The European DIGITAL SME Alliance is Europe’s first and largest ICT SME association, representing over 45,000 SMEs. To support the growth of the organisation, and strengthen the relationship with our Irish Member, Skillnet Ireland, we are looking for a Brussels-based Account Manager.

Skillnet Ireland is the national Agency dedicated to the promotion and facilitation of workforce development in Ireland. Skillnet Ireland currently funds 70 enterprise groups, supporting over 20,000 companies and 80,000 trainees across the economy each year.

The Account Manager will support Skillnet Ireland’s EU Funding Manager and the wider Transform & Grow team in delivering on the statement of strategy 2021-2025..

The selected candidate contribute to identifying, securing, and managing EU funding and project opportunities for Skillnet Ireland. They will be strategic and results-driven, with a flair for identifying and winning new funding.

Your role and responsibilities:

• Contribute to identifying relevant funding opportunities – monitoring calls, notices, newsletters, and other relevant sources of funding information.
• Liaise with and manage EU funding agency partner to prioritise and explore funding calls.
• Coordinate the organisation of events and the participation of Skillnet Ireland in events
• Attend engagements on relevant European issues & calls.
• Lead on and contribute to the development of compelling communication material to showcase Skillnet Ireland’s impact to EU stakeholders.
• Develop partnerships with European players with a view to participating in project and funding consortia.
• Lead internal and external stakeholders to collaborate on developing high-impact proposals.
• Write compelling proposals, applications and prepare required marketing materials to support funding and partnership opportunities.
• Provide support to EU project management and implementation where appropriate
• Implement an operational EU Funding strategy, aligned with Skillnet Irelands business strategy.
• Contribute to embedding EU business development activities and processes within Skillnet Ireland teams to build in-house expertise on EU prepositioning and bid submissions.

Requirements:

• At least 5 years of experience in managing the European funding landscape
• Strong stakeholder engagement and management skills to collaborate with internal and external players in a multicultural context
• Ability to communicate, present and influence credibly and effectively at all levels of the organisation, including executive level.
• Critical leadership skills to collaborate with and influence multiple teams.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously while paying strict attention to detail.
• Completed higher education diploma
• Good understanding of EU policies and institutions
• Fluency in English, including excellent drafting skills
• Can-do attitude and strong motivation, topped with an ability to self-start and implement new tasks and initiatives
• Strong organizational skills and outstanding time management
• Legally eligible to work in Belgium

Desirable skills:

• Technical knowledge and understanding of the learning and development space would be an asset
• Understanding of and interest in EU digital policies
• Fluency in other European languages.

Work Conditions

As our Account Manager you will be based in the European DIGITAL SME Alliance’s Brussels office and be part of a dynamic, international team, while regularly liaising with Skillnet Ireland’s EU Funding Manager in Dublin. The European DIGITAL SME Alliance’s office is in the heart of the EU district in Brussels, easily accessible by public transportation. Since the pandemic, we have established a hybrid work model, where the team works partly from the office, partly remotely. Flexible working hours are also part of the deal – the Alliance’s organisational culture is result- rather than control-driven.

We offer a full-time, permanent contract and a competitive salary package in line with your skills and level of experience.

Short missions abroad within the EU are a key part of the of the role.

The European DIGITAL SME Alliance is committed to workplace diversity and inclusion of people from diverse backgrounds, abilities, and experiences. We strongly encourage qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply!

Application procedure

Please send your application by email to jobs@digitalsme.eu, subject: “VACANCY/AM 23”, including the following documents and information:

• CV (Europass template)
• Cover letter (one page maximum)
• Desired net salary/month
• Earliest date of availability to start the job
• Names and contact details of two references (will not be contacted before having the agreement of the candidate)

Application deadline 30^th September 2023

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Only applications including all the above-mentioned documents and information will be considered. Please read this vacancy notice carefully and only apply if you fulfill the key requirements! In your cover letter, please focus on your technical and professional experience as it relates to this vacancy, in addition to your motivation and interest for the Alliance’s work. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Privacy disclaimer: DIGITAL SME ensures a GDPR-compliant treatment of your personal data. Please note, we might keep your CV and all the information provided in your application, so that we can contact you in the future should a similar position open again. If you don’t want your data to be retained, please indicate this in your application.