ESO Careers: Head of Procurement in Garching bei München

European Southern Observatory (ESO) has an opening in Garching bei München for a Head of Contracts and Procurement within its Directorate of Administration. The post concerns the commercial arrangements and supplier relationships that underpin major scientific and engineering work, from observing facilities already in operation to the development of new astronomical infrastructure.

This is a senior commercial leadership appointment for someone comfortable connecting governance, negotiation and operational delivery across an international organisation. The successful candidate will guide procurement and contract management work in Germany and Chile, supporting programmes whose equipment, technology and services enable observational astronomy.

Opportunity Details

Commercial Stewardship for Observatory Programmes

A Headquarters Assignment Linking Procurement with Science and Engineering

The Head of Contracts and Procurement sits in ESO's Directorate of Administration at the organisation's Headquarters in Garching near Munich. Reporting to the Director of Administration, the post provides strategic leadership for the procurement and contract management functions. Its remit joins commercial judgement with the practical demands of projects, suppliers, internal stakeholders and international collaborators.

Procurement is presented in the official vacancy as an enabler of ESO's mission rather than a purely procedural activity. The department supports contracts and purchasing decisions connected to observatories, technology and scientific infrastructure. The role therefore calls for an approach that protects value and manages risk while helping complex programmes move forward through appropriate procurement solutions.

The vacancy places the function at the meeting point of organisational strategy and day-to-day commercial execution. Its leader is expected to build effective relationships with suppliers and collaborators while keeping governance, negotiation and contract management aligned. That combination is relevant to candidates whose experience has involved technically demanding projects, multiple stakeholders and long-running delivery commitments.

The duty station is ESO Headquarters in Garching, with duty trips to ESO sites in Chile when required. The role is based on site, and relocation to the Garching area is a requirement. The stated contract is fixed term for three years and is subject to successful completion of the probation period.

About the Employer: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Ground-Based Astronomy with an International Mandate

Observatories, Technology and Scientific Access

European Southern Observatory (ESO) is an intergovernmental organisation for astronomical research in the Southern Hemisphere. Its stated purpose is to enable scientists around the world to investigate the Universe for the benefit of all. ESO designs, constructs and operates powerful ground-based observing facilities that astronomers use for research and discovery.

ESO operates observing sites in the Chilean Atacama Desert at La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor. Its activities include operation of the Very Large Telescope and its interferometer at Paranal, collaboration with international partners on ALMA at Chajnantor, and construction of the Extremely Large Telescope on Cerro Armazones, to be operated as part of Paranal Observatory.

Headquarters Operations and Organisational Setting

The Administrative Context for Contract and Procurement Leadership

The organisation's Headquarters in Garching close to Munich is where telescope technologies are conceived and developed with industry partners. ESO also has central offices in Santiago that support organisational operations in Chile and collaboration with the host country, its authorities, scientific community and society. This geographic arrangement gives the procurement function a direct connection to teams and facilities in more than one location.

ESO is organised through Directorates that include Programmes, Operations, Science, Administration and Engineering. The advertised post belongs to the Directorate of Administration. In that setting, the contracts and procurement function works alongside experts, project managers and senior stakeholders involved in the organisation's scientific and engineering programmes.

Open Positions

Application Guidance

Present Evidence of Commercial Leadership

Documents and Examples Aligned with the Procurement Remit

At this level, the scale and international reach of past procurement work will carry more weight than a list of duties. Applicants may wish to describe contract portfolios, governance arrangements, negotiations or supplier relationships in terms that show their own contribution and commercial reasoning. Examples involving scientific, engineering, technology or infrastructure settings can be particularly relevant where they demonstrate the preferred background identified by ESO.

Leadership evidence should show more than line management. It can explain how a team was developed, how different professional interests were brought together and how improvement or transformation was put into practice. Because the role connects Germany and Chile, applicants can use carefully chosen examples to demonstrate cross-cultural relationship building, clear communication, integrity and disciplined decision-making under competing demands.

It may also be useful to organise examples around the themes named in the vacancy: commercial insight, supplier partnerships, risk management, innovation and organisational transformation. Concise evidence is stronger when it identifies the challenge, the action taken and the relevant result without making claims that cannot be supported in the application materials.

• Confirm that the CV clearly identifies procurement and contract-management responsibilities in complex international settings.
• Include examples of negotiations, risk management, commercial governance and supplier relationship work.
• Show leadership experience through concrete evidence of developing procurement or contract-management professionals.
• Connect degree studies and any procurement, project-management or contract-management credentials to the stated qualifications.
• Prepare a motivation letter in English that explains the fit between commercial leadership experience and ESO's observatory programmes.
• Select three professional contacts familiar with the applicant's work who could provide a recommendation if requested.

How to Apply

Submit Your Application Through the Verified Route

Complete the employer's official online application

ESO handles this post through its official recruitment system, and the online form opens from the button below. The application is to be prepared in English and should include a motivation letter and CV. The employer asks applicants to provide within the CV the names and contact details of three people familiar with their work who are willing to provide a recommendation upon request.

A final read-through should confirm that the documents separate procurement achievements from general management duties and demonstrate the stated international, leadership and English-language requirements. The official vacancy notes that referees will not be contacted without the applicant's prior consent.