User Officer - Pilot Lines & Research Core Facilities Access

User Officer - Pilot Lines & Research Core Facilities Access

International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL)

Contract Duration: 31 months (possible extension to 36 pending funding approval)

Expected Starting Date: December 2026

Salary Range: 37k – 43k annual gross

Group/Unit: Research Support for Excellence

Supervisor: Estibaliz Crespo

Employment Type: Full time

Number of Vacancies: 1

Location: Braga, Portugal

Job Reference: Ref.30.26.4201

Open Date for Applications: October 13th, 2026

Close Date for Applications: November 2nd, 2026, 23h59m (Lisbon Time)

Profile

We are looking for an User Officer to be the single point of contact for external users of INL’s pilot-line and research core facilities services. The role owns the end-to-end user journey, from request intake, eligibility screening, allocation, service tracking and Service Level Agreement (SLA) to feedback and reporting into project governance and pilot-lines KPIs. The User Officer will work in close collaboration with other units (i.e., Research Core Facilities, Quality Management, Strategy Office, Technology Transfer Office, Finance, Communication, Conferences & Marketing, and Project coordination teams) that provide technical, quality, strategic and legal input at each step. The User Officer will also liaise with other project governance and partners (e.g., in pilot lines) to ensure coordination of similar activities at the consortium level.

Job Duties

The main responsibilities will include:

User Front Office & Request Management

• Operate the single intake channel (email/webform) for external users of INL´s pilot line and research core facilities services.
• Register, categorise and prioritise services requests, assign owners, deadlines and status.
• Maintain accurate, auditable records of facility usage — by project, user and date — to meet reporting obligations towards funding authorities.
• Screen user eligibility and perform basic feasibility checks in collaboration with Research Core Facilities and projects WPs coordinators, when applicable, including due diligence for pilot line and project specific access rules.
• Support allocation procedures by shaping implementation plans involving INL infrastructure and maintaining allocation and usage records.

Service Quality & SLA Monitoring

• Track service delivery against agreed service level commitments (e.g., response time, quality metrics) for pilot lines and research core facilities services.
• Collect user feedback, record deviation and non-conformities, and follow up on corrective and preventive actions together with Quality Management and Research Core Facilities.
• Maintain operating procedures for request intake, incident handling and quality assurance, aligned with ISO frameworks adopted by INL.
• Organise regular technical follow-up meetings and service reviews and contribute to periodic services reviews with the Research Core Facilities and quality and project management.

Access Framework & Integration with the European One-Stop-Shop

• Keep the catalogue of INL's pilot lines and research core facilities services, capacities and access time windows up to date.
• Together with INL Strategy Office, represent INL's services and access rules in the common European entry points, including the shared one-stop-shop office through which users reach the pilot-line services.
• Support the operational set-up of the One-Stop-Shop Office as APECS Technology Hub node, including interfaces with EUROCDP/Design enablement teams, where relevant.

Open Calls and Administrative Tasks for Access

• Contribute to the design and implementation of open calls for external access (e.g., scope, eligibility, evaluation criteria, prioritisation rules), aligned with applicable access schemes.
• Manage the administrative workflow of granting access to users, from call publication to access decision, contracting and onboarding.
• Screen access requests for export control and dual-use compliance, in coordination with Technology Transfer Office and Legal Services teams, prior to granting access to sensitive pilot-line capabilities.
• Support the drafting and review of access agreements, NDAs and, where relevant, material transfer agreements, working with Technology Transfer Office and Legal Services teams.

Ecosystem Interfaces & Visibility

• Support coordination with the European Chips initiatives and related platforms, namely the European Chip Design Platform and national Chips Competence Centres.
• Contribute to the development of service models for prototyping and contract research, working with Technology Transfer Office, Research Core Facilities, the Strategy Office and members of the Research Support for Excellence team.
• Maintain visibility of INL pilot line offerings in deal-flow instruments, events, roadshows and ecosystem stakeholder engagement activities, in coordination with Communication Conferences & Marketing and the Strategy Office.
• Organise facility–user community meetings to present capabilities, use cases and success stories, feeding back needs into pilot-line roadmaps.

Reporting, Data and Internal Alignment

• Report KPIs and metrics into project governance (e.g., number and type of requests, SLA performance, utilisation levels), and provide input to periodic reports, General Assemblies and project advisory structures.
• Apply and promote data management rules for user data (e.g., confidentiality, IP flags, data management plans (DMPs), open science requirements) in coordination with the Data Protection team, Strategy Office and Technology Transfer Office.
• Ensure GDPR-compliant handling of personal and company data collected throughout the user journey (e.g., intake, allocation, contracting, reporting).
• Support the definition and monitoring of User Office KPIs (e.g., user satisfaction, response time, throughput, projects served) together with Quality Management.

Academic Qualifications

Mandatory:

• University Degree in Science, Engineering, Business or a related field.

Valued:

• A scientific or technical profile with strong customer-facing and organisational skills.
• A business development/account management profile with genuine interest in research infrastructure and deep-tech services.

Key Experience and Technical Skills:

• Experience in customer service, key account management, business development or user support, ideally in a research infrastructure, technology services or business-to-business environment.
• Process discipline: familiarity with service level thinking, incident handling, ticketing and documentation practices.
• Ability to understand INL's technology and service offering well enough to qualify user requests and broker between users, technical staff and support units, without needing to be the technical expert.
• Organised, autonomous, comfortable with reporting routines, project governance and interaction with European pilot-line structures.

Other Valued Skills/Experience:

• Working understanding of micro/nanofabrication process flows is a strong asset.
• Familiarity with EU research and innovation funding instruments that finance pilot-line and infrastructure access (e.g., Chips JU, Horizon Europe).
• Portuguese and/or Spanish are an asset given INL's location and its role within the Iberian ecosystem.
• Awareness of export control and dual-use regulations relevant to semiconductor and microelectronics access is a plus.
• Quality assurance experience is a plus.

Personal Skills

• Excellent communication and negotiation skills
• Facilitation and conflict-management abilities.

• Excellence     
• Inclusion and Diversity     
• Sustainability and Social Responsibility    
• Accountability    
• Teamwork    
• Innovation     
• Growth Mindset

Our Benefits

• Tax benefits and other Diplomatic privileges[1]
• Relocation support (travel expenses included)
• Guest House on-site included for the 1st month
• Private health insurance
• 30 working days of annual leave, plus 13 official holidays
• 9 days of paid sick leave per year
• Family allowance (160€/month according to family situation)
• Child allowance (200€/month for each dependent child)
• Nursery service onsite (subject to availability)
• Support for education fees of dependent children
• Support for fitness and sport expenses
• And more.

How to Apply

The application must be in English and include the following mandatory documents:

a)     Cover letter

b)     Curriculum Vitae with References information

The documents below are not mandatory at the moment of application, but will be mandatory to move forward to the interview stage:

a)     Academic and/or Professional diplomas

Online application instructions:

1. The application is made by clicking the “Apply” button;
2. The candidate must submit the mandatory documents mentioned above in pdf format. Academic Certificates must be included in the “Additional files” section using the “Add portfolio” button.

Incomplete applications or applications providing inaccurate information will not be considered.

Additional Information

Application Feedback

It is important for INL to maintain good communications with all candidates. No matter the outcome of your application, we will always provide you with feedback.

Background Check Disclaimer

The selected candidate may be required to complete background checks as part of our R&S process. This may include criminal, educational, employment history, and other background information relevant to the employment qualifications.

Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination Principle

INL follows a non-discrimination and equal access principle, wherefore all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, caste, genetics, pregnancy, disability, neurodivergence, age, veteran status, or other characteristics.

[1]About INL’s Diplomatic and Legal Status:

The International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL) is an Intergovernmental Organisation established by its Member States, Portugal and Spain, under international law. As such, INL enjoys a privileged diplomatic and legal status, comparable to that of other international organisations.

This unique status is governed by the INL Statute and the Headquarters Agreement with the Portuguese Republic, which provide both INL and its employees with specific rights and obligations, including:

• Exemption from certain national laws and taxes, as outlined in the Headquarters Agreement, specifically in relation to work-related matters
• Eligibility for a diplomatic ID card issued by the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which serves as the only residency document required in Portugal for the duration of the employment contract
• Protocol obligations, including the duty to respect local regulations while exercising privileges with responsibility and discretion
• Non-application of national labour laws, as INL operates under its own legal framework and Staff Rules, approved by INL Council

INL’s legal framework is designed to support a diverse and international workforce, enabling the organisation to operate independently from its Member States, drive cutting-edge research, and foster international scientific cooperation.