Personal Assistant

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job Title:Personal Assistant

Grade: Band 5

Reporting Responsibility: Corporate Governance Manager

Job Purpose:

To provide a comprehensive personal assistant service to designated directors ensuring that they receive the support needed to facilitate the performance of their role

As a member of the personal assistant team to also help ensure the provision of a consistent, high-quality service by providing support to the Chair and all Directors as and when required

Principal Responsibilities

Personal Assistant Responsibilities

1. To provide a full personal assistant service to either designated Directors in order to help ensure the smooth and efficient organisation and carrying out of their responsibilities.

2. To be the first point of contact for the Directors visitors and telephone callers, providing callers with the information, advice and guidance to meet their needs. To ensure that all visitors and callers are handled in a manner that enhances the reputation of the Directors, the Executive and of the Trust.

3. Within parameters agreed with the Director, to make judgements and take actions necessary to resolve enquiries, requests and issues raised by managers, staff, external organisations and members of the public. This will include:

Researching, collating and providing them with information

Meeting with them to explore and resolve enquiries and issues

Providing them with all necessary guidance and advice

4. To ensure that the Director is fully briefed on issues as they arise, determining the priority of the issue and, as necessary, obtaining and collating the information needed to enable the Director to make an informed decision.

5. To manage the Directors diaries, making decisions on whether and when appointments are made, based on the issue, the needs of the caller and the workload priorities and commitments of the Director.

6. To develop a network of key relationships both within and outside of the Trust in order to help facilitate the performance of the Directors responsibilities and to enhance their reputation

7. On behalf of the Director, to communicate and correspond with senior managers and clinicians within the Trust, with other organisations and members of the public on difficult, sensitive and complex, as well as routine, issues

8. To type and format correspondence, reports and presentations from dictation or from drafts prepared by the Director. In addition, to design and create correspondence, reports and presentations on behalf of the Director, within agreed parameters

9. To ensure the provision of information required for Board reports, obtaining, collating and presenting the information as required

10. As required, to prepare agendas and take notes of meetings for the Director and to take and transcribe minutes of specified Trust committees

11. To implement, operate and maintain effective and secure systems for the organisation, control and accessing of the Directors electronic and paper information resources

12. To develop and maintain monitoring systems for the obtaining of information and reports regularly required by the Director. To ensure that the information is obtained on time

13. To co-ordinate and/or expedite arrangements to ensure the effective and timely handling of formal patient and non-patient complaints; formal staff grievances and disciplinary meetings for which the Director has a responsibility, communicating with the complainants and staff involved as required.

Personal Assistant Team Responsibilities

14. To contribute to the provision of a quality personal assistant service to the Chairman and the Executive team through:

Providing secretarial support to cover in the absence of a Personal Assistant colleague or in cases of peaks in workload

Working closely with and supporting other members of the Personal Assistant team

15. As required, to contribute to any reviews of departmental administrative systems and processes designed to support the work of the Directors, proposing changes and improvements.

16. To provide support to all members of the Personal Assistant team to help ensure the effective operation of the team

Person Specification

Education & training

Essential

• Ability to develop and maintain communication, both verbally and in writing, to all levels of staff, patients, the public and managers from different organisations about often sensitive, complex or difficult issues
• In depth experience of working as a senior secretary or personal assistant for a manager/clinician operating at a senior level within an organisation
• Ability to take and transcribe formal minutes

Desirable

• Experience of working in a complex organisational environment, either in the NHS, elsewhere in the public sector or in a private or voluntary sector organisation
• Good general education level or equivalent knowledge and skills gained through any combination or alternative study, employment or voluntary work

Experience

Essential

• Ability to take and transcribe formal minutes
• Ability to plan and manage small projects ensuring that actions are taken in a logical and timely sequence

Desirable

• Desktop exercise to assess ability in this area
• Competent in shorthand

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Employer details

Employer name

Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Royal Berkshire Hospital

Reading

RG1 5AN

Employer's website

https://www.royalberkshire.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)