Administration Assistant; Milton Keynes, ENG, GB, MKAA

Change your career, change lives

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).

About the Role

The Admin Assistant plays a pivotal role providing a confidential, proactive, high quality administrative service within the Academic Services (AS) Admin Hub, Business Services, in the Open University (OU).

This role is to provide comprehensive administrative support to sub-unit Associate, Assistant and Deputy Directors (Service Users) across the entire Academic Services unit, encompassing sub-units;
Central, Student Support Hub (SSH), Student Support Services (SSS), and Tuition, Assessment, Curriculum and Quality (TACQ), whilst being responsible for a specific sub-unit of focus. The Admin Assistant will be a versatile team member, capable of seamlessly transitioning between sub-units as required, ensuring effective support across the broader Academic Services team.

The role requires a high degree of professionalism and discretion, whilst having a good understanding of business administration and the importance of working in a fast-paced support function. This role will also involve coordinating projects and helping to support the wider AS colleagues in setting up events. The Admin Assistant reports to and takes direction from the Admin Hub Manager.

Key Responsibilities

Administrative Support:

• Provide proactive general administrative support to Academic Services Associate, Assistant and Deputy Director Service Users, prioritising and managing competing demands across all sub-units.
• Support the Academic Services sub-unit meetings, ensuring efficient coordination, documentation and action/decision notes.
• Maintain and manage email groups and creating mailing lists that span the entire Academic Services Department.
• Adhere to established governance, processes, and procedures, ensuring compliance in all administrative activities.

Communication and

Collaboration:

• Act as a central point of contact for administration for Service Users, liaising with colleagues across all four sub-units and external contacts where necessary.
• Work closely with the PAs who support the Executive Directors, supporting and enabling seamless coordination of administrative activities across Academic Services.
• Collaborate effectively with other Admin Assistants within the Amin Hub team, fostering a culture of open communication and mutual support.
• Collaborate with colleagues from different sub-units, building relationships and fostering a cohesive and supportive working environment within the Admin Hub.
• Handle enquiries with tact, diplomacy, and discretion, maintaining a high level of professionalism in all interactions.
• Be open to innovation and actively share and communicate ideas on improving service delivery for both Assistants and Service Users.

Documentation and Record Keeping:

• Maintain the Academic Services (AS) documentation, including but not limited to; organisational charts, distribution lists, handbooks, CDSA trackers and compliance training trackers.
• Assist with the preparation and updating of documentation for AS sub-units including but not limited to, action trackers, decisions logs, meeting agendas, and SharePoint collaboration sites.
• Induction, Leavers and Equipment Support:
• Working with the Operational Support Hub to request new IT equipment and procurement activities on behalf of Service Users.
• Working with the Operational Support Hub to support Service Users in the retrieval of equipment, the organising of departures and arranging exit interviews of Leavers.
• Supporting the effective induction arrangements for new staff, facilitating a smooth onboarding process.

Event Planning

• Support the planning and preparation of events which Service Users require, using the tools and checklists available, ensuring:
• Meeting rooms are booked university-wide, ensuring the availability and suitability of equipment, stationery, and essentials.
• Catering requests are managed, taking account of dietary requirements and numbers catering for in a cost-efficient manner.
• Ensure a risk assessment form is completed for medium to high-risk events, one month prior to an event.
• Look to implement technology solutions and tools to facilitate effective and efficient event planning and coordination.

Cross-Functional Coverage:

• Provide cover for the Admin Hub Assistants when they are on leave, with the ability to step in and cover Admin Assistant roles across all sub-units.
• Have a dedicated sub-unit as an area of focus on a day-to-day basis while supporting the entire Academic Services Unit.
• Provide ad-hoc planned administrative support to sub-units during peak times as appropriate to workload.

For further information, please see the job…