Work location: Remote (Preferably CET or adjacent time zone)
Contract: Short term (2-4 months), starting Jan/Feb 2025
Working hours: Full time or part time, negotiable

Contract type: employee or contractor, negotiable
Closing date: January 4th, 2024, rolling admissions

About ICFG

• We are an independent think-and-do tank dedicated to shaping a future where decision-makers anticipate and responsibly govern the societal impacts of rapid technological change, ensuring that emerging technologies are harnessed to serve the best interests of humanity.
• Our experts supply rigorous, independent, policy-oriented research and analysis that connects the dots between the frontiers of emerging technology development and the principles of good governance.

In short, we see ourselves as lobbyists for future generations.

The role

The Foresight Program leads ICFG’s efforts to anticipate the societal implications of emerging technologies, equipping policymakers with tools to navigate an uncertain future. You’ll work with us on our initiative Innovating to Protect Europe’s Future to safeguard the future of humanity by risk-mitigation through technological innovation and investment.

Innovating to Protect Europe’s Future seeks to identify 10–20 emerging technologies that meet three critical criteria:

(1) they are well-suited to protect future generations from threats such as climate change, war, pandemics, and rogue AI

(2) they are rapidly emerging

(3) the EU is positioned to lead in their development by acting decisively now

The program combines rigorous research and stakeholder engagement to provide actionable insights for European policymakers. 

As part of this program, we are hiring a (Senior) Public Management Analyst to tackle critical questions around how to utilize existing EU institutions and mechanisms to accelerate innovation for our shortlisted technologies. This includes a description of what levers are available to the European Commission, and an assessment of Europe’s capacity to lead in emerging technologies, drawing on case-studies of successful and unsuccessful innovation policy efforts in Europe and beyond.

Specifically, what is the best way to ensure our recommendations deliver insights and impact to the right hands and minds in the EU?

We expect the role to further explore:

• The current landscape of economic drivers for innovation within Europe.
• What works and what doesn’t in fostering emerging technologies from a EU policymaker perspective.
• Strategic ways to reshape how European institutions can bolster technology sectors.
• What actors have sway in EU innovation policy

Prior knowledge of this is a significant plus, and a network in this area could help you stand out.

This role is flexible and could for example be shaped as:

• A part-time, 2–3-month engagement for a senior professional, or
• A full-time, up to 4-month engagement for an early/mid-career professional.

How you will make an impact: 

• Use your familiarity with EU institutions in the innovation- and -security space to develop strategic recommendations for how the EU can become a global leader in the technologies on our shortlist

Additionally, you will

• Collaborate with our core team and research collaborators to ensure that our research is anchored in the best available expertise within our extended network

• Contribute to outreach and engagement efforts to share findings with key decision makers within the EU

What you will need to succeed in this role

• Relevant experience: Demonstrated expertise in public management, innovation policy, or technology governance, with knowledge of EU institutions and processes for innovation & technology development.
• Ownership: Takes strong ownership of driving results and understands the context in which they provide impact.
• Autonomy: We work tightly within the team, and rely on everyone to drive progress individually.
• Analytical & communication skills: Capable of synthesizing complex findings into actionable insights, both within the team and for a broader audience.
• Language: Fluency in English is required.

What we offer

• A competitive salary or daily rate. 
• Flexibility: Overall we have a flexible working policy in terms of time and space. If you’re living in Belgium, we have a wonderful workspace in Brussels. Your main collaborators for this project will be situated remotely in Oslo.
• Impact: The opportunity to contribute to some of the most pressing problems facing the EU with an enthusiastic team and organization striving to benefit future generations the best way possible.
• Inclusive workplace: We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace for all.

How to apply
The attributes listed above represent our current thinking for the role. You can be a great candidate even if you don’t fit everything we’ve described above. You can also have important skills we haven’t thought of. If that’s you – even if you’re on the fence – we encourage you to apply and tell us about yourself!

To apply for this exceptional opportunity, please send your CV and complete the brief question via https://stichtingicfg.bamboohr.com/careers/57.  We encourage you to apply as early as possible, as we will be interviewing candidates on a rolling basis. 

Personal data

Protecting your personal data is of the utmost importance to ICFG and we take this responsibility very seriously. Any information obtained by our divisions is held and processed in accordance with the relevant data protection legislation. The data you provide us with is securely stored on our computerized database and transferred internally for the purposes of presenting you as a candidate and/or considering your suitability for a role you have registered interest in.

To view our Privacy Policy, please click here.