Specialist - Test Automation Engineer, Solution Delivery Unit (AD6)

The post of Specialist - Test Automation Engineer is located in the Quality Assurance Team, Solution Delivery Unit, ICT Department, Capabilities Directorate.

The C1 ICT Department has the responsibility for devising, delivering and operating critical technology capabilities and solutions supporting the core mission and support processes of Europol. Over 150 internal staff members and a significant number of domain-specific consultants are responsible for the Information and Communication Technologies and Systems that ensure enhanced criminal information analysis and exchange among Europol, Member States and third parties.

The Solution Delivery Unit is responsible for the development and quality assurance of ICT solutions. This includes Application Delivery, Quality Assurance (requirements management, testing), and Law-Enforcement Accelerated Provisioning services that provide technology support to fast-moving operational activities.

Purpose of the post: The Specialist - Test Automation Engineer is the focal point for the design and execution of automated tests following the DevOps principle "continuous testing". The Test Automation Engineer designs, develops and maintains test frameworks or standard test plans to be used by other testers and is responsible for the set-up and maintenance of a containerised test infrastructure fostering execution of automated tests in continuous integration.

The incumbent provides guidance to other testers regarding test automation. Responsibilities in ICT projects include: Code reviews; execution of non-functional testing or ICT infrastructure related testing; coordination of other testers; setup of (user/operational) acceptance testing; etc.

Reporting lines: The incumbent reports to the Senior Specialist - Head of Team - Quality Assurance.

2. Functions and duties

The successful candidate will have to carry out the following main duties:

• Design, code and execute automated tests in multiple test environments with minimal viable test data sets in continuous integration/delivery (CI/CD) regarding: o Functional, data migration and system integration testing; o Non-functional (e.g. performance, reliability, technical security) testing.

• Setup, implementation and maintenance of: o (coded) test automation frameworks and test projects (based on REST-API clients or Selenium WebDriver/Playwright); o test infrastructure (enabling parallel test execution using (Kubernetes-based) grids/build agents); o (enhanced) test data management capabilities (based on service & data virtualisation).

• Perform ICT infrastructure related testing regarding servers (operating systems upgrades & patching), networks; Kubernetes clusters; supporting middleware;

• Provide visibility and traceability of automated test execution with dashboards and by conducting regularly test failure analysis or organising defect triage meetings or initiating other appropriate corrective actions;

• Develop and use test automation guidelines:

• Keep updated with the latest industry developments and make suggestions for improving testing frameworks, processes and/or procedures;

• Perform any other task as assigned by the line management.

3. Requirements - Eligibility criteria

a. Candidates must

• Be a national of one of the Member States of the European Union and enjoy full rights as a citizen;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by the applicable laws on military service;
• Produce appropriate character references as to his or her suitability for the performance of the duties;
• Be physically fit to perform the duties pertaining to the post as further specified in Article 13 of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (CEOS);
• Produce evidence of a thorough knowledge of one of the languages of the Union and a satisfactory knowledge of another language of the Union to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties., Fulfil the condition stipulated in Article 5 of the Decision of the Executive Director on the Duration of contracts of employment for Temporary Agents, on the start date of the possible contract of employment which may be offered.

5. Selection procedure

All applications for Temporary Agent posts must be submitted through the online recruitment system accessible via Europol's website. For further information, please consult the Europol Recruitment Guidelines.

The Authority Authorised to Conclude Contracts of Employment (AACC) sets up a Selection Committee, composed of at least three members, consisting of one chair and at least one member from the administration and one member designated by the Staff Committee.

The selection criteria, set out in this Vacancy Notice, will be assessed by the Selection Committee throughout the different stages of the selection procedure. Before the start of the selection procedure, the Selection Committee will decide which selection criteria will be used at each stage of the selection procedure. Certain selection criteria will be assessed only for shortlisted candidates during a written test and/or a competency-based interview.

The Selection Committee will assess the applications received in order to make an initial selection of those candidates meeting all eligibility criteria and matching best the selection criteria (suitability).

The minimum pass-mark for being shortlisted, i.e. invited to participate in a post-related selection procedure, consisting of a written/practical test and a competency-based interview, is established as 60% of the total maximum score.

The Selection Committee will shortlist the 12 highest scoring candidates. All candidates having a score equal to the 12th highest scoring candidate will be invited to take part in the first stage of the selection procedure (written/practical test). At shortlisting stage, the Selection Committee will also establish the pass-mark for the selection procedure.

The Selection Committee will assess the written test against the selection criteria. Those candidates who do not reach the pass-mark for the test will be informed that they do not qualify to participate in the interview. All candidates who reach the pass-mark for the test will be invited to the second stage of the selection procedure (interview).

It is intended for the selection procedure to be conducted remotely. Should the Selection Committee consider it necessary to conduct the selection procedure on-site at Europol, either in part or in full, in the interest of the proceedings, and subject to budget availability, the candidates invited to participate in the selection procedure will be informed accordingly.

After the selection procedure has taken place, the Selection Committee will establish a list of successful candidates, i.e. those scoring above the pre-defined pass-mark, which is shared with the AACC.

Should the internal selection procedure referenced above be unsuccessful, the Selection Committee makes a proposal to the AACC on the candidate to appoint. Following that proposal, the AACC makes a decision of appointment.

Should the post be filled through the internal selection procedure, no appointment proposal will be made.

Candidates who participated in the interview will be informed of the outcome, i.e. whether they have been successful or not. In view of the list of successful candidates established by the Selection Committee, the AACC retains the discretion to constitute a Reserve List. A Reserve List is valid for 24 months.

The Selection Committee's work and deliberations are confidential. It is forbidden for candidates to make direct or indirect contact with the members of the Selection Committee or for anyone to do so on their behalf.

All enquiries related to a selection procedure should be addressed to the Europol HR Operational Support Team at the following email address: C2-121@europol.europa.eu. Detailed information on the selection procedure- including enquiries, measures of redress and their applicable deadlines is available in the Europol Recruitment Guidelines, which can be found on www.europol.europa.eu.

6. Compensation and benefits

Scale: AD6 The gross basic monthly salary is EUR 6.758,53 (step 1) or EUR 7.042,56 (step 2).

The step-in grade is determined on the basis of professional experience gained after the education required for the post and in line with applicable implementing rules.

Staff pay EU tax at source but salaries are exempt from national taxes. Compulsory deductions are made for health insurance, pension and unemployment insurance.

Subject to the applicable conditions being met, as defined in the EU Staff Regulations (EUSR)/CEOS and further specified in the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, allowances such as expatriation allowance (16% of basic gross salary) or foreign residence allowance (4% of basic gross salary), household allowance, dependent child and / or education allowance may be granted.

Staff enjoy worldwide insurance coverage by the Joint Sickness Insurance Scheme (JSIS) and are insured against sickness, the risk of occupational disease and accident.

Europol offers flexible working arrangements, a comprehensive provision for annual leave as well as parental leave supporting a healthy work-life balance., The successful candidate will be engaged in the type of post Administrator and function group AD, grade 6 pursuant to Article 2(f) CEOS and Annex I to the EUSR.

The initial contract will be concluded for a period of 4 years (full-time - 40 hours a week). The contract may be renewed, in principle, for a period of 2 years. Any further renewal shall be for an indefinite duration.

If the successful candidate is already a member of temporary staff 2(f) in the relevant function group, he/she may be offered the opportunity of contract continuity, should the relevant conditions be fulfilled.

Conditions of engagement Before the employment contract is concluded by Europol, the successful candidate will have to:

• declare any conflict of interest;
• undergo a pre-employment medical examination to confirm that he/she is physically fit to perform the duties pertaining to the post or, alternatively, receive the confirmation from Europol that he/she fulfils the conditions laid down in the Decision of the Deputy Executive Director of the Capabilities Directorate on the pre-employment medical examination available on www.europol.europa.eu.

The place of employment will be The Hague, The Netherlands.

In exceptional cases, where justified in the interest of the service, the AACC may recruit a candidate who is a successful candidate in a selection procedure for temporary staff 2(f) CEOS as contract staff 3(a) CEOS, if the selection procedure is considered to be appropriate to the duties to be performed.

For further information on terms and conditions, please consult the EUSR/CEOS available on Europol's website

Probation period Engagement for this post is subject to the successful completion of a probationary period of 9 months.

If the successful candidate chooses contract continuity, and has already successfuly completed the probationary period provided for in Article 14 of the CEOS, in the relevant function group, he/she will not serve the probationary period.

Europol reserves the right to terminate the contract of employment during or at the end of the probation period in accordance with Article 14 CEOS.

Security screening and certificate of good conduct Candidates who have been recruited to a post at Europol are required to furnish a valid certificate of good conduct before the start of their employment. The certificate of good conduct must be provided to Europol prior to the signature of the employment contract. The certificate of good conduct must be issued by the relevant authorities of the country of nationality of the candidate and must not be older than three months at the time of submission to Europol. Europol reserves the right not to proceed with the signature of the contract based on the content of the certificate or if the candidate fails to provide the certificate to Europol.

The certificate of good conduct does not substitute a valid security clearance required for all Europol staff at the level indicated in the vacancy notice. Failure to obtain the requisite security clearance before the expiration of the probationary period may be cause for termination of the employment contract.

Candidates who currently hold a valid security clearance at the level indicated in the vacancy notice or above do not need to obtain a certificate of good conduct or a new security clearance and must provide a copy of the current security clearance certificate to Europol prior to the signature of the employment contract. Europol shall verify and confirm the continued validity of the security clearance. In case Europol determines that the security clearance is not valid, the candidate will be required to provide a valid certificate of good conduct prior to the signature of the employment contract. Europol may at any time terminate the employment contract if the result of the security screening is not positive and the necessary clearance level is not granted or extended.

The requested level of security clearance for this post is: CONFIDENTIAL UE/EU CONFIDENTIAL., Pursuant to Article 16 of the EUSR, EU officials and, by analogy, temporary agents continue to be bound by the duty to behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance of certain appointments or benefits after leaving the service. Those staff members intending to engage in an occupational activity within two years of leaving the service shall inform their institution, so that it may take an appropriate decision in that respect. In cases where the intended activity is related to the work carried out by the staff member during the last three years of service and could lead to a conflict with the legitimate interests of the institution, the decision to be taken may include forbidding the staff member from undertaking it or giving its approval subject to any conditions it thinks fit.

Do you have experience in gRPC?, * A level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least three years attested by a diploma, * Professional training of an equivalent level in a relevant area and after having completed the training, at least the number of years of relevant professional experience as indicated below:

Duration of professional training Additional professional experience required for equivalency More than 6 months and up to 1 year 3 years More than 1 year and up to 2 years 2 years More than 2 years 1 year

In addition to the above at least 3 years of total professional work experience gained after the award of the diploma., * Experience in software testing (including user and operational acceptance testing) covering also data migration and system integration testing;

• Experience in using Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) methodology and tools (Gherkin, Cucumber, Specflow) covering also test automation layer with .NET code;
• Experience in automated GUI related regression testing using Selenium WebDriver/Playwright with .NET code;
• Experience in coding re-usable test automation frameworks for automated regression testing in continuous integration;
• Experience in testing micro-services (REST APIs) and applications running in containers (e.g. Kubernetes) using test automation tools and virtualized components (i.e. mocking/ stubbing of services);
• Experience in designing and executing non-functional tests covering aspects such as: o Technical ICT security (using SAST and DAST tools/scans); o Efficiency testing (i.e. performance, load and stress testing); o Reliability testing (i.e. fault tolerance, recoverability (e.g. backup and restore, failover/fallback, startup/ shutdown procedures).

Desirable:

• Experience in co-ordinating project -specific test teams;
• Experience in working in DevOps teams using continuous testing approaches in release pipelines.

b. Professional knowledge Essential:

• Knowledge of test approaches and strategies, execution, criteria and reporting following DevOps processes, practices, procedures;
• Knowledge of Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) methodology and tools (Gherkin, Cucumber, Specflow) covering also test automation layer wit .Net or Java code;
• Knowledge of how to test programmatically REST-/micro-services APIs using API clients such as Restsharp, HttpClient or GRPC;
• Knowledge of functional automated GUI testing with .NET or Java unit tests using Selenium WebDriver/Playwright based test automation frameworks and stored in GIT repositories;
• Knowledge of non-functional tests of applications regarding performance, reliability and technical security quality characteristics covering also ICT infrastructure elements such as Kubernetes clusters and services;
• Advanced knowledge of SQL, suitable for testing complex data migrations or BI solutions.

Desirable:

• Knowledge of setting up and maintenance of test infrastructure for continuous integration;
• Knowledge of structured test data management.

c. General competencies

Essential:

Communicating:

• Very good communication skills in English, both orally and in writing.
• Ability to draft clear and concise documents on complex matters for various audiences.

Analysing & problem solving:

• Keen eye for detail with the ability to maintain standards of accuracy under pressure of tight deadlines.
• Excellent analytical and critical thinking skills.
• Competent user of Microsoft Office applications (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook) and the internet.

Delivering quality and results:

• High degree of commitment and flexibility.
• High level of customer and service-orientation.

Prioritising & organising:

• Good administrative and organisational skills.

Resilience:

• Very good interpersonal skills, including the ability to effectively liaise with other departments, groups and teams as well as with external partners.
• Ability to remain effective under a heavy workload and demonstrate resistance to stress.

Living diversity:

• Ability to work effectively in an international and multi-cultural environment.