EU funds manager to competition policy officer
An EU funds manager already meets 31% of what the competition policy officer role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
66.2/ 100
1 How much of what a competition policy officer is expected to do is already part of an EU funds manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the competition policy officer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A competition policy officer role treats 5 of its required skills as things an EU funds manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- government policy implementation
- liaise with local authorities
- maintain relationships with government agencies
- manage government policy implementation
- state aid regulations
What stands in the way is 11 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A competition policy officer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an EU funds manager background worth leading with.
- already held state aid regulations business, administration and law
- already held inspect government policy compliance information skills
- already held European Structural and Investment Funds regulations business, administration and law
- already held carry out strategic research information skills
- already held project management principles business, administration and law
- already held manage government policy implementation management skills
All 9 carried skills, including the 5 the competition policy officer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn business processes required
- still to learn business strategy concepts required
- still to learn competition law required
- still to learn consumer law required
- still to learn market analysis required
- optional, not held corporate law optional
- still to learn maintain relations with local representatives required
- still to learn promote free trade required
- still to learn advise on legislative acts required
- still to learn create solutions to problems required
- optional, not held advise on government policy compliance optional
- optional, not held develop professional network optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- still to learn investigate competition restrictions required
- optional, not held analyse goal progress optional
- optional, not held ensure information transparency optional
- optional, not held perform market research optional
- still to learn develop competition policies required
- optional, not held perform project management optional
- optional, not held scientific research methodology optional
- optional, not held policy analysis optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a competition policy officer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 develop competition policies practise this
- 02 investigate competition restrictions practise this
- 03 maintain relations with local representatives practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held government policy implementation knowledge
- already held liaise with local authorities skill
- already held maintain relationships with government agencies skill
- already held manage government policy implementation skill
- already held state aid regulations knowledge
- already held European Structural and Investment Funds regulations knowledge
- already held carry out strategic research skill
- already held inspect government policy compliance skill
- already held project management principles knowledge
10 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held policy analysis optional
- optional, not held advise on government policy compliance optional
- optional, not held analyse goal progress optional
- optional, not held corporate law optional
- optional, not held develop professional network optional
- optional, not held ensure information transparency optional
- optional, not held perform market research optional
- optional, not held perform project management optional
- optional, not held present reports optional
- optional, not held scientific research methodology optional
46 held skills the competition policy officer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role EU law knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise on eligibility of expenditures skill
- not needed by the target role analyse community needs skill
- not needed by the target role analyse economic trends skill
- not needed by the target role assess administrative burden skill
- not needed by the target role audit contractors skill
- not needed by the target role audit techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role community-led local development knowledge
- not needed by the target role complete administration skill
- not needed by the target role comply with legal regulations skill
- not needed by the target role cost management knowledge
- not needed by the target role decide on providing funds skill
- not needed by the target role develop interregional collaboration strategies skill
- not needed by the target role develop strategy to solve problems skill
- not needed by the target role follow up the issued grants skill
- not needed by the target role fraud detection knowledge
- not needed by the target role give out grants skill
- not needed by the target role government policy knowledge
- not needed by the target role implement strategic planning skill
- not needed by the target role indicators used in EU funds programme operations knowledge
- not needed by the target role inform on government funding skill
- not needed by the target role instruct grant recipient skill
- not needed by the target role internal auditing knowledge
- not needed by the target role leadership principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role liaise with government officials skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with politicians skill
- not needed by the target role macro-regional strategy knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role manage government-funded programmes skill
- not needed by the target role manage grant applications skill
- not needed by the target role manage project changes skill
- not needed by the target role manage project information skill
- not needed by the target role manage relationships with stakeholders skill
- not needed by the target role microfinance knowledge
- not needed by the target role monitor policy proposals skill
- not needed by the target role national generally accepted accounting principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform political negotiation skill
- not needed by the target role perform resource planning skill
- not needed by the target role prepare audit activities skill
6 further entries not listed here
8 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn business processes required
- still to learn business strategy concepts required
- still to learn competition law required
- still to learn consumer law required
- still to learn market analysis required
- optional, not held policy analysis optional
- optional, not held corporate law optional
- optional, not held scientific research methodology optional
Common questions about this move
Can an EU funds manager become a competition policy officer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An EU funds manager already covers 31% of what a competition policy officer is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 5 of which the competition policy officer role treats as required.
What skills does an EU funds manager need to become a competition policy officer?
11 required skills are missing, plus 10 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by business, administration and law. The single most important is develop competition policies.
How hard is the move from EU funds manager to competition policy officer?
Its learning distance is 66.2 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.