Lead Expert Market Infrastructure Project Management (standards and certifications) - Rulebook [...]

General Information

Type of contract: Fixed‑term contract, which may be extended subject to individual performance and organisational needs.

Who can apply? EU nationals.

Salary: H (bracket 1 – step 1) full time monthly net salary: €8,318 plus benefits, for further information see what we offer.

Role specialisation: Market Infrastructure Project Management.

Working time: Full time.

Place of work: Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

Closing date: .

Your team

You will be part of the Rulebook Division in the Directorate Digital Euro, part of the ECB’s Directorate General Market Infrastructure and Payments. Our Directorate leads the digital euro project, supporting its project’s management bodies in steering and monitoring progress. It also oversees all project workstreams, managing the scope, budget and resources approved by the Governing Council.

The team is responsible for drafting the rulebook, which sets out the rules, standards and procedures for the digital euro scheme.

You will work closely with other divisions within the Directorate, industry bodies, test labs and certification bodies.

Your role

As Lead Expert Market Infrastructure Project Management in the area of standards and certification you will:

• Assess the suitability of existing open market standards (both functional and security‑related) for the digital euro, conduct gap analyses and address any gaps by defining new standard requirements.
• Assess, propose and implement testing and certification requirements for selected and developed standards, in line with the project timeline and market needs.
• Ensure, through quality control, that standards, testing and certification requirements are properly reflected in the digital euro scheme rulebook specifications.
• Support the monitoring of compliance by scheme participants and other relevant stakeholders with these requirements.
• Communicate frameworks and technical details clearly to both internal and external stakeholders.

We actively support professional development for our staff. Beside learning opportunities such as training and mentoring, we encourage and support horizontal mobility after some years in the same position.

This position offers excellent opportunities to contribute to the future of European payments, ensuring secure and convenient ways to pay, both in cash and digitally. You will be part of a multicultural team that strives for continuous innovation to make a positive impact on the lives of European citizens.

Qualifications, Experience and Skills

Essential

• A master’s degree or equivalent in business administration, economics, finance, law, political science, international relations, project management, STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering or mathematics), computer science or another relevant field.
• A minimum of six years’ professional experience in the field of frameworks, schemes, or processes to ensure standardised practices and consistency in the financial market infrastructure sector.
• Sound understanding of the payments ecosystem, including the role of proprietary and non‑proprietary standardisation requirements.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical matters to different audiences, and sound drafting skills.
• An advanced (C1) command of English and an intermediate (B1) command of at least one other official language of the EU.

Desired

• Experience in compliance testing and certification in the financial market infrastructure sector.
• Sound understanding of the retail payments ecosystem.
• Experience in procurement processes.
• Familiarity with EU regulatory requirements relating to payment and security standardisation.

You engage collaboratively with others, pursue team goals and learn from diverse perspectives. You signal the need for change by explaining it and proposing alternative solutions, analyse complex information effectively and can evaluate different views to arrive at solutions. You know and anticipate stakeholder needs.

You are motivated to be part of our team and develop and use your skills and competencies to achieve the aims of this position.

You are aware of your strengths and areas for development and know what motivates you to perform at your highest level.

Working modalities

We would be happy to discuss a part‑time arrangement for this role.

Additional information

The contract offered will be fixed‑term, the appointment being until 31 March 2028. Temporary appointments may be extended or made permanent subject to organisational needs and budgetary constraints.

The ECB is an inclusive employer and we strive to reflect the diversity of the population we serve. We encourage you to apply irrespective of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or other characteristics.