Executive Assistant - 29519

Do you want to work for an organisation that values difference and includes everyone? Then the Environment Agency is the organisation for you! We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities for everyone. We welcome flexible working patterns for all our vacancies, including job share. You will be part of the national Strategy, Transformation and Assurance (STA) Directorate within the Environment Agency of England. This directorate is responsible for delivering operational activity and internal services that support the whole of the Environment Agency. We have an exciting opportunity for a talented and proactive individual to join the Executive Office team in Sustainability, Funding & Service Operations (SFSO) as Executive Assistant to the Director. SFSO provides vital corporate services to the organisation, enabling the business to become more efficient. You will support the Director and their leadership team by co-ordinating requests in and out of the business, including papers and actions for governance meetings (Executive Director Team, Environment Agency Board and Committees) and briefing requests. You will work closely with other executive offices across STA and the wider organisation to align communications and processes. You will play an active role in managing SFSO leadership team meetings and internal communications for the department. You will be capable of fully understanding your Director's work, confident to take the initiative when required to commission and delegate on the Director's behalf. The team The post sits in the SFSO Executive Office, alongside the Director's Personal Assistant, Executive Coordination Manager and Business Manager. It is a small, fast-paced, communicative and trusting team. You will be empowered to share your knowledge and ideas for best practice and in turn, the team will offer you opportunities for personal development. We are a dispersed team, but some occasional national travel and overnight stays may be required., Takes action before and/or beyond what is required, owning the outcome. Proactively looks for better ways of doing things and reacts positively and quickly to new opportunities. Please give an example of a time you have used initiative to improve a process or resolve an issue. Competence 2 Builds and Sustains Relationships, Develops and maintains effective working relationships. Displays tact, diplomacy and build rapport quickly, establishing needs and adapting own approach., Sets and delivers high work standards, demonstrates the drive to meet targets. Prioritises and organises tasks and resources to ensure timely achievement of results. Please give an example of when you have had to manage and deliver multiple pieces of work with different deadlines. If you are applying from the Civil Service please note that the Environment Agency is not a part of HM Civil Service and you would not be a Crown Servant in the event of being appointed. Therefore, you will not be eligible for continuous service. For applicants who currently work in local government or other bodies listed in the Redundancy Payments (Continuity of Employment in Local Government etc) (Modification) Order 1999, you may be eligible for continuous service for the purpose of calculating any future redundancy payment. If you are unsure of your status then you should contact your own HR Team. We are fully committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce to reflect the communities we serve. We welcome flexible working patterns for all our vacancies, including job share, so please include clearly any information regarding your preferred working arrangements on your application.

We are looking for someone with strong organisational and communication skills, able to work flexibly to manage and prioritise a varied workload at pace. You will have a growth mindset, continuously improving the way we work and taking others along with you. You will work with efficiency and authority, maintaining the Director's confidence in a complex, demanding, and fast-paced landscape. Resilience, tenacity, and responsiveness to changing situations will be important, as will foresight and the ability to anticipate and prepare contingencies. You will need:

• Strong analytical and decision-making skills
• The ability to handle incoming asks from multiple sources to tight deadlines
• The ability to work autonomously, judging when to delegate and escalate
• Strong relationship-building, inter-personal and customer focus skills
• The ability to make connections and share insights/best practice
• Knowledge and experience of administrative systems, tools and processes, Uses previous experience and careful analysis to identify potential problems, effective solutions and arrive and sound decisions.
  
  The Environment Agency, as a Non-Departmental Public Body, is committed to providing value for money and utilises Central Government frameworks and contracts for all external recruitment needs. For this reason, we are unable to engage with the market directly through post, email or phone calls . Should you wish to become a support supplier on one of these frameworks or contracts please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/become-a-crown-commercial-service-supplier/becoming-a-supplier-through-the-crown-commercial-service-what-you-need-to-know for more information.