Import Support Team Leader

Together, you ensure that the Import Department and its management team receive the necessary support and continue to develop in terms of both quality and quantity. To this end, you maintain very close ties with the seven operational teams and are also directly involved in some of the day-to-day operations. Of course, the team also works closely with many organizational units outside the Import Department. Together, you contribute to the NVWA’s mission to enhance product and food safety, animal welfare, and animal health.

What will you be doing?

In addition to the day-to-day management of your team and your contributions to the Management Team, you are responsible for achieving the desired (team) results and ensuring that the team can operate at its best in order to effectively and proactively support day-to-day operations. Your team provides broad support to the department. In addition to operational archiving and invoicing tasks, for example, the team also provides thematic support and further development across a wide range of processes. This covers a very broad spectrum, such as implementing new policies—for example, managing interventions on shipments that have been removed from supervision, the intervention policy, and guiding and coordinating the Inspection Center management and the annual system inspections. In addition, your team plays a decisive role in identifying training needs and implementing them within the Import Department. Your team takes the lead in consolidating the various team requests and presents them to the management team for decision-making, supported by sound analyses and well-founded proposals. Your team also ensures that targets are met across the department and provides management information. You and your team also maintain close contact with other relevant organizational units of the NVWA in Utrecht.

As the Import Support Team Leader, you will guide and support your team members. You will ensure that team members interact frequently at one of the NVWA office locations and that they maintain excellent working relationships within the department’s seven operational teams. In addition to their primary duties, there are also opportunities for employees to further their professional development. To this end, they can take relevant training programs and courses. You bring out the best in people. Team members are expected to be willing to 

In addition, you will be called upon to assist other teams within the department. For some members of your team, this may also involve working on weekends. As a team leader, you will share management on-call duties, which amounts to 7 to 8 weeks of on-call duty per year.

Together with seven other team leaders, you are part of the Import Department’s management team.

Here's what you get

• scale 12
• €4,691 - €6,907 (gross)
• Fixed-term employment contract with the possibility of conversion to a permanent contract
• 1 year
• 36 hours

Here's what else we offer

In addition to an onboarding program tailored to your role and extensive training and/or coaching opportunities to support your professional growth, we also offer the following employee benefits:

Individual Choice Budget

You will receive an Individual Choice Budget (ICB) equal to 16.50% of your gross annual salary. You can choose to have your ICB paid out, for example, on a monthly or annual basis, or you can use it to purchase additional leave hours. In addition, you can use your IKB to purchase a (electric) bicycle for commuting tax-free, set up your home office,pay off your student loan with tax benefits up to a maximum of €2,000 per year,or even make your home more sustainable. To encourage this, the national government offers an employer contribution on top of the IKB.

Vacation days

If you work 36 hours a week, you are entitled to 144 vacation hours and 64 IKB leave hours per year. Do you work more or fewer hours? In that case, these hours are calculated proportionally. And if you don’t need as much vacation time? Then you can also choose to have your 64 IKB leave hours paid out or added to your IKB saved leave.

Travel Expense Reimbursement

You will receive a commuter pass that allows you to travel by train in second class for your commute. Do you bike to work? If so, you will receive a travel allowance of €0.21 per kilometer cycled.

If you hold a field-based position, you are often eligible for an electric company car. You may also use this vehicle for personal purposes, subject to the additional tax liabilityand a personal contribution.

Leave Policies

The government offers various leave schemes for different situations, such as (supplementary) maternity leave (up to 5 weeks with 100% pay), parental leave (up to 9 weeks with 100% pay in the first year and an additional 75% for 4 weeks), care leave, and adoption/foster care leave.

Pension

The Dutch government offers an attractive pension plan through ABP, the General Civil Service Pension Fund. Read more about the ABP pension plan here.

Additional allowances and reimbursements

For some positions at the NVWA, it is necessary to work outside regular office hours or to be on call. However, these requirements are offset by additional allowances or compensation. For example, we offer an on-call and standby duty allowance and an irregular shift allowance.

Here is what we are asking for

As a team leader within the Import department, you communicate clearly and effectively at various levels. You are skilled at identifying opportunities for improvement, recognizing how these intersect with other parts of the process, and helping colleagues turn those ideas into practical results. You have proven, in-depth knowledge of and experience with operational processes. Knowledge of import procedures is a plus. You easily connect with those around you and have a keen sense of what is happening in your immediate environment and within the organization. Furthermore, you switch quickly between content, process, people, and organization, and you are able to think beyond your team and, if necessary, beyond your department. You are expected to have an interest in the NVWA’s entire field of work and to demonstrate this both within and outside the NVWA.

In addition, we would like to see the following

• A university-level standard of work and thinking.
• Experience as a team leader and/or manager.
• Knowledge of imports, preferably involving veterinary products, live animals, fish, and foodstuffs.
• Preferably experience in large, complex organizations.
• Our oversight takes place at the heart of the logistics chains. Familiarity with these processes is a plus.

Skills

• Organizational sensitivity
• Environmental awareness
• Results-oriented
• Networking
• Employee Development
• Reflecting 

The NVWA is committed to building a workforce that reflects the diversity of society and places great importance on an inclusive hiring policy. We therefore encourage everyone to apply, regardless of cultural background, age, gender identity, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.

This is where you'll be working

More about Trade Supervision

The Import Division focuses on inspecting animals and products originating from third countries with regard to food safety, animal health and welfare, and the safety of consumer products.

These are inspections of imports and transit through the European Union based on EU regulations. These inspections are carried out at designated border inspection posts (BIPs), inspection points, and approved warehouses. The NVWA’s work regarding imports is aimed at ensuring that only healthy animals, safe food, and safe products enter the European Union market. This also prevents the introduction and spread of animal diseases and diseases that are dangerous to humans.

Animal health plays a major role in Dutch society, particularly in relation to public health. An outbreak of a contagious animal disease can have major 

have economic and social consequences. The NVWA has been designated as the organization responsible for carrying out the legally mandated tasks related to the control of animal diseases and the handling of suspected cases of animal diseases.

The Import Inspection Department now consists of the following 8 teams:

• Teams Southwest 1, 2, and 3
• Teams North 1 and 2
• Food and Animal Feed Team
• Team Vis
• Support Team

About the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA)

In the Netherlands, we take it for granted that the products we use and everything we eat are safe. We expect animals to be treated well, even if they are destined for slaughter. We want to be able to consume fruits and vegetables without a second thought, and other products are “naturally” fine too. We want to be able to walk in nature without worry and buy toys for our children without suspicion. As consumers, we simply rely on that; for us, it goes without saying.

But we sometimes forget that companies work hard every day to maintain those high standards. That it isn’t always easy for business owners to comply with all applicable laws and regulations. We also forget that the government oversees this. Safety sounds so simple, but it isn’t.

What does the NVWA do?

The staff of the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) work hard every day to maintain that standard. Through dialogue with businesses in the hospitality sector, slaughterhouses, plant cultivation, and other producers, the NVWA monitors food and product safety, plant health, and the welfare of animals, nature, and the environment. We do so in accordance with national and international laws and regulations. We operate on a basis of trust, but we take firm action against businesses that do not adhere strictly to the rules. In the interest of society.

We closely monitor where the greatest risks lie and where oversight is most urgently needed, so that we can inform consumers and others in a timely manner. The NVWA also plays a key role in export inspections and in the import of products into Europe.

What does the NVWA stand for?

The NVWA is responsible for overseeing animal welfare, animal health, food safety, product safety, tobacco and alcohol prevention, plant health, and nature and the environment.

The Dutch government strives to be an employer that every employee—regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic background, or disability—wants to work for. Addressing social issues in diverse teams makes us more effective and innovative. That makes the work meaningful and challenging.

The NVWA is an agency of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security, and Nature (LVVN) and the Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Sport.

Details

• Applications will be considered in accordance with applicable agreements, including the Central Government Collective Labor Agreement and the NVP Application Code.
• A Certificate of Good Conduct (VOG) is required to work at the NVWA.
• If the position involves a fixed-term employment contract with the prospect of becoming permanent, the permanent contract is initially preceded by a one-year contract. Provided the employee proves to be suitable, the contract is generally converted into a permanent contract of indefinite duration after one year.
• Is this a job opening for a fixed-term contract with the possibility of becoming permanent, but do you already have a permanent position as a civil servant? If so, you will retain your permanent position.
• If the position is initially a fixed-term role, it will not be reopened if the role can be made permanent within the organization and the (initially) temporary position was filled by an internal employee with a permanent contract.
• Online screening—for example, through search engines or social media—can be part of the selection process.
• A competency test and/or an assessment may be part of the selection process.
• A comprehensive A or B screening by the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) may be required for certain positions at the NVWA, including those in the Intelligence and Investigation Service (IOD).
• Recruitment agencies are asked to refrain from contacting us regarding this job opening.
• We will review your application and respond no later than 10 business daysafter the application deadline.
• Are you applying for this position as a priority candidate through VWNW or due to a disability? (Priority Candidate) In that case, in addition to your resume and cover letter, you will also need a referral letter and a nomination letter. The nomination letter is prepared by the VWNW manager. You can add the additional documents, such as the designation letter and nomination letter, by first submitting your application (without the designation letter and nomination letter), and then clicking on the link in the confirmation email. After logging in, you can then add the designation letter and the nomination letter under “Additional documents.”

About the Manager job category

The Central Government Performance Framework helps employees and managers establish performance and development goals during performance reviews and provides insight into career opportunities within the federal government.

For more information, visit the Central Government Job Classification System 

Feel free to ask your question

For more information about this job opening:
Peter Verbaas
p.i.verbaas@nvwa.nl,0615210102

For more information about the application process, visit
or contact Marc Jordens at
or nvwapbmd@nvwa.nl