Back Cities Executive Assistant

This position will be hybrid requiring a few days per week in the WRI Washington DC office. Existing work authorization is required at the time of application submission. WRI is unable to sponsor any visa work sponsorship for this position.

About the Program:

The WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities (Cities Program) helps to transform cities into compact, connected, and resilient spaces that provide healthy, accessible, and prosperous living environments for their residents. We coordinate the Cities Program’s extensive technical and practical expertise through eight integrated solution areas: Integrated Transport Systems, Vision Zero, Zero Carbon Buildings, Livable Neighbourhood’s, Electric Mobility, Water/Heat Resilience, Air Quality and Inclusive Climate & Energy Action Planning. Data and Urban Finance are cross-cutting themes that inform all our solution offerings. We implement our solutions by working deeply with multiple stakeholders over long periods of time to demonstrate possibilities in rapidly transforming cities. We expand our impact to other cities by leveraging these demonstrated possibilities to convene multiple cross-sectoral stakeholders and partnering with city networks. Our research and projects in cities and in national policies connect environmental sustainability, health, safety, equity, and quality of life.

Job Highlight:

Reporting to the Operations and Finance Manager, you will enhance the effectiveness of WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities by providing administrative support to top management of the Ross Center. You will serve as a point of contact for on-site special events and large meetings for the Program and identify opportunities and execute actions to improve operational efficiency. You will work with the Global Director Administrative Coordinator, Program Operations, and Senior Management by anticipating needs, proactively resolving issues, and ensuring timely preparation for upcoming events and commitments. You will independently address the administrative needs of the Senior Management. This will include administrative responsibilities with an emphasis on preparation and monitoring of expense reports and arrangement of domestic and international travel plans. You may support internal and external events and help in the coordination of special projects for the operations team. This position works 55% Core Functions, 20% for the Urban Mobility workstream, and 25% for the Urban Development workstream, with the possibility to assist ad hoc with other core function teams.

What will you do:

Senior Management Assistance (55%):

• Provide daily administrative support to Senior Management including scheduling and agenda-setting in Outlook
• Use Concur and Corporate Traveler to arrange international and domestic travel itineraries for Senior Management, including flights/train tickets, hotels, visa assistance and emergency itinerary troubleshooting
• Prepare and monitor expense reports in Concur for Senior Management to ensure proper financial objectives are met, including corporate credit card reconciliation, per-diem and reimbursements
• Provide timesheet assistance to Senior Management, including backup approval as necessary
• Coordinate team retreats and special in the Global Office for workstreams, which may include material preparation, room set-up, A/V management, catering coordination and event budget management

  Advisory Group and Global Office Administration (30%):

  • Schedule and coordinate the Program’s monthly Cities Global Staff Meeting, including the agenda, presentation slides, key participant speakers and follow-up internal communications using ContactMonkey
  • Assist in coordination for the Advisory Group meeting and other special events or large meetings for the Program, which may include venue contracts and communication, material preparation, room set-up, A/V management, catering coordination and event budget management
  • Support the Operations Manager in office space management, to include ensuring a tidy office space, ordering and maintaining office supplies, responding to staff inquiries

    Operations Assistance (15%):

    • Assist operations in onboarding and offboarding of Program staff by supporting the Operations Manager in welcome presentations and operation training
    • Maintain the Global Program’s listserve for Cities staff meeting calendar notifications and critical Program emails. Specific teams may request listserve support as needed
    • Record Program new hires and departures and update the Global office staff count on a quarterly basis

      What will you need:

      • Education: You have completed a bachelor’s degree in the related field
      • Experience: You have minimum of 3 years of relevant experience working as a business personal assistant, special assistant, or executive assistant (or similar role)
      • Superior organization skills and attention to detail
      • Ability to be flexible and shift priorities as needed depending on the changing Senior Management needs
      • Have the initiative to work independently when needed, as well as closely with team members
      • Able to anticipate challenges and ensure productivity
      • Set priorities and solves a range of general problems independently
      • Ability to maintain confidentiality
      • Professional demeanor and superior people skills
      • Excellent computer skills in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, Power Point, SharePoint, Microsoft PowerApps, etc.)
      • IT skills in remote virtual meeting rooms (Microsoft Teams, Zoom etc.)
      • Ability to learn and use software applications that are used by WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities (Concur, DelTek, ECM system, ContactMonkey, Asana etc.)
      • Excellent oral and written communication skills; multiple languages a plus
      • Commitment to WRI’s mission and values and interest in environmental issues
      • Languages: Verbal and written English proficiency
      • Requirements: Existing work authorization is required where this position. WRI is unable to authorize visa work authorization

        Potential Salary: