PanEuropeanSeal YP in International Relations & Communication

Check out the units which are participating in the Pan-European Seal Young Professionals Programme 2024/2025 and let us know your preference when applying: 

President’s office
President's Office (PO) provides support and administrative services which are paramount for the President to effectively fulfil his duties as Head of the second largest European inter-governmental organisation. In this perspective, President’s Office liaises with other EPO business units to deliver the highest quality service, and actively support the Organisation in achieving its strategic goals 

PO liaises with other business units to give them active support in achieving the EPO's strategic goals. Tasks include support and contribution to the decision making process at top-management level, involvement in current key projects as well as being involved in the daily operations (speeches, events, meetings and administrative tasks) as well as close collaboration with various stakeholders within the organisation (e.g. Vice Presidents’ Offices, advisors from legal and other areas and business units at different levels) and outside the organisation (communication with member states, international parties and formal visits). 

As a Young Professional in the President’s Office, you will support the decision-making process at top management level and you will also be involved in daily operations, speeches, events and meetings of the President.
 

Channel Management (Munich) 
Directorate Channel Management is responsible for the development and co-ordination of all the activities across the EPO's internal and external communication channels. The team supports the implementation of the strategic plan by customising and continuously improving communication channels. Additionally, they design and implement multichannel strategies covering social media, events, media relations, online communication and digital platforms such as epo.org or the internal website. 

As a young professional, you will gain hands-on experience in social media management, website optimisation, event planning and media relations. Furthermore, you will learn from experts, engage in live projects and make a real impact. In Channel Management you will gain insight into how a wide range of communication channels work and are being optimised in line with the latest developments and technologies to reach diverse audiences across numerous content types.  

Content Creation (Munich) 
Directorate Content Creation is responsible for planning communication campaigns and producing and coordinating communication products. Content Creation works with many stakeholders throughout the EPO, particularly with colleagues from Channel Management, which is a part of PD Communication. 

As a young professional, you will be integral to the planning and production of communication products across various areas. These include international affairs, corporate culture, the patent grant process, sustainability and digital transformation. 

Council Secretariat (Munich) 
Under the supervision of Vice-President DG 5, the Council Secretariat is placed at the disposal of the Administrative Council and its bodies. The Council Secretariat is responsible for organising and coordinating all meetings for the Council and its bodies. This covers support, facilitation and advisory activities of a diverse administrative and digital nature. 

As a young professional, you will acquire knowledge and become skilled in the hybrid meeting services, tools and best practices offered by the Council Secretariat. In addition, you will assist in the introduction and best possible use of new technologies in the Council Secretariat's business areas to further update the way the team works. Furthermore, you will collaborate on selected tasks resulting from the modernisation of the EPO's external governance as proposed by the Council's chairperson as well as strengthening the Council Secretariat's Data Protection team. 

Data Transformation (Vienna) 
The Data Transformation department is focused on analysing and extracting valuable insights from data, producing patent insight reports, trend reports, patent news and statistics. The team's findings help transform the data into actionable information which fosters new projects and activities. 

As a young professional, you will support the development of standard procedures that make it straightforward and easy for all to retrieve visual insights from patent data. You will also participate in developing a patent trends portal in partnership with the Chief Economist Unit to specify and create a working prototype. Furthermore, you will support the development of a semi-automated procedure for providing an internal service on data analysis and insight generation for a given search topic that meets the needs of the target group. 

External Relations Support Team (Munich) 
The External Relations Support Team plays a key role in the EPO's external relations activities, providing vital assistance to the three regional desks in European and International Affairs. The team works closely together to establish a clear understanding of the strategic objectives and priorities. They provide targeted and effective support to implement successful cooperation activities in their respective areas of responsibility. Additionally, the unit understands the importance of building strong relationships with internal and external partners. Hence, they are committed to helping colleagues effectively engage with stakeholders from around the world while ensuring they have the support needed to achieve their goals and objectives. 

As a young professional, you will be fully involved with the team while working on a wide range of tasks. These include – but are not limited to – preparing assigned cooperation files for presentation to the President, thus ensuring the files' accuracy, timeliness and completeness, as well as organising and coordinating meetings, missions and visits with our external partners. 

Innovation Networks (Vienna) 
Innovation Networks drives business and promotes technology commercialisation by connecting and energising the network of innovation support centres (PATLIBs), the high-growth technology business (HTB) initiative and future knowledge transfer initiatives. The team is responsible for co-ordinating the PATLIB network, which is distributed across the European Patent Convention contracting states. These centres offer IP-based advice and services to local industries, SMEs, researchers and individuals. 

As a young professional, you will provide training and administrative support to numerous areas, including the PATLIB network, knowledge transfer projects and the training areas related to entrepreneurship (SMEs) and technology transfer (TT). Within each of these, you will contribute to the planning and monitoring of training activities and the quality of resources and presentations. In addition, you will prepare (and update) country reports on Academy activities in relation to contracting states, validation states and reinforced partnerships.  

Key Account Management and Customer Services (Munich) 
Key Account Management and Customer Services assists in the co-ordination, documentation, data analysis and implementation of the user engagement programme. These activities can include user meetings with key applicants and small entities, workshops on online user services and flagship events such as User Day. 

As a young professional, you will be involved in the preparation and implementation of activities under the EPO's user outreach programme that can range from user meetings with key applicants to big scale digital events such as User Day. In addition, you will also have the chance to revise documentation, follow up on action points and bring structure to user feedback. 

Language Services (Munich) 
Directorate Language Services is made up of two teams of professionals: Translation and Editing, and Interpreting and Central Support. The core function of Language Services is to provide editing, translation and interpreting in the three official languages of the EPO: English, French and German. The directorate also takes care of maintaining a terminology database for the official languages. 

As a young professional, you will be involved in project management in translation and editing, including machine translation, and/or planning interpretation assignments for EPOaccredited interpreters. In addition, you will also be involved in terminology management projects such as working on the in-house terminology database, EPOterm. 

Learning Programmes (Munich)  
Learning Programmes is responsible for creating training courses in the areas of patent granting, patent litigation and enforcement and patent knowledge. The team is responsible for identifying the needs of the relevant users, which include national patent offices, patent attorneys, universities, judges and the general public. The team always ensures that the quality of the training resources and engagement levels with authors and trainers is high. 

As a young professional, you will be assigned to different training areas, where you will work with professionals engaged in patent granting (national patent offices and patent attorneys), patent litigation and enforcement (judges and litigators) and patent knowledge and universities (educational institutions). In each of these areas, you will assist in the planning and monitoring of training activities and ensuring the quality of training resources and presentations. You will interact with professional stakeholders (such as national patent offices, patent attorneys, litigators, judges and their associations) to identify topical issues, develop partnerships, communicate and organise training. In addition, you will participate in developing and implementing high-quality content projects on patent practices and innovation and on innovative approaches for its delivery (e-learning platforms, virtual reality, gamification). 

Patent Research and Policies – Observatory on Patents and Technology (Munich) 
For anyone interested in the future of innovation, the Observatory quantifies and explores trends and challenges throughout the innovation ecosystem. It also provides industry, innovators, investors, policymakers and numerous other stakeholders involved in innovation with reliable evidence for informed decision-making. 

As a young professional, you will be fully immersed in the Observatory's day-to-day tasks. This includes getting familiar with new digital tools, studies, consultations, events and forums. These tasks are arranged according to three streams: technology intelligence, legal and innovation policy, and diversity and transformation. In addition, you will work in close collaboration with the Academy to drive patent-related transformative learning materials. 

PD Communication performance team (Munich) 
The performance team is an advisory unit supporting the mission of Principal Directorate Communication and its directorates. Its mandate is to improve workflows and processes. The team also manages and co-ordinates the planning of operational activities by equipping and supporting the team on budget and procurement matters, thus allowing them to monitor the overall performance of Communication. 

As a young professional, you will be involved in developing technical solutions supporting efficient workflows within the unit (task management system, document management system) for an EPO-wide database project. In addition, you will participate in setting up a dashboard to monitor and document the performance of online channels. 

Performance and Process Office (Munich) 
The Performance and Process Office supports the DG 5 team in various ways, including advising on workflows and working methods for improved teamwork and to equip the management team in the best possible way. By closely supporting the vice-president and his Directorate-General, proper decision-making and effective change management is ensured to carry out the implementation of those decisions.  

As a young professional, you will be part of a team working closely with senior management that focuses specifically on communication-related activities. You will assist in introducing management best practices by reviewing the way work is done across DG 5, the tools being used, the decision-making processes, the flow of information and communication. Furthermore, you will be involved in the daily operations of DG 5's decision-making, which includes following up on the timely delivery of notes to the President.