:

You shall have at least 5 years of experience in

  • Applied configuration and asset management.
  • Business process development and implementation.
  • Working in multi-disciplinary and multi-national teams.

Desirable Competences and Experience:

  • Experience in using configuration relevant systems, which are in use at ESO, such as IBM MAXIMO, Tier One/Two ERP, Accruent Kronodoc, Autodesk VAULT, Atlassian JIRA.
  • Implementing web-apps and interfaces between tools via REST APIs.
  • Usage and management of Building Information Models in REVIT.
  • Experience in Product Lifecycle Management solutions.
  • Experience in master data processes and data architecture.
  • Good technical skills and interest in data management (data modelling, data querying, databases, etc.).

Qualifications:

A university degree in engineering, physics, math, computer science, or information management.

Language Skills:

ESO is an international organization where the official language is English. The position requires excellent oral and written communication skills in English. Spanish will be an additional asset.

Remuneration and Contract:

We offer an attractive remuneration package including a competitive salary, comprehensive pension scheme and medical, educational and other social benefits, as well as financial help in relocating your family and support to place your child/children in daycare.

Our Salary Structure

ESO's salary structure is based upon a range of career paths which reflect the nature and level of our jobs. Each career path is made up of two or three grades which are used to further reflect experience.

Please follow this attached link for more details https://www.eso.org/public/jobs/conditions/intstaff/salary-structure/

ESO aims to support members of personnel in maintaining a good work-life balance (https://www.eso.org/public/jobs/conditions/intstaff/#work-life-balance) between their professional and private life. ESO is also committed to offering family-friendly support (https://www.eso.org/public/jobs/conditions/intstaff/#family-friendly-support), creating a work environment and policies which allow staff to balance their professional and private responsibilities through flexible working arrangements and financial support for families.

The contract is for a fixed term duration of three years and is subject to successful completion of the probation period. There may be a possibility of extension(s) subject to individual performance and organisational requirements, and as defined in the applicable policies and staff rules and regulations. For any further information, please visit ESO's conditions of employment (https://www.eso.org/public/jobs/conditions/). Please note that the contract policy and in particular the regulations concerning fixed-term and indefinite contracts are currently under review which may lead to changes in the contractual conditions applicable to this position.

Duty Station:

Garching near Munich, Germany with regular duty trips to ESO sites in Chile. Frequent travel to the observatories in Chile will be necessary.

Career Path: V

Application:

If you are interested in working in areas of frontline science and technology and in a stimulating international environment, please visit http://www.eso.org for further details.

Applicants are invited to apply online at http://jobs.eso.org/. Applications must be completed in English and should include a motivation letter and CV. Within your CV, please provide the names and contact details of three persons familiar with your work and willing to provide a recommendation letter upon request. Referees will not be contacted without your prior consent.

Closing date for applications is 18 March 2024.

Interviews are expected to start soon after this date.

ESO Values

An important element in any successful employment relationship is harmony in values between an organisation and its people.

The ESO Values are:

ESO strives for excellence through innovation.

ESO provides outstanding services to its communities.

ESO fosters diversity & inclusion.

ESO believes in the key role of sustainability for its future.

Achieving the above are recognized as only possible on the basis of personal values and attitudes that we expect from our employees: respect, integrity, accountability, commitment, collaboration, and clear & open communication.

Applicants to any ESO role are asked to reflect on their affinity with these values and advised they may be asked about them if called for interview.

Diversity

ESO has established diversity as an important value of the Organisation, is committed to providing an equal opportunities environment and is actively seeking to promote a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce. Please visit https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/sustainability/dei-at-eso/ for further details.

Nationality

No nationality is in principle excluded from employment at ESO, however, recruitment preference will be given to nationals of our Member States, host states and strategic partners: Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Chile, irrespective of gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity or religion.

Job Summary

Location:
Garching, BY, Germany