Junior Professional Positions

With responsibility for Finance, HR, Facilities, Procurement and Governance we are in a key position to ensure our colleagues have the tools they need to deliver. Our mission goes beyond administration: we strive to create an efficient, welcoming, and collaborative workplace where everyone can thrive. Our team is truly international, comprising both EFTA and EU nationals, which makes for a rich and diverse work environment. As part of our vibrant team culture, we host a weekly Fika breakfast every Thursday, where the whole division comes together to connect, share ideas, and enjoy some relaxed time over coffee and croissants.

As an HR Junior Professional you will work as part of a small, collaborative team supporting cross-cutting administrative, HR, digitalisation and other initiatives.

The role is designed to give exposure across ADM’s focus areas, while allowing you to develop a professional profile in line with EFTA’s strategic priorities and your own strengths. You will contribute to both day-to-day operations and strategic projects, working closely with senior colleagues and stakeholders across the organisation.

• Contribute to digitalisation initiatives, including process improvement, data management, reporting and analytics, and the development of a digital-first approach.

• Support employer branding and talent attraction initiatives by creating and sharing content on social media and other channels. You will help shape EFTA’s image as an employer of choice while gaining hands-on experience in communication, digital engagement, and employer value proposition (EVP) activities.

• Work closely with the HR Partner to drive the Junior Professional Programme from start to finish, gaining hands-on experience in shaping the next generation of talent.

• Support the HR team with the full recruitment cycle and coordinating onboarding activities.

• Take part in Learning & Development initiatives by helping to identify, plan, and deliver training that meets both organisational goals and staff growth needs.

• Manage administrative duties and assist with ad hoc, providing flexible support across the Division to ensure efficient operations and service delivery.

Joining our team as a Junior Professional means becoming a full member of the Administration Division, sharing responsibilities while also having the opportunity to grow. You will work on exciting projects, contribute to improving processes, and leverage technology! 

Who are we looking for?
We are seeking an EFTA national who is ready to kickstart their career! You hold (or are about to complete) a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Marketing, Communication, Psychology, or a related field. You are fluent in English, tech-savvy, and up-to-date with the latest in AI. Ideal candidates have up to two years of work experience and are eager to learn, grow, and make an impact from day one.

• Strong analytical and organisational skills, with the ability to handle multiple tasks and priorities.

• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and oral.

• Solid digital literacy, with interest in data, systems and digital tools and methods.

• Ability to work accurately and reliably, with attention to detail and a strong sense of responsibility and integrity.

• Interest in topics such as HR, employer branding, learning and development, digitalisation, AI and organisational culture.

Personal qualities

• Service-minded, with a genuine desire to act as a supportive and trusted partner to colleagues and stakeholders.

• Curious and reflective, with a continuous learning mindset and openness to feedback.

• Proactive, with the ability to take initiative while respecting existing processes and frameworks.

• Collaborative, respectful and inclusive, contributing positively to a healthy and safe workplace culture.

The Internal Market Division (IMD) is EFTA’s largest Division and gives support and assistance to the EFTA States in their work related to the incorporation of EU legislative acts into the EEA Agreement. The Division is responsible for the coordination of the work of the EFTA Sectoral Working Groups and Subcommittees I-IV and covers all the EU policy areas that fall within the scope of the EEA Agreement. 

IMD recruits two Junior Professionals every year and consists of 25 staff members. The Junior Professionals assist policy and legal officers in their work within all policy areas of the EU’s Internal Market, such as on Energy, Environment, Food Safety, Free Movement of Goods, Competition, Digital Policy, Financial Services, Transport, Free Movement of Persons, Social Policy, Consumer Protection, Education and Research. 

The main Junior Professional tasks include conducting policy analysis and research on EEA-relevant EU law initiatives, attending EFTA Working Group meetings and drafting reports from these meetings, assisting the policy officers with drafting agendas, notes and overview documents for the Working Group meetings, case-handling related to the incorporation of acts into the EEA Agreement, giving presentations to external visitor groups and generally assisting the officers or management of the Division as needed. 

To the extent possible, the Junior Professionals are allocated to policy sectors in which they have specific experience, knowledge, and interest. They are also invited to take on EEA related research projects based on individual interest if time allows. They work in close cooperation with several policy officers and the legal officers and are full members of the IMD team. 

Knowledge of and interest in EU policy and the EEA Agreement are essential requirements for both Junior Professionals. Ideally one of the Junior Professionals has a legal background and the other one a background in political science or economics. 

The EFTA Statistical Office (ESO) is a liaison office between the National Statistical Institutes of the EFTA Member States and the Commission (Eurostat). It is responsible for international statistical cooperation both within and outside the framework of the EEA Agreement. ESO coordinates the work of the Working Group of the Heads of the EFTA National Statistical Institutes, and its main objective is to promote the full participation of the EFTA Member States in the European Statistical System (ESS) and the European Statistical Programme (ESP). Statistics is a horizontal policy area in the EEA Agreement. ESO’s focus is on legal and institutional affairs and data dissemination, statistical training, and technical cooperation with partner countries outside the ESS. ESO has one to two Junior Professional positions under EFTA’s Junior Professional programme. 
 
The ESO Junior Professional’s main tasks are to monitor adoption of EU legal acts in the field of statistics and support their incorporation into the EEA Agreement, to liaise with the National Statistical Institutes of the EFTA Member States and with the Commission (Eurostat), to monitor and report on the inclusion of EFTA data in Eurostat’s dissemination channels, and to contribute to the information and communication work of ESO. In addition, the Junior Professional is expected to provide general assistance  on various issues concerning official statistics and in the daily work of the ESO team. 
 
ESO is located on the same premises as Eurostat in Luxembourg, and its staff work closely with Eurostat’s staff. ESO consists of six staff members including the Junior Professional. The Junior Professional Programme at ESO offers opportunities to gain insight into the workings of the ESS, the ESP,  the EEA Agreement, and to learn about technical cooperation in the field of statistics with non-ESS partner countries, to prepare, attend, and ensure the follow-up of ESS and EFTA meetings, and to get acquaintance with communication work. Comfort with numbers, knowledge of or interest in official statistics and  the EEA Agreement, excellent command of spoken and written English, and good knowledge of Microsoft Office are required. Intermediate knowledge of R is desirable.

The two Junior Professional (JP) positions in Geneva offer the opportunity to learn about EFTA’s third country and intra member states activities. The JPs work for the Secretariat’s governing body and on activities related to third country trade relations outside the European Union (EU). The two Junior Professionals in Geneva will work both for  the Secretary-General’s Office as well as the Trade Relations Division. 

The Secretary-General’s Office in Geneva supports EFTA’s governing body, the EFTA Council. The SGO is also responsible for horizontal matters such as internal legal, institutional, and budgetary matters. The Trade Relations Division is responsible for the exploration, negotiation, implementation and monitoring of preferential trade arrangements with non-EU partner countries.    

The JPs in Geneva participate in the meetings of the EFTA Council and related bodies, and assist in the preparation and follow-ups of meetings, contributing to meeting documents and reports, background notes, and press releases. This includes the organisation of the annual meeting of the Council at Ministerial level, taking place in a different EFTA Member State each year. This requires excellent drafting skills in English. Strong organisational skills and political sensitivity/awareness are desirable. The JPs also contribute to the preparation of economic notes and exchanges of information with partner countries. They work on EFTA internal regulations and other legal and governance issues. 

The JPs also perform tasks related to free trade agreements such as economic, legal or political analyses on current trade topics (including, for example, trade and sustainable development, digital trade and developments in global trade cooperation), preparatory work and assistance for free trade negotiations and trade-related meetings as well as presentations to external audiences, work on implementation of agreements and monitoring tasks (for example on preference utilisation). 

Regarding horizontal projects, analytical/quantitative skills are desirable, including familiarity with international trade statistics and a good understanding of the global economy and international trading environment. Experience in data management projects or programming in any statistical software would be an asset in the recruitment process.