Personal Assistant for the Neutron Scattering Systems Division

The European Spallation Source is hiring motivated and inspiring people from across the globe to design, construct and operate the world’s most powerful neutron source. We seek ambitious, talented people in a range of fields who are excited about playing a part in the future of science in Europe. ESS is a partnership of 13 European countries and occupies a truly impressive campus based in the beautiful, cosmopolitan university city of Lund, Sweden – just 10 minutes from Malmö and 30 minutes from Copenhagen.

We are now looking to appoint a Personal Assistant to work within the Neutron Scattering Systems (NSS) division. The NSS division is responsible for the construction and commissioning of 15 neutron beam instruments, and a substantial part of the scope is delivered by in-kind partners from the member states.

In this role, you will be an important player to ensure that the NSS Division Head and his management team can work efficiently. In your new role, no two days will be the same. One day you could be providing support to the Division Head, the next day you could be making travel plans, arranging meetings for the team or organising external conferences. A large part of your work will be interacting with our in-kind partners from all across Europe – so we need someone who is not intimidated by this responsibility.

About you:

To thrive with us in the Neutron Scattering team, you need to be driven, responsive and good at seeing opportunities. You are a highly motivated person who is able to multi-task in a structured way – and you know your way around multiple calendars.

We are building ESS from the ground up, so we need someone who is comfortable not only following procedures, but also creating them. We are looking for someone with relevant education within a field closely related to the position – such as finance, management, etc. It would be a real advantage if you could bring prior experience of working with service management and/or administration and of course we do need you to have a very good level of competency with Microsoft Office (primarily Excel, PowerPoint, Word and Outlook) as well as Zoom.

We attach great importance to personality and attitude, so we're looking for a real team player: Someone who is sociable, has excellent communication skills, who likes to collaborate with different people and who is committed to helping this amazing project to realise its full potential. We really need a hands-on self-starter who is able to work in a structured, orderly, responsible and – most importantly – safe way.

The working language of ESS is English, so there is no need for you to speak Swedish - although this is always an advantage.

What can we offer?

Aside from the opportunity to work at one of only 4 linear accelerator-based Spallation sources on the whole planet, you can also expect:


• An opportunity to contribute to the future discoveries within neutron science.
• A stunning, brand new workplace filled with innovative minds and brilliant people from across the globe.
• A challenging, exciting and fast-paced work environment.
• Market competitive compensation that is individual and differentiated according to role, responsibilities, individual skills, abilities and achievements.
• 30 days of annual leave, as well as more than 10 days of public holiday and company days off or days with limited working hours.
• Flexible working arrangements and a real work-life balance.
• An excellent quality of life in the highly sought after, family-friendly, beautiful and well-connected Southern Sweden/Greater Copenhagen region.

Interested? We sure hope so:

If you see yourself in what we’re looking for, please provide your CV and motivation letter in English by clicking on “apply” and following the instructions. Please be aware that we can only accept direct applications made via the ESS website.

The closing date for applications for this position is Friday, 13th May 2022.

For questions about the recruitment process, contact Daniel Nordin Baker on daniel.nordin@ess.eu. For union questions, please talk to Conny Wendt (Unionen) via conny.wendt@ess.eu or Johan Waldeck (SACO) at johan.waldeck@ess.eu.

We hope to hear from you soon!