Executive Assistant NHS AfC: Band 5

Job overview

An opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and self-motivated individual to undertake the full-time role of Executive Assistant. We are looking for an individual who combines high standards with experience, commitment, excellent communication, and organisational skills.

You will provide EA support to the Directors based within the Executive offices at Whiston Hospital, working closely with the Executive Office Manager and the other Executive Assistants to ensure the smooth running of the office and achievement of the Trust objectives.

This is a very demanding role, and you must be able to demonstrate excellent IT skills and have the ability to organise, plan and deliver to tight deadlines.

Please note that experience of effective and accurate minute taking is anessentialrequirement.

You will also have excellent written and verbal communication skills and be able to communicate with a range of professionals, agencies, the public and colleagues.

Suitable candidates will have demonstrable experience.

Interviews with in tray exercise: Monday 16th May 2022

Main duties of the job

The Executive Assistant is required to support the Director(s) to deliver his/her part of the Trust’s corporate objectives as well as his or her responsibilities in any relationships or activities the Director(s) may participate in across a wider local or national footprint. He/she will undertake a wide range of managerial and administrative tasks, including taking personal responsibility for a range of delegated projects and business. This is in addition to providing a comprehensive administrative service to ensure the smooth running of the Directors’ offices.

The Executive Assistant also operates in a wide network of communications, and must at all times promote sensitivity and tact, to ensure the effective achievement of key result areas.

Working for our organisation

St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is the only acute Trust in Cheshire and Merseyside, and one of the few in the entire country, to achieve the title of OUTSTANDING, rated by the Care Quality Commission.

We provide a full range of acute adult services to our local population of circa 360,000 and provide tertiary services across a much wider area in the North West, North Wales and Isle of Man. We are a Major Trauma Unit and the Mersey Regional Burns Unit.

Our ’5 Star Patient Care’ strategy is at the heart of all that we do; supporting our vision to provide world class services for all our patients by getting it right for every patient, every time.

Our latest achievements include:

• Acute Trust of the Year – HSJ Awards November 2019
• Trust rates Outstanding by the CQC – Inspection August 2018
• Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers and Health Service Journal)
• Best acute Trust in the North West for quality of care (NHS Staff Survey 2021)
• Best place to work in the North West (NHS Staff Survey 2021)

In the NHS Staff Survey 2021 the Trust scored the highest marks in the North West for the following areas;

• Standard of care
• Best place to work
• Care of patients being the Trust’s priority
• Staff engagement
• Staff morale
• Compassionate and inclusive
• Providing a safe environment for staff

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

• Research key policy areas to support broader objectives within the department and the wider Health Economy to support the business agenda, i.e. Sustainability and Transformation Plan and Local Delivery System, proposals and recommendations for Board administration, implementation and maintenance of the new Consultant Contract.
• Provide a link to the Department of Health, NHS England and NHS Improvement, and other local and national agencies at the highest level on a range of issues managed by the Director(s).
• Maintain an up to date confidential list of all appropriate contacts for the Director(s).
• Undertake specific projects, as dictated, for example Trust Board administration.
• Manage the Directors’ offices and ensure that the Director(s) is appropriately briefed in advance of scheduled meetings. Responsibilities include:
• Initiating, commissioning and coordinating briefings from senior staff
• Gathering and extracting information from a range of sources
• Topping and tailing documents and providing first draft briefings as appropriate
• Facilitating and servicing Directors’ meetings
• In the event of planned (or unplanned) absence, ensure there is appropriate administrative support for the Directors’ offices, and work with other Executive Assistants to enable cover to be maintained for other Directors, the Chief Executive and Chair.
• Manage all incoming mail/email, including prioritisation, commissioning briefings, directing others to take action and ensuring timely responses from them, disseminating information and ensuring that deadlines are met.
• Establish systems and processes, which ensure compliance with the Trust’s policies for the procurement of goods and services necessary to the effective running of the department. Review and advise on any budgetary variations.
• Maintain the high profile, standards and quality of governance in all departmental business both
• internally and externally.
• Manage processes appropriately when coordinating visits to the Trust. Ensuring effective communications with other relevant parties including Department of Health, NHSE and NHSI, Ministers, local and national government offices and own Executive team colleagues.
• Draft and commission responses to letters and queries addressed to the Director(s).
• Source and gather information for the Director(s) to support their business (locally and the wider NHS – e.g. policy areas).
• Prioritise the Directors’ workload effectively to ensure that meetings and reports are provided in a timely fashion ensuring the Director also has ‘thinking time’.
• Maintain and manage an accurate and efficient diary system. Manage a forward planning system to ensure that deadlines are met with other team members and colleagues in other directorates or teams.
• Develop and maintain understanding and knowledge of the broad spectrum of work areas that each Director is responsible for in order to maximise the support given to the Director(s) and to support decision making. Within planning processes it is essential to be able to accommodate proactive and reactive situations.
• Manage the review, development and implementation of post specific operating procedures which comply with governance arrangements and which support effective working practices.
• Initiate, manage and administrate conferences and events for which the Director(s) has lead responsibility.
• Manage/lead ad-hoc delegated projects as required.
• Attend and report back from meetings as required.
• Provide support with the recruitment of and guidance for departmental and directorate administrative/secretarial staff.
• Undertake any other reasonable duties required.

CLINICAL & PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• Take every reasonable opportunity to maintain and improve professional knowledge. Manage own PDP.

ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Organise the diary and commitments of the Director(s) including the scheduling, facilitation and minuting of formal / informal meetings as required.
• Manage the Director’s travel and accommodation arrangements.
• Maintain and update post-logging system to track correspondence.
• Deal with all telephone and personal enquiries.
• Ensure that a high quality and timely support is provided (utilising relevant Microsoft Office packages) when producing correspondence, reports, e-mails, presentations, project plans and spreadsheets.
• Maintain effective office systems, making maximum use of technology with the ultimate aim of achieving a paperless office.
• Ensure that files and records are stored and retrieved appropriately in accordance with the Trust’s Records Management Policy.
• Provide and organise cover arrangements as necessary to ensure that the office functions are organised effectively during periods of leave.
• Provide general administrative tasks.
• Ensure that correct Trust procedures are utilised when ordering goods and services.
• Liaise with patients and public, including complaints in a sensitive, helpful manner and follow-up enquiries to ensure that, where necessary, callers have been given appropriate information.
• Ensure diplomacy when liaising with all members of the public, staff, including senior personnel, Chief Executives, Directors, MPs and Board members, and being sensitive to needs whilst maintaining a high level of professionalism and confidentiality.

TEACHING & TRAININGRESPONSIBILITIES

• Participate in personal objective setting and review, including creation of a personal development plan