Senior Executive Assistant

Role: Senior Executive Assistant

Grade and Salary: Grade 6, £30,505 – £35,880 per annum

FTE and working pattern: 1 FTE, 35hrs per week, Monday – Friday

Contract: 1 Year Fixed-Term

Holiday Entitlement: 33 days annual leave plus 9 buildings closed days (and Christmas Eve when it falls on a weekday)

Purpose of Role

We are seeking to recruit a Senior Executive Assistant to provide high quality support to one or more members of the Senior Executive Team. The ideal candidate will act as a point of contact for their Executive/s, whilst supporting other Executive Assistants and Admin Assistants within the group to drive collaboration and effective team working. 

This role includes providing information and administrative support to the Executive, determining work priorities and managing information, decisions and communications from the principal’s office, developing and implementing small ad hoc projects (when required). The role holder will be responsible for the day-to-day operational aspects of work such as diary management, email prioritisation, meeting coordination, travel arrangements, purchasing and invoice payments. Other tasks will include communication with internal colleagues and external bodies and a variety of discrete tasks and projects. In this, the job holder will be expected to manage their own workload, as well as delegate tasks to others in their team and will be the designated expert user of related IT systems.

The appointed Senior Executive Assistant will have a proven track record in the delivery of administrative services to high-level management. Highly digitally literate, the post holder will drive communication and team working across their team through the development and roll-out of relevant supporting tools where relevant. They will be expected to use the full suite of digital tools available, including understanding the role of AI in their work. The job holder will be expected to develop and maintain a broad knowledge of activities and will be expected to manage general administrative support tasks, such as general filing and archiving (in line with Data Protection and Retention of Records requirements), they will be relied upon to provide excellent administrative services and promote a high quality, professional business environment. 

Key Duties & Responsibilities

• Preparation of papers for meetings and organising diary appointments.
• Being point of contact for all stakeholders, managing communications, and assisting the Executive with managing their internal and external relationships.
• Designated Service Expert/ Lead User of ERP, Office 365 and Admin Control (app used by University Executive) providing advice and guidance on various processes.
• Securely managing travel and expenses
• Receive, understand, and convey information in a clear and accurate manner, for example drafting meeting notes and circulating to the right people to tight deadlines, or engaging personally, by email or by telephone.
• Be supportive and encouraging of others in a team and help build co-operation by setting an example and showing a flexible approach to deliver team results, for example by contributing to the work of the team and helping coordinate work to meet deadlines.
• Deal with internal and external contacts who ask for service or require information.
• Create a positive image of the University by being responsive and prompt in responding to requests and referring the user to the right person as necessary.
• Contribute to decision making by providing relevant information and opinions to meet individual/team goals, anticipating any issues which need to be taken into account and using sound judgement to make decisions with limited or ambiguous data.
• Plan, prioritise and organise own work to agreed objectives.
• Solve standard day-to-day problems, identify their cause, choose the best option available, and take proactive actions to resolve the problem.

Essential & Desirable Criteria

This role requires people management experience, organisational ability, proactivity, and accuracy. Knowledge of the University’s policies, procedures and processes is advantageous, as is experience of working with committees and other complex meeting groups. 

Essential

1. Educated to first degree level or equivalent practical experience in the workplace.
2. Experience of working within a similar fast paced environment with proven relevant experience of supporting senior level management
3. Competent and proficient in the use of Office 365 and other IT packages
4. A high degree of attention to detail and accuracy of working; and experience of team working and effectiveness as a good team player.
5. Well-developed interpersonal skills
6. Demonstrable ability to work quickly, flexibly, and accurately in a dynamic, changing and pressured environment.
7. Demonstrable professional and proactive approach

Desirable

1. Experience of working in the Higher Education sector is highly desirable

How to Apply

Applications can be submitted up to midnight (UK time) on Wednesday 05 March 2025.

Please submit your CV via the Heriot-Watt on-line recruitment.

We welcome and will consider flexible working patterns e.g., part-time working and job share options.

Heriot-Watt University is committed to securing equality of opportunity in employment and to the creation of an environment in which individuals are selected, trained, promoted, appraised, and otherwise treated on the sole basis of their relevant merits and abilities. Equality and diversity are all about maximising potential and creating a culture of inclusion for all.

Heriot-Watt University values diversity across our university community and welcomes applications from all sectors of society, particularly from underrepresented groups. For more information, please see our website https://www.hw.ac.uk/uk/services/equality-diversity.htm and also our award-winning work in Disability Inclusive Science Careers https://disc.hw.ac.uk/ .

Use our total rewards calculator: https://www.hw.ac.uk/about/work/total-rewards-calculator.htm to see the value of benefits provided by Heriot-Watt University.

About the Team

The Office of the Principal provides executive, strategic, and administrative support to the Principal and the Senior Executive Team.

About Heriot-Watt University

At Heriot-Watt we are passionate about our values and look to them to connect our people globally and to help us collaborate and celebrate our success through working together. Our research programmes can deliver real world impact which is achieved through the diversity of our international community and the recognition of creative talent that connects our global team.

Our flourishing community will give you the freedom to challenge and to bring your enterprising mind and to help our partners with solutions that can be applied now and in the future. Join us and Heriot Watt will provide you with a platform to thrive and work in a way that also helps you live your life in balance with well-being and inclusiveness at the heart of our global community.

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