Lead Associate, Administrative Services

MSD • Rahway, NJ

3d • Hybrid

About The Position

We are looking for a talented and motivated Lead Associate, Administrative Services, to provide proactive, high-quality, and reliable administrative support to the Intellectual Property legal group (“IP Group”), a part of the Office of the General Counsel (“OGC”). Specifically, this role will support the Senior Vice President and Head of the IP Group, as well as additional senior IP leaders in the department. The individual in this role will coordinate and perform multiple administrative tasks in a dynamic environment and will serve as a key liaison between the IP leadership and internal and external stakeholders. This position requires initiative, high attention to detail and the ability to learn quickly with a demonstrated ability and willingness to continuously acquire new competencies. It also requires good judgment, confidentiality, a strong work ethic, a high degree of accountability, and exceptional organizational and computer skills.

Requirements

• High School Diploma or equivalent.
• Minimum of 5 years administrative assistant experience or 4 years of paralegal experience
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, OneNote, Teams, etc.), enterprise communication and travel solutions, and other company software and hardware tools, leveraging their full capabilities to maximize productivity and streamline departmental workflows.
• An openness to adopting new solutions that enhance efficiency and support the department's strategic objectives.
• Ability to handle and prioritize multiple simultaneous assignments while understanding the project principles and managing to critical deadlines, with extraordinary attention to detail.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and people skills, including ability to interact professionally with internal and external stakeholders and with individuals at all levels of the organization.
• Experience processing expense reports, travel reservations, and invoices.
• Ability to apply independent judgment, creativity, and problem-solving capabilities.
• Experience with financial and budget tasks.
• High-level of attention to detail and organization.
• Collaborative, inquisitive, adaptive, and flexible.
• Enthusiastic, self-motivated team player with a strong work ethic.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced education (e.g., Bachelor’s or associate degree) or certifications (e.g. Certified Administrative Professional, Project Management Professional Certification, Professional in Human Resources Certification, Paralegal Studies Certificate)
• Administrative experience supporting executives (Associate Vice President or above) in a multinational environment.
• Experience as an IP administrative associate in a corporate or law firm setting.
• Concur and Tymetrix360 ebilling system.
• Intellectual Property specific systems (e.g., Clarivate’s First to File and TIPMS).
• Notary public commission.
• Documented experience as a strong performer in current and past positions.

Responsibilities

• Act as the primary point of contact between the Head of the IP Group's office and other departments, including with our Research and Development Division, Business Development, and senior executive leadership.
• Manage and prioritize complex, high-volume calendars for the senior IP leaders, including scheduling meetings with internal business units, outside counsel, and senior leadership.
• Coordinate domestic and international travel arrangements, including itineraries, accommodations, and expense reporting.
• Plan and coordinate logistics for various IP leadership meetings, town halls, team off-sites, CLE sessions, and cross-functional workshops, including preparing agendas and compiling pre-read materials as appropriate.
• Provide operational support for various internal product patent information reporting, including liaising with attorneys, querying internal patent databases and communicating with internal stakeholders including Investor Relations, Tax and Communications.
• Prepare, edit, review and/or route correspondence, presentations, and reports on behalf of senior IP leaders.
• Screen and triage incoming communications, exercising judgment to prioritize and escalate as appropriate.
• Maintain a strong working knowledge of AI tools and platforms, and proactively identify opportunities to leverage AI in day-to-day activities.
• Organize and maintain electronic and physical filing systems in accordance with records retention policies and legal hold obligations.
• Reliably handle confidential and sensitive materials with the utmost discretion.
• Support the IP Group with onboarding and offboarding of IP Group personnel.
• Review and approve invoices for compliance with billing guidelines; create matters within billing system; assist with financial matter management and budget planning.
• Help coordinate special projects within the IP Group and the broader OGC organization.
• Provide back-up support to other executives and lead administrative assistants, and other administrative assistants within the IP Group, as needed.

Benefits

• medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family)
• retirement benefits, including 401(k)
• paid holidays
• vacation
• compassionate and sick days
• annual bonus
• long-term incentive

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: High school or GED