UK Ministry of Defence
Executive Assistant to Director, Defence Safety and Support
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Job Summary
The post holder is a key member of the Director's Office and provides proactive Executive Assistant support to the Director of Defence Safety and Support, as well as supporting the effective operation of the Chief of Staff function.
The role is responsible for ensuring the smooth and efficient running of the Director's Office through effective diary management, workflow coordination, mailbox handling, engagement activity and communications support. The post holder will play an important role in helping maintain visibility, cohesion and effective information flow across the Directorate.
This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.
Job Description
Director's Office Management
- Provide proactive Executive Assistant support to the Director, ensuring effective management of diaries, meetings, visitors, travel and office requirements.
- Support the prioritisation of Director time and maintain visibility of emerging issues, risks and pressures.
- Ensure Director-facing activity is delivered professionally, accurately and efficiently.
Outer Office & Workflow Management
- Support the effective operation of the Director's Office and Chief of Staff function by managing mailbox activity, workflow and routine business.
- Ensure requests are appropriately triaged, progressed and escalated in line with agreed processes.
- Support the coordination of routine enquiries, commissions, actions and correspondence.
Directorate Engagement & Communications
- Coordinate engagement activity and communications on behalf of the Director.
- Support the planning and delivery of townhalls, leadership communications, directorate updates, briefing material and wider engagement activity.
- Contribute to activities that strengthen connectivity, visibility and collaboration across the directorate.
Meeting Preparation & Business Coordination
- Coordinate inputs and support preparation for key meetings, events and engagements.
- Help ensure information, papers and briefing material are available in a timely manner.
Ways of Working & Office Resilience
- Contribute to the continuous improvement of Director's Office processes, ways of working and administrative discipline.
- Support the effective running of the wider CoS function and provide resilience across the office as required.
- Operate flexibly in response to changing priorities and business requirements.
- Exercise judgement when handling routine business and escalate matters requiring Director or Chief of Staff consideration.
Person Specification
Essential
- Proven experience providing high-quality administrative, Executive Assistant, Personal Assistant or business support services within a complex organisation.
- Strong organisational and planning skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and work at pace.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to build effective working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and maintain credibility at all levels.
- Strong attention to detail and the ability to handle information accurately and professionally.
- Experience of coordinating meetings, events, diaries, competing priorities and administrative processes.
- Proficient in Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Teams.
Desirable Criteria
- Previous experience supporting a senior leader, Director or equivalent.
- Experience of working in the Civil Service
- Experience of working in Ministry of Defence.
Languages
- English
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Delivering at Pace
- Working Together
- Making Effective Decisions
Alongside your salary of £30,740, Ministry of Defence contributes £8,905 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).
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- Learning and development tailored to your role
- An environment with flexible working options
- A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
- A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
Hybrid Working
Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and working from home as part of a non-contractual hybrid working arrangement. All office-based employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in office, subject to site capacity and any required workplace adjustments. Requirements to attend other locations for official business, or work in another MOD workplace, will also count towards this level of office attendance. Applicants can request further information regarding how this and other flexible working arrangements may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details). Defence Business Services cannot respond to any questions about working arrangements.
Please Note
- The post does not offer relocation expenses.
- External recruits who join the MOD who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a six-month probation period.
- Expenses incurred for travel to interviews will not be reimbursed.
- Please be advised that the Department is conducting a review of all pay related allowances which could impact on those allowances that the post currently being advertised attracts.
- Any move to MOD 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/.
The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment however some exemptions are in place, please refer to local guidance. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments.
MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey – We may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Policy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
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Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.
To apply, please provide your CV in the relevant section on the Civil Service Jobs ensuring it clearly demonstrates how you meet the essential criteria outlined in the person specification. Your CV should also include job history; qualification details and previous skills and experience.
You must also submit a statement of suitability (maximum 500 words) providing evidence of how you meet these criteria.
At sift, Candidates will be assessed against their CV, Statement of suitability and the following Behaviours:
- Delivering at Pace
- Working Together
- Making Effective Decisions
At interview, Candidates will be assessed against the following Behaviours:
- Delivering at Pace
- Working Together
- Making Effective Decisions
Further Information
Please find a link to our video, which gives you helpful tips and guidance, on the CS Jobs application process: How to apply for roles on Civil Service Jobs
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.
As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system.
Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.
The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.
The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window). See our vetting charter (opens in a new window
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