Head of Finance Division

Description & Requirements Your Team Within the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & HealthCare (EDQM), the Resources Department brings together nearly 40 professionals across three sections (Finance, Procurement and Human Resources), working collaboratively to support the EDQM’s strategic objectives. You will lead the new Finance Division, comprising around 18 staff members, and serve as a member of the Resources Department Management Team. Your Role As Head of the Finance Division, you will be the EDQM’s Financial Officer and you will:
• manage the Finance Division, in particular by leading and managing the staff within it, ensuring their professional development and promoting a work environment centred around collaboration and continuous improvement;
• provide strategic financial oversight of the EDQM by:
• performing financial analyses and making recommendations to the EDQM Management Team so that they can take strategic decisions to ensure financial sustainability and the efficient use of financial resources;
• overseeing the drafting, implementation, monitoring and assessment of the EDQM’s programme and budget; identifying opportunities for efficiency gains and making best use of financial resources while maintaining compliance with applicable rules, regulations and quality standards;
• providing advice and assistance for all budget-related questions and alerting the Head of Department if problems or finance-related risks are identified.
• ensure the efficient operation and continuous improvement of the Finance Division in support of the EDQM’s mission by:
• overseeing all of the EDQM’s financial activities and ensuring the quality and accuracy of documents and information, thereby guaranteeing sound financial management and strict financial compliance;
• contributing to and implementing finance-related projects and modernisation and digitalisation initiatives for both the EDQM and the Council of Europe, thereby promoting harmonisation, efficiency and best practice;
• developing, implementing and monitoring financial risk management practices, fraud prevention measures and first-line internal controls while ensuring strict financial compliance.
• collaborate with counterparts across the Council of Europe and in other institutions by:
• working in collaboration with all EDQM teams; communicating the EDQM’s financial analyses, forecasts and reports in a clear and accessible manner;
• developing and maintaining strong partnerships with other Council of Europe entities and other institutions in order to facilitate the flow of information and the sharing of best practice;
• participating in and contributing to relevant committees, working groups and internal and external professional networks, as required. Requirements to apply You must:
• have a higher education degree or qualification equivalent to a master’s degree (2nd cycle of the Bologna process framework of qualifications for the European Higher Education Area) in finance, accounting or a related field;
• demonstrate at least eight years’ relevant experience showing progression into roles with increasing levels of responsibility and complexity in the areas covered by the activities of the Finance Division;
• demonstrate solid experience in managing and developing teams;
• have a very good knowledge of one of the two official languages of the Council of Europe (English or French) and good knowledge of the other. You must also:
• be a citizen of one of the member states of the Council of Europe and fulfil the conditions for appointment to the civil service of that state;
• have discharged any obligation concerning national service (military, civil or comparable);
• not be the parent, child, stepchild or grandchild of a serving staff member of the Council of Europe;
• be under the age of 65 years. Your application must demonstrate to what extent you have the competencies listed below. To help you doing so, feel free to consult our competency framework. Key competencies
• Managerial
- Vision and Strategic Insight
• Managerial
- Management of teams
• Operational
- Planning and work organisation
• Operational
- Analysis and problem solving
• Interpersonal
- Teamwork and co-operation
• Professional and technical expertise:
• sound knowledge and understanding of the Council of Europe’s financial rules and financial management practices, or similar experience in another international organisation, international non-governmental organisation or public body;
• ability to analyse, interpret and draw conclusions from financial data and to present this data clearly and precisely, especially to non-financial managers;
• ability to initiate and implement digital transformation projects, including mapping and data processing, the use of ERP tools and change management;
• proficiency in Microsoft Excel, ERP tools (e.g. Oracle or SAP) and financial modelling tools. Desirable competencies
• Operational
- Concern for quality
• Interpersonal
- Service orientation

What we offer
This job vacancy is for an international external recruitment. You can consult the conditions of employment (salaries, allowances, pension scheme, social insurance, etc.) on the webpage

What we offer
. Applications and selection procedure For more information on how we recruit, you can consult the page Our recruitment process. This recruitment is carried out in accordance with Article 490 of the Council of Europe Staff Rules. The deadline for applications is indicated in the General information section of this vacancy notice (see above) and is fixed at 23:59:59 (CET/CEST). When applying, make sure your motivation shows how your competencies make

your profile
the best for the role. Important information As an equal opportunity employer, the Council of Europe welcomes applications from all suitably qualified people, irrespective of sex, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic or social origin, disability, religion or belief. Under its equal opportunity policy, the Council of Europe is aiming to achieve gender parity in staff employed in each category and grade. At the time of appointment, preference between suitable people shall be given to the person of the gender which is under-represented in the relevant grades within the category to which the vacancy belongs. Applicants with specific needs are encouraged to request reasonable accommodations at any stage during the recruitment process. Please contact us at talents@coe.int, we will ensure that your request is handled. The information published on the CoE’s careers website regarding working conditions is correct at the time of publication of the vacancy notice. Any changes to these conditions during the recruitment process will be updated on our Portal and will apply at the time of the job offer. Our career's website is not intended to be exhaustive and may not address all questions you would have. Should you have remaining questions, please contact us at talents@coe.int. General Information Vacancy number 1591/2026 Recruitment type External recruitment (international) Type of contract Fixed-term appointment Posted date 07-Oct-2026 Deadline to apply 28-Oct-2026 Duty station Strasbourg Grade A4 Entity European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and HealthCare (EDQM)