Executive Assistant to the Digital Director

Job content

Location

Birmingham, London

Summary

About the job

This is an exciting time to join the Director’s Office in BEIS Digital, a small team of supporting the Chief Digital & Information Officer (CDIO). As a member of a small team you will have the opportunity to build and shape this role using the skills and experiences you bring to the team.

We are BEIS Digital, part of the corporate services of BEIS, and our vision is to use the best of digital, data, technology, and associated approaches to transform the way in which we deliver services and work with businesses, citizens, partners and our employees. We support BEIS by delivering core technology services which help the Department achieve its strategic and policy objectives. We put the user at the heart of what we do, and we take an interactive approach to service delivery. Our decisions are driven by data and we work collaboratively with partners to continue to deliver exceptional services.

Professional growth is very important to all of us. We have partnerships with leaders in professional development, such as Pluralsight and CITF, and offer a variety of apprenticeships. We are looking for like-minded people who want to flourish in their role and are looking for opportunities to develop. If it sounds like you, join us!

If successful in this role, you will have the opportunity to complete a Business Administration apprenticeship.

We aim to recruit the applicant who is most suited to this role; someone who demonstrates the right behaviours and qualities to develop and thrive in our team.

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds – people of all ages, gender, sexual orientations, nationalities, religions and beliefs. We particularly encourage applications from women, disabled and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates, as these groups are underrepresented within the Digital profession.

Job Description

The successful candidate will support the Director’s Office with stakeholder management, diary management and administrative activities. This is a fast-paced role, working to various deadlines and priorities.

The Executive Assistant must be creative and enjoy working within a small environment.
The ideal individual will have the ability to exercise good judgement in a variety of situations, with strong written and verbal communication, administrative, and organisational skills, and the ability to maintain a realistic balance among multiple priorities. The Executive Assistant will have the ability to work independently on projects, from conception to completion, and must be able to work under pressure at times to handle a wide variety of activities and confidential matters with discretion.

The role involves working on digital platforms, such as SharePoint, MS Teams and MS Office.
If you are not based in London or Birmingham, regular weekly travel to these locations are required. You will be line managed by the Business Manager who reports directly to the Director.

ResponsibilitiesKey responsibilities (please note that this is not an exhaustive list)

Works closely and effectively with the CDIO to keep them well informed of upcoming commitments and responsibilities, following up appropriately.

Strong organisational skills that reflect ability to perform and prioritise multiple tasks seamlessly with excellent attention to detail.

Very strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with stakeholders, working with a variety of internal, cross government and external stakeholders.

Completes a broad variety of administrative tasks for the CDIO including: managing an extremely active calendar of appointments; composing and preparing correspondence that is sometimes confidential; arranging complex and detailed travel plans, itineraries, and agendas; and compiling documents for meetings.

Maintaining records on digital platforms accurately.

Collating information from different sources using digital platforms.

Managing commissions to ensure that the Director completes work in a timely manner.

Acting as the first point of contact with internal and external stakeholders.

Managing the inbox and flagging the relevant importance of emails and requests.

Managing the Director’s diary effectively.

Completing adhoc tasks to support the Business Manager.

Making travel arrangements and detailed travel itineraries.

Taking dictation and minutes and writing them up subsequently.

Producing reports and presentations.

Person Specification

Time management and organisational skills.

Experience of communicating with a variety of stakeholders

Ability to work as part of a team.

Intermediate to advanced MS Office, SharePoint and MS Teams user.

Professional discretion.

Able to multitask and prioritise tasks.

Track record of working in a fast paced environment and the ability to manage conflicting priorities.

Confident in working independently and taking informed decisions.

Behaviours

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace
• Making Effective Decisions

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

BEIS offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, home working and compressed hours.

Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme.

A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.

An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.

Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.

Things you need to know

Security

Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.

People working with government assets must complete basic personnel security standard checks.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles , and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

Online Tests

After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Verbal Test, If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the second stage of the application. Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the tests is 23:55 on 18th July 2021.If you fail to complete the online test before the deadline your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website.

Please note: The Civil Service Verbal Test deadline and the full application deadline are both 23:55 on 18th July 2021. For your application to be considered, you must fully submit prior to this deadline. Please allow enough time to complete all sections

Application

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Candidates will be sifted on behavioural statements and CV.

In the event of a large number of applicants, applications will be sifted on the lead behaviour (Communicating and Influencing).

The interview will consist of behaviour and strength-based questions.

Expected Timeline subject to change

Sift Dates: w/c 19th July 2021
Interview dates: w/c 9th August 2021
Interview will be held using Microsoft Teams.

Candidates are asked to note the above timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process.

Reasonable adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact Government Recruitment Service via beisrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Further Information

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the ’Contact point for applicants’ section.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

Any move to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

A reserve list will be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

BEIS does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home).

Please note that BEIS does not hold a licence to sponsor visa applications.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms directly. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-Employment.Checks@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

BEIS wants to be accessible for all, and this includes offering assistance to attend interviews. The offer is targeted toward those from a lower socio-economic background, or who struggle to cover the cost of attending an interview. Please see the attached guidance document at the bottom of this Civil Service Jobs advert. Embedded in the document on page 5, are 2 documents that must be completed and returned to the email addresses listed on the forms to claim an expenses payment. If you have any issues accessing these documents please contact us at beisrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Nationality Requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with settled or pre-settled status or who apply for either status by the deadline of the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals working in the Civil Service
• relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals who have built up the right to work in the Civil Service
• certain family members of the relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals

Further information on nationality requirements

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s recruitment principles .

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.