Junior Officer, Internal Control

1. SUMMARY 
The NATO International Staff (IS) Office of Financial Control (OFC) is primarily responsible for the management of financial and budgetary control systems for several NATO entities, primarily the NATO IS Civil Budget. As the custodian of member Nations' funds, the OFC provides reliable and value adding financial and procurement services, in support of front-line Divisions, enabling them to achieve their objectives. It works to comply with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) and other best practices, including the management of enterprise risk.

The OFC is responsible for procurement, financial operations and reporting for\: the NATO IS civil and reimbursable budgets (including satellite offices); all NATO-wide pensions funds (currently\: defined benefit pension scheme, defined contribution pension scheme and retirees medical claims fund); and other NATO agencies/bodies located at NATO Headquarters (HQ) for which OFC is responsible for providing procurement, budgetary, financial and accounting services, which currently are the NATO Naval Forces sensors and weapons Accuracy Check Site (FORACS) and the Munitions Safety Information Analysis Centre (MSIAC). OFC is also responsible for providing procurement, cash management, finance and accounting support to a number of extra budgetary funds (including trust funds) and bilateral arrangements, including the Tax Reimbursement Agreement with the United States (U.S.). The NATO-IS budget includes Brussels HQ operations as well as external Offices.

The OFC is organised around five main functions\: (1) Accounting and Finance, (2) Treasury, (3) Budget, Procurement & Reporting, (4) Programmes & Business Support and (5) Business Management Systems & Control.

Standards applicable to NATO in the finance area are the NATO Financial Regulations, the NATO Financial Rules and Procedures, the International Public Sector Accounting Standards, the NATO Civilian Personnel Regulations, and the NATO Code of Conduct. NATO IS uses COSO as the reference framework for internal control system.

The Junior Internal Control Officer ensures that sound internal control practices are in place in the Office of Financial Control in accordance with its internal control framework, the NATO Financial Regulations and best practices. The incumbent supports the Internal Control Officer in exercising oversight of the internal system in place in the Office of Financial Control with relation to risks in the areas of compliance, financial reporting, operations and preservation of assets. The incumbent contributes to the assessment and monitoring and of the overall NATO International Staff system of internal control and its related risk management strategy and policy.

2.     QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
ESSENTIAL
The incumbent must:

•    possess a university degree or equivalent level of qualification, preferably in the areas of finance, management, audit or risk management;
•    have at least 2 years' experience in internal control, risk management or audit;
•    have strong knowledge of internationally-recognised internal control frameworks, risk management methods and protocols, or audit;
•    have strong analytical skills;
•    have strong communication skills;
•    have the capacity to summarise complex situations;
•    possess the following minimum levels of NATO's official languages (English/French)\: V ("Advanced") in one; III ("Intermediate") in the other.

DESIRABLE
The following would be considered an advantage:

•    knowledge of and experience in using the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) framework;
•    experience working in an international environment;
•    experience working in a budget driven entity;
•    experience with risk management tools;
•    experience of project management activities;
•    experience with Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX);
•    experience in process reviews;
•    experience in using an ERP system;
•    knowledge of and experience with audit software (e.g. IDEA);
•    exposure to integrated IT tools to consolidate compliance, risk and internal controls (e.g. Oracle Governance, Risk and Compliance Manager (GRC));
•    knowledge of NATO IS' mandate, financial regulations, and governance structure;

3.     MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES
Planning and Execution
Support the oversight and maintenance of the internal control system of OFC. Assist in ensuring that optimised internal controls are in place to execute the Office of Financial Control mission; that they address all risks in the areas of compliance, reporting, operations and preservation of assets. Contribute to documenting the internal controls and ensure alignment with relevant standards and best practices (NATO Financial Regulations, IPSAS, CPRs, Code of conduct etc.). Carry out assigned control tests and assist in assessing internal controls related to financial statement preparation. Provide support in the preparation of the annual Statement of Internal Control.

Project Management
Contribute to the structured process supporting the generation of the annual Statement of Internal Control that is attached to the annual financial statements, jointly signed by the Financial Controller and the NATO Secretary General. Assist in the preparation and coordination of the Management Representation Letters. Provide support to the risk management process of the Office of Financial Control specifically and, as required, that of the International Staff. Participate in analysing existing controls, identifying improvements, and assisting in implementing and following up on related action plans.

Expertise development
Stay abreast of evolution in the areas of internal control, risk management, audit practices, and of specific IT software supporting such practices. Support awareness and training activities by assisting in the preparation of materials and helping colleagues build understanding of internal control and risk management principles within the Organization. 
Assist in delivering specific training sessions to finance staff as directed.

Knowledge management
Assist in documenting in a structured manner existing internal controls, related risks, monitoring tools and reviews, and communication means. Support the maintenance of documentation on current practices, practices and contribute to identifying possible improvements. Assist in testing existing controls and support the assessment of the overall system on a regular basis.

Information management
Prepare and compile clear and timely reports and statistics based on available data. Support the maintenance and revision of finance-related instructions on internal control as directed. Ensure documents are properly updated and filed for easy access and reference.

Stakeholder management
Work collaboratively with colleagues, support staff and management to ensure positive and productive involvement in the risk management process. Familiarise staff with priorities and issues of the Organization and take these into account, as appropriate, in the risk management process. Provide assistance in explaining audit findings to relevant stakeholders. Interact with tact and diplomacy in an international environment.

Perform any other related duty as assigned.

4.    INTERRELATIONSHIPS
The incumbent reports to the Internal Control Officer, who in turn performs their duties under the authority of the Branch Head, BMS&C and the Financial Controller. The incumbent interacts with the OFC business units, the IT service and with other elements of the Internal Staff involved in risk management and liaises with other Divisions as necessary. The incumbent maintains a good relationship with the Internal Oversight Service.
Direct reports\: N/a 
Indirect reports\: N/a

5.    COMPETENCIES
The incumbent must demonstrate:

•    Achievement\: Works to meet standards; 
•    Analytical Thinking\: Sees basic relationships; 
•    Clarity and Accuracy\: Checks own work; 
•    Conceptual Thinking\: Sees patterns based on life/work experience; 
•    Customer Service Orientation\: Takes personal responsibility for correcting problems; 
•    Empathy\: Reads non-verbal cues and understands meanings; 
•    Impact and Influence\: Takes multiple actions to persuade; 
•    Initiative\: Is decisive in a time-sensitive situation; 
•    Teamwork\: Cooperates.
 

7. USEFUL INFORMATION REGARDING APPLICATION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS

Please note that we can only accept applications from nationals of NATO member countries. Applications must be submitted using e-recruitment system, as applicable:

• For NATO civilian staff members only\: please apply via the internal recruitment portal (link);
• For all other applications\:

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More information about the recruitment process and conditions of employment, can be found at our website (http\)

Appointment will be subject to receipt of a security clearance (provided by the national Authorities of the selected candidate), approval of the candidate's medical file by the NATO Medical Adviser, verification of your study(ies) and work experience, and the successful completion of the accreditation and notification process by the relevant authorities.

NATO will not accept any phase of the recruitment and selection prepared, in whole or in part, by means of generative artificial-intelligence (AI) tools, including and without limitation to chatbots, such as Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer (Chat GPT), or other language generating tools. NATO reserves the right to screen applications to identify the use of such tools. All applications prepared, in whole or in part, by means of such generative or creative AI applications may be rejected without further consideration at NATO's sole discretion, and NATO reserves the right to take further steps in such cases as appropriate.

8. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

NATO is committed to diversity and inclusion, and strives to provide equal access to employment, advancement and retention, independent of gender, age, nationality, ethnic origin, religion or belief, cultural background, sexual orientation, and disability. NATO welcomes applications of nationals from all member Nations, and strongly encourages women to apply.

NATO is committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible working environment, where all candidates living with disabilities can fully participate in the recruitment and selection process. If you require reasonable accommodation, please inform us during your selection process.

Candidates will be required to provide documented medical evidence to support their request for accommodation.

Building Integrity is a key element of NATO's core tasks. As an employer, NATO values commitment to the principles of integrity, transparency and accountability in accordance with international norms and practices established for the defence and related security sector. Selected candidates are expected to be role models of integrity, and to promote good governance through ongoing efforts in their work.

Due to the broad interest in NATO and the large number of potential candidates, telephone or e-mail enquiries cannot be dealt with.

Applicants who are not successful in this competition may be offered an appointment to another post of a similar nature, albeit at the same or a lower grade, provided they meet the necessary requirements.

The nature of this position may require the staff member at times to be called upon to travel for work and/or to work outside normal office hours.

The organization offers several work-life policies including Teleworking and Flexible Working arrangements (Flexitime) subject to business requirements.

Please note that the International Staff at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium is a non-smoking environment.

For information about the NATO Single Salary Scale (Grading, Allowances, etc.) please visit our website. Detailed data is available under the Salary and Benefits tab.

NATO does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. For more info please click here.