Professionalization in EU Policy-Making? The topology of the transnational field of EU affairs

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we conceptualize EU policy-making as a vital field of professionalization and depict the emergence and various dimensions of an area of professional work nowadays labelled ‘EU Affairs’. Thus, we argue that the EU constitutes more than just a supranational layer of decision-making, but is at the same time a pertinent and influential producer of expert knowledge and sets the stage for the emergence of specialized job profiles, professional careers, and working contexts. While usually acting ‘in the shadow’ and ‘in the back doors’ of EU policy-making, specialized groups of professionals make use of recognized expert knowledge. Drawing on social field theory and current approaches to professionalism and professionalization, the paper scrutinizes the transnational scope of EU Affairs professionalism in a topological manner by distinguishing different arenas and types of professional involvement in EU Affairs. In this way, we aim to go beyond prevailing bureaucracy- and governance-centred views on EU policy-making, and establish a broader and more differentiated image of the people who actually deal with EU Affairs, ranging from the major locations of EU policy-making far into the EU member states and even beyond.

Key words:

• EU affairs
• professionalism
• Europeanization
• European Union
• social field
• transnationalism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 The term ‘EU Affairs’ (often also synonymously used as ‘European Affairs’) is directly taken from social practice. It has become a well-established term in EU policy-making circles.

2 Note that in our subsequent empirical analysis we do not particularly provide data on EU-related professional activity beyond the actual EU territory. However, there is strong empirical evidence that EU professionalism is globally dispersed: firstly, the EU Commission has offices and external services around the globe (see Juncos and Pomorska 2014); secondly, the EU funds numerous projects outside the EU territory in the funding area of ‘EU Neighbourhood Policy‘; and, thirdly, many countries and organizations from outside also employ numerous specialists of EU policy-making and carry out EU-related interest representation.

3 In fact, there are many professionals in Brussels without any access to important channels of decision-making in Brussels. Thus, being located in Brussels might have a huge location effect, but it is not a sufficient indicator of a central position in the field.

4 Many high-ranking positions and senior-level appointments, however, are filled through so-called ‘parachutage’, that is, political appointments through the influence of national governments and high-ranking public officials (Bach 2008: 110f.).

5 In principle, the EPSO offers two different types of entry and career options for (mostly permanent) positions in EU institutions: a) so-called entry-level positions for university leavers and young graduates, and b) a second pathway for ‘graduates with work experience’ as well as ‘administrative personnel’ and ‘experienced professionals’. Data provided by the EPSO are available at HTTP: http://europa.eu/epso/discover/job_profiles/index_en.htm (accessed 8 January 2015).

6 The EU institutions also employ numerous language professionals (about 6,200 in total), and other support staff, such as secretaries, administrative assistants, human resource assistants, cleaners, facility managers, and security staff, also exist. Even though support staff is obviously a substantial element of the staff of EU institutions, these groups are in our view certainly not part of the field of EU Affairs, strictly speaking.

7 See at HTTP: http://europa.eu/agencies/index_en.htm (accessed 8 January 2015).

8 For an overview see HTTP at http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/glossary/experts_committees_en.htm (accessed 3 January 2015).

9 See HTTP at http://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regcomitology/index.cfm (accessed 3 January 2015).

10 See HTTP at http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/glossary/experts_committees_en.htm (3 January 2015).

11 See, for instance, the website of the so-called Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU) at HTTP: http://www.alter-eu.org (accessed 6 January 2015) and Guéguen (2013).

12 Based on an analysis of the two most popular job newsletters for EU Affairs ‘Brusselsjobs’ and ‘Euractiv’ during the period of May 2012 to May 2013. See HTTP at http//:www.brusselsjobs.com and http://www.jobs.euractiv.com (accessed 9 January 2015).

13 See, for example, the training offers of EMCRA and Euro-Consult, two private EU-related consulting companies located in Berlin, at HTTP: http://akademie.emcra.eu/ and http://www.euroconsults.eu/ (accessed 9 January 2015).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the German Science Foundation (DFG) within the framework of the DFG Research Unit ‘Horizontal Europeanization’ [FOR 1539]. Moreover, we are also grateful to all anonymous reviewers for their constructive criticism and helpful comments on earlier drafts of this article.

Sebastian M. Büttner, Ph.D., is lecturer at the Institute of Sociology, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), and co-head of the subproject ‘Professionalization of EU Expertise' of the collaborative research unit ‘Horizontal Europeanization' funded by the German Research Council (DFG). His research interests are Social Theory and Cultural Sociology, European Integration, Political Sociology and Studies of Knowledge and Expertise.

Lucia Leopold, Dipl. Soz., is a researcher in the subproject ‘Professionalization of European expertise' of the collaborative research unit ‘Horizontal Europeanization' funded by the German Research Council. Her research interests include civil society actors in the EU, self-perception, patterns of affiliation and practices of European Affairs professionals in Germany.

Steffen Mau, is Professor of Macrosociology at Humboldt University of Berlin and co-head of the research project ‘Professionalization of European expertise' of the collaborative research unit ‘Horizontal Europeanization' funded by the German Research Council (DFG). His research interests are Comparative Welfare Research, Social Inequality, Social Justice Research, Political Sociology and European Integration.

Matthias Posvic, Dipl. Sowi., is a researcher in the subproject ‘Professionalization of European expertise' of the collaborative research unit ‘Horizontal Europeanization'. His research interests include the sociology of knowledge in European institutions, field theoretical perspectives on European professionals, qualitative methods and the philosophy of science.