Executive Assistant - Organisation Support

Job description

The Executive Assistant (EA) works with Scope's Leadership Team and five other EAs. This role mostly assists one Executive Director at a high-level to ensure their agenda, priorities and objectives are met. And, at various times throughout the year, the Executive Assistant is expected to:

• Ensure the Leadership team is assisted effectively with the management of their diaries, projects and their teams.
• Assist the Leadership team with administration and document preparation for performance reviews, projects, shop visits and trips, travel, briefings and forward planning.
• Gather data and information from colleagues across Scope to make sure the Leadership Team is briefed for meetings.

Main responsibilities and accountabilities: 

• Help with forward planning, document preparation, proofreading, inbox and diary management.
• Draft letters and emails, presentations, and briefings. 
• Assist with the effective delivery and progression of Scope’s objectives, programmes and projects.
• Exercise judgment, flexibility, tact and sensitivity in time management and in managing potential diary conflicts, whilst being mindful of business priorities. 
• Manage relationships with key internal and external stakeholders with a high degree of professionalism and care, taking the initiative to ensure meetings are scheduled in a timely way and that there is ongoing communication and good follow-up to meetings.
• Be an informed key contact and handle internal and external enquiries in a professional manner, liaising with key contacts across Scope and other charities.
• Administer team meetings, events and activities including logistics, drafting agendas, taking minutes or notes when needed, and recording actions.
• Improve administration processes and spot opportunities to make things more accessible, and simple.
• Meet and greet visitors for the Leadership Team in the absence of the Team Coordinator
• Comply with all safeguarding processes and procedures
  
  Assist with HR administration:
• Training and development
• Recruitment and onboarding
• Performance management
• Processing leavers
• Reasonable adjustments
  
  Assist with financial administration:
• Creating purchase orders and receipting goods
• Claiming, updating, and tracking expenditure
• Systems and premises access
• Gift aid administration
• Work flexibly and together with the other EAs, sharing best practice and useful information which helps with forward planning.
• Provide cover and handover to the other EAs in times of absence.
• Work together with the Team Coordinator to achieve organisation and team goals.

Key contacts

Internal contacts

• Executive Leadership Team
• Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive and Lead Organisation Support
• The Leadership and management groups
• EAs and Team Coordinator in the Executive Support Team
• Office Support Assistant
• Governance Team
• Finance and Technology Services, HR and Payroll

External contacts

Key stakeholders:

• Trustees
• Suppliers
• Supporters, Campaigners, Funders
• Partners
• Researchers
• Influencers (Political, Business, Sector, PR)
• Job applicants

Person Specification

Knowledge and experience

Essential

To be successful in this role it is essential that you have previous experience of:

• High-level inbox, calendar and project management in support of a senior Director, or similar.
• Managing key contacts and relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

Skills and competencies:

Essential

• A fast learner and problem solver with the ability to own, organise and prioritise many tasks at once.
• Ability to manage reactive and proactive requests from a range of colleagues and stakeholders, and complete tasks to tight deadlines.
• Excellent written skills and can communicate clearly.
• Energy and creativity.
• Can work well in a team.
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office: including Teams; Word; Excel; PowerPoint.
• Discretion in dealing with confidential information.
• Good working knowledge of internal systems for claiming expenses and raising purchase orders. 
• Ability to improve processes and share best practice.
• Self-starter.

Desirable

• Living experience of disability.
• Understanding of the social model of disability.
• Understanding of the issue and principles of safeguarding and health and safety management.