Key Skills

Job Description

Application Engineer / Administrator – Expert Location: The Hague, Netherlands (EU candidates only) Client: EUROPOL Engagement: Full-time | Long-term | Time & Materials Level: Expert Expected start: 14 December 2026 (alternative start date: no later than 8 February 2027) Application deadline: 12 November 2026 Language: English – minimum B2 CV format: Europass CV Mission Overview We are looking for an experienced Application Engineer / Administrator to support EUROPOL's IT infrastructure and application operations. The successful candidate will be responsible for application deployment, administration, maintenance and production support across enterprise IT environments. The role requires strong expertise in Elasticsearch, container technologies, microservices and enterprise server administration. Working Arrangement Primarily remote, working from the contractor's premises or home office within two hours of ground travel from EUROPOL premises in The Hague. One week of onsite onboarding at the start of the assignment. Onsite presence may be requested for up to five separate or consecutive working days per month. On-call service initially estimated at a maximum of 20 days, approximately one full calendar week every six weeks. On-call interventions must normally commence within one hour of notification. Mandatory Qualifications and Experience University degree of at least four years plus a minimum of nine years of relevant professional experience after graduation; OR University degree of at least three years plus a minimum of ten years of relevant professional experience after graduation. Minimum six years of experience as an IT professional in medium or large IT infrastructure environments, including application deployment, support and maintenance. Minimum five years of experience in application administration. Minimum two years of experience with microservices, container orchestration and container-based technologies such as Docker or Kubernetes. Minimum two years of experience administering and supporting Elasticsearch. Minimum five years of experience working with enterprise Microsoft or Linux server environments. Mandatory Technical Skills Deployment, configuration and administration of Elasticsearch clusters. Microservices and container orchestration. Kubernetes, Helm charts, Docker and Rancher. Configuration management tools such as Puppet, Ansible or Chocolatey. Shell scripting and/or PowerShell. ITIL processes, including incident, change and release management. Desirable Skills Minimum two years of experience with public or hybrid cloud platforms, preferably Azure or AWS. DevOps practices and methodologies. Relational databases, including Microsoft SQL Server or PostgreSQL, and application integration. Kong API Gateway. Relevant technical certifications. Key Responsibilities Install, configure and administer applications across production and non-production environments. Monitor applications, optimize performance and continuously improve service quality and efficiency. Provide application support and maintenance, including incident, change, release and problem management. Prepare and validate application procedures, troubleshooting guides, backup plans and restoration procedures. Automate recurring system administration tasks. Create and maintain installation guides, technical support documentation and operational procedures. Contribute to the maintenance and development of the ICT Operations technical knowledge base. Prepare reports on application availability, performance, capacity and usage when required. Candidate Requirements Candidates must be EU nationals / EU candidates as specified in the assignment requirements. Must be able to work within the specified travel distance of The Hague. Must be available for the required onsite onboarding and periodic onsite presence. Must be comfortable participating in the on-call rotation. English proficiency at B2 level or higher. Interested candidates: Please share your updated Europass CV, availability, current location, and expected daily rate for consideration.

Core Responsibilities

Install, configure, administer, monitor, and maintain applications across production and non-production environments, providing operational support and managing incidents, changes, releases, and problems. Automate recurring administration tasks, maintain technical and operational documentation, contribute to the ICT Operations knowledge base, and report on application availability, performance, capacity, and usage.

Requirements

Requires a university degree of at least three or four years and at least nine or ten years of relevant post-graduation experience, respectively, including substantial experience in IT infrastructure and application administration. Candidates must have experience with Elasticsearch, microservices and container technologies, enterprise Microsoft or Linux servers, and ITIL processes; EU nationality, English at B2 level or higher, proximity to The Hague, and availability for onsite work and on-call duties are also required.