Consultant – Software Solutions Architect - (TAL-NAFA20260209-002)
Organization: NAFA-Animal Production and Health Section
Primary Location: Austria-Vienna-Vienna-IAEA Headquarters
Job Posting: 2026-02-13, 5:12:08 AM
Closing Date: 2026-02-27, 4:59:00 PM
Duration in Months: 12
Contract Type: Special Service Agreement - SSA
Full Competitive Recruitment: No Organizational Setting
The Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications implements the IAEA's Major Programme 2, "Nuclear Techniques for Development and Environmental Protection". This Major Programme comprises individual programmes on food and agriculture, human health, water resources, environment and radiation technologies. These programmes are supported by laboratories in Seibersdorf, Monaco and Vienna. The Major Programme's objective is to enhance the capacity of Member States to meet basic human needs and to assess and manage the marine and terrestrial environments through the use of nuclear and isotopic techniques in sustainable development programmes.
The Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture assists Member States of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the IAEA in using nuclear techniques and related technologies to improve food security, alleviate poverty and promote sustainable agriculture. The Joint Centre consists of five Sections, each with an associated laboratory (located in Seibersdorf, 45 km south-east of Vienna), in the areas of: animal production and health; plant breeding and genetics; insect pest control; soil and water management and crop nutrition; and food and environmental protection.
The Animal Production and Health Section and Laboratory assist Member States in improving livestock productivity through the efficient use of locally available feed resources, reproduction and breeding practices, and disease diagnostic tools and control measures.
Main Purpose
Contribute to the flagship initiative project Zoonotic Diseases Integrated Action (ZODIAC) by providing technical expertise. The consultant will propose technical solution designs to address clients' business needs, while adhering to organizational technology standards. To provide advice to development teams on the implementation of software solutions and perform technical quality assurance. To follow a lean/agile approach for software delivery and work with in-house and external software developers, quality engineers, infrastructure experts and security specialists.
The consultant will also be responsible for performing technical quality assurance for software solutions, including code quality assurance and security assessments, as well as to provide software maintenance and technical advice for existing software systems.
Functions / Key Results Expected
The consultant in collaboration and in close communication with the Animal Production and Health Section team will undertake the following activities:
Create a unified workflow that caters to all end-user roles (FVOs, Laboratory Officers, Directors, and Veterinary Authorities), encompassing tasks related to animal census, disease monitoring plan execution, sample collection and processing, and vaccination management.
Develop a secure, scalable backend database and data model for the storage of all census, monitoring, sample, test result, and vaccination data, ensuring data accuracy, consistency, and the establishment of logical relations between different data.
Design and implement scalable, maintainable services and APIs to support data exchange between the mobile application, laboratory interfaces, and the central system.
Develop a mobile application (with both online and offline capability) for Field Veterinary Officers and laboratory technicians.
Develop a module for end-to-end sample management that allows: Field Veterinary Officers to digitally submit sample data and auto-generate submission letters, Laboratory Officers to receive digital alerts for incoming samples and record tests results and associated metadata and Laboratory Directors to sign off on sample statuses and test results.
Develop a web-based administration platform for Veterinary Authorities to: Manage/upload national census and diseases monitoring plans, define and adjust sampling and vaccination targets, allocate Field Veterinary Officers to specific geographical areas, outbreaks or farms, consolidate and aggregate sample/lab data for disease prevalence analysis and provide real-time visualization of monitoring plans, outbreaks and vaccination coverage.
Coordinate testing with field operators, laboratory technicians, and veterinary authorities to ensure platform functionality and a user-friendly interface.
Ensure the compatibility of the system with existing platforms (SILAB (FAO - IZSAM Teramo), WOAH-WAHIS, FAO EMPRES-I, EMA-I).
Produce robust documentation for every process of the application.
Specify technical and security requirements for software solutions.
Architect and design software solutions based on .NET-based Web technologies (c#, .NET, APIs, JavaScript frameworks, etc.).
Implement software systems, including acceptance testing, user training and the preparation of technical documentation.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Database Administration
Qualifications and Experience
University degree (bachelor) in Data Science, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field.
Minimum of five years of demonstrated work experience in architecting, designing, and developing Web-based software solutions using Microsoft-based technologies (.NET) is required.
Experience in secure application development, including secure coding techniques and following a secure software development lifecycle.
Strong background in software engineering and experience in working with agile teams to deliver Web-based software solutions.
Demonstrated work experience in database design and development (eg., SQL, PostgreSQL). Experience in data visualization, including geospatial data visualization is desirable.
Experience in frontend development (e.g., Typescript, JavaScript, Angular, React JS, etc.) is strongly desirable. Experience in response Web design and progressive Web application development is desirable.
Knowledge of Azure Cloud Computing Services is desirable (e.g., SQL database, App Service).
Experience in veterinary laboratories' processes and/or epidemiological surveillance is desirable.
Experience in working with internal and external software developers, including outsourced delivery is required. Experience in technical team leadership is strongly desired.
Ability and enthusiasm for working collaboratively in a multidisciplinary and multicultural environment.
Excellent oral and written command of English. Knowledge of other official IAEA languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) is an asset.
Remuneration
The remuneration for this consultancy is a daily fee of up to a maximum of € 250, based on qualifications and experience. In case duty travel is required within the assignment, a daily subsistence allowance (DSA) and travel costs are provided. Health coverage and pension fund are the responsibility of the incumbent.