Finance & Directorate Assistant

Fixed Term

Contract:

End Date: 2 years from start date

The Open University is the UK’s largest university, a world leader in flexible part-time education combining a mission to widen access to higher education with research excellence, transforming lives through education. Find out more about us and our mission by watching this short video (you will be taken to You Tube by clicking this link).

As a Finance & Directorate Assistant
, you will provide key operational, administrative and organisational support across The Open University in Wales.

Reporting directly to the Executive Assistant to the Director, this a varied role which will support the effective delivery of Directorate priorities and financial management activity. Working closely with senior managers, budget holders and members of the Senior Leadership Team, you will support financial management processes, coordinate key Directorate activity, manage shared mailboxes and contribute to the smooth running of business operations across teams in Wales.

• Provide operational support to finance-related activity across all teams at the Open University in Wales, including raising Purchase Orders, processing invoices and travel claims, and purchasing items as requested by budget holders.
• Maintain budget codes, authorised signatories, and financial system permissions, including setting up and removing user access.
• Monitor and manage the Wales Finance mailbox, acting as a point of contact for finance related queries, liaising with central finance teams to progress requests and resolve issues.
• Support the Senior Manager, Planning and Resources in coordinating financial management activity across the annual business planning cycle, including but not limited to, preparation for quarterly forecasts and maintaining income records for reporting.
• Support the preparation of annual budget and project reports, including raising journal requests, setting up new budget codes and supporting year-end activity.

Directorate Coordination & Mailbox Management

• Monitor and manage the Wales Directorate mailbox, responding to routine enquiries and triaging requests to the appropriate teams or individuals, using judgement to prioritise and elevate where required.
• Track and follow up on requests to ensure timely responses and resolution.
• Maintain and support Directorate systems, trackers and processes to ensure consistency and efficiency.

Meetings & Events Support

• Provide administrative support for Directorate meetings, including scheduling (where appropriate) room bookings and logistics.
• Support the organisation and delivery of internal and external events, including the annual degree ceremonies in Wales.

Administrative Support, Systems & Processes

• Provide general administrative support across teams, including document preparation, formatting and coordination of papers.
• Support the production and collation of briefing materials, reports and presentations.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date filing systems, ensuring appropriate handling of confidential information.
• Contribute to improving administrative processes and ways of working.

Recruitment & Onboarding Support

• Provide administrative support for recruitment activity, including coordination with central teams and hiring managers.
• Support the onboarding process for new staff, ensuring documentation is maintained and liaise with hiring managers and internal teams (People Services, Finance and IT) to ensure coordinated arrangements are in place.

• Proven experience in an administrative or business support role.
• Strong IT skills, with the ability to learn and use new systems quickly.
• Experience collaborating across virtual teams using tools with strong IT skills using a range of systems including Microsoft Teams & SharePoint.
• Ability to support multiple stakeholders and effectively manage competing priorities.
• Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to plan, prioritise and manage a varied workload.
• Proactive and self‑motivated, taking initiative to anticipate needs and see actions through to completion.
• High attention to detail and commitment to accuracy.
• Excellent…