Administrative Specialist for Special Projects and Executive Assistant to the Senior Director

University of Washington•Seattle, WA

4h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Executive Office of the President & Provost has an outstanding opportunity for an Administrative Specialist for Special Projects and Executive Assistance to the Senior Director to join their team. Reporting to Senior Director for Finance, HR, and Administration for the Executive Office (EO) of the President and Provost, the Administrative Specialist provides management and oversight of special projects as well as high-level administrative and professional support to the Senior Director and members of the Executive Office Finance and HR Management Teams. As a member of the Executive Office of the President and Provost, this position is expected to work closely and collaboratively with members of the EO to ensure seamless support and smooth operations. The EO Finance and EO HR teams support a budget of $50+ million and total headcount of 800+ ongoing and temporary positions under the Executive Office organization. The successful candidate must manage multiple and competing priorities--with frequently tight deadlines--skillfully, reliably, accurately, and confidentially while demonstrating discretion and independent judgement in all areas of operation. Input and demand come from multiple directions, people, organizations, and activities. Managing this breadth and complexity requires a good working relationship with colleagues, excellent communication and organizational skills, an ability to deal with the unexpected, an acceptance of a certain level of stress, an ability to maintain an optimistic outlook, a capacity for innovation, and a willingness to embrace change and process improvement. The Executive Office of the President and Provost interacts with the diverse units of the university as well as external constituents and partners from local, national, and international institutions and communities. This highly visible office strives to provide exceptional and professional service to all who request assistance from the University of Washington. The Administrative Specialist, as a representative of Executive Office, correspondingly encompasses this high level of service. This position is hybrid-eligible, with an expectation of at least 3 days onsite, but may be required to shift in-office days to meet the needs of the Executive Office. Standard work schedule is Monday – Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
Two years of administrative support experience, especially at a senior or executive leadership level.
Excellent skills in composing, editing written correspondence and complex documents including but not limited to: merging and sorting, integrating text with graphics, spreadsheets and data base files, upload/downloading, etc.
Full proficiency in Windows and Microsoft Office.
Excellent organizational, time management, and interpersonal skills, including strong attention to detail.
Must be able to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced, high profile environment.
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
Working knowledge of communications technology tools and other resources (AV equipment, Zoom, Google Drive, Sharepoint).
Ability to remain composed during high pressure situations, and provide excellent customer service under all circumstances.
Demonstrated ability dealing with sensitive information and maintaining confidentiality.

Nice To Haves

Experience working within a large, complex, and/or de-centralized organization.
Additional years of administrative support experience preferred.

Responsibilities

Under the guidance of the Senior Director, manage executive search coordination and logistics.
Provide high level administrative and logistical support for 5-year leadership reviews of vice provosts and vice presidents which the Senior Director leads and partners with the Assistant Vice President for Total Talent Management.
Provide high level organizational and administrative support for the Administrators Council which the Senior Director leads.
Manage other special projects and initiatives as assigned.
Initiate frequent and open communication with the Senior Director and other EO team members on issues, project statuses, process improvements, etc.
Exercise good judgement and professional discretion in dealing with sensitive issues and/or senior leadership.
Provide administrative support to the Senior Director, requiring a clear understanding of all programs, projects, initiatives, and priorities operating under the Senior Director's purview; utilize independent judgement in prioritizing tasks and assignments to meet immediate and long-term action items; proactively and independently manage an active calendar of appointments; coordinate meeting logistics and handle all technology set up; research and organize meeting materials on an as-requested basis.
Manage communications as assigned by the Senior Director; may include screening and triaging correspondence, applying independent applying independent judgement in directly responding to questions/requests or escalating to the Senior Director or other EOSE team members as appropriate; draft, proof, and finalize letters and other formal correspondence for the Senior Director’s signature.
Directly coordinate day-to-day activities to ensure effective schedule management; initiate and arrange special conferences, meetings, events, and travel.
Ensure the Senior Director is fully briefed on agenda items and has received all required materials.
Research and prepare all necessary briefing documents for the Senior Director and anticipate the Senior Director’s needs.
Lead process improvement and business continuity efforts for the Executive Office (EO) Shared Environment.
Provide support for EO Finance transactions and reconciliations.
Manage EO Finance and EO HR filing as assigned.
Provide calendaring/meeting coordination to EO Associate Directors.
Regularly exercise independent judgement and discretion in managing business continuity efforts for EOSE operations and policies.
On behalf of the Senior Director, drive effective and frequent communication and collaboration among various EOSE team members; proactively and independently follow up on priorities and issues; acting under delegated authority of the Senior Director, define and execute common goals and processes for optimal efficiency.
Manage updates to the Executive Office Shared Environment's forms, webpages, and internal user guides.
Proactively provide regular status reports to the Senior Director on projects and issues, highlighting key priorities, identifying possible challenges, and making recommendations or presenting solutions.