CMA1913 – Executive Assistant

Are you a professional and highly organised individual ready to advance your career as an Executive Assistant? If you are passionate about delivering exceptional support, this is an outstanding opportunity to acquire new skills and elevate your career at the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

About the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)

We help people, businesses, and the UK economy by promoting competitive markets and tackling unfair behaviour. Our work is wide ranging, ambitious and often new and challenging.

The role

As an Executive Assistant, your core responsibility will be providing efficient and responsive support in a fast pace environment, including diary and inbox management and personal assistance to the Senior Director for People, Capability, and Culture (SD PCC).

Assisting with the management and prioritisation of time and tasks, you will play a major role in foreseeing potential problems and issues, conducting research and seeking solutions, reviewing documents and serving as the crucial link between the SD PCC and the wider organisation, as well as external stakeholders.

As time permits and in response to business needs, you will have the opportunity to take on additional responsibilities related to projects within the Directorate. This may involve facilitating recruitment, organising corporate services staff events, and contributing to various projects led by the COO and SD PCC.

What you will need

The ideal candidate will demonstrate exceptional communication and liaison skills, having effectively represented organisations to external stakeholders while tailoring communications to diverse audiences.

Strong adminstrative skills are essential, with the ability to respond adeptly to complex and highly sensitive correspondence. We are looking for a candidate capable of prioritising multiple tasks to meet strict deadlines, coupled with an unwavering attention to detail.

 Additionally, the successful candidate will exhibit demonstrable research and analysis skills, with proficiency in gathering, summarising, and presenting information for varying audiences.

What we can offer you

We recognise the value of work-life balance, offering hybrid working arrangements and flexible working options including part-time, compressed hours, and job share arrangements. You will be equipped with excellent technology tools and services that facilitate collaboration regardless of your location. Our modern, professional workplaces across the UK provide an exceptional working environment. Furthermore, we proactively promote mental and physical well-being through a diverse range of well-being initiatives, including an employee assistance programme and a supportive network of mental health first aiders. 

The CMA is a hugely rewarding, diverse and stimulating place to work – an opportunity to work for the public good and to stretch and develop yourself in doing so. All CMA staff enjoy generous benefits, including an excellent pension scheme, at least 25 days leave (increasing to 30 over five years), and generous maternity/paternity leave provision. You can also take advantage of interest-free season ticket loans and a cycle to work scheme.

To find out more about this opportunity and about working for the CMA, please click on the APPLY button.

CMA – Working for the CMA , Civil Service Careers (civil-service-careers.gov.uk)

Or our LinkedIn page:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/competition-and-markets-authority/

Your role:

Key responsibilities for this role are:

• Providing high quality and fast paced diary and personal support to the SD PCC in a professional, responsible and timely manner, acting as the key link between the SD PCC and the rest of the organiation and with external stakeholders.
• Play a major role in helping the SD PCC set and deliver their priorities, anticipating potential problems, researching issues, reviewing documents and liaising with colleagues across the organisation, so that the SD PCC can focus their time on the most important strategic issues facing the CMA. Particular responsibilities include:

1. managing the SD PCC’s exceptionally diary and inbox, tracking progress and proactively alerting them to emerging issues, dealing effectively with calendar and time conflicts and exercising sound judgement in prioritising appointments;
2. preparing a daily pack for the SD PCC (including schedule of meetings with brief details and supporting paperwork where appropriate);
3. reviewing forthcoming engagements to anticipate and confirm whether papers are being prepared which require review or preparation in advance;
4. completing document production in a timely manner;
5. organising travel and accommodation and processing expenses;
6. supporting the SD PCC in preparing for external engagements.

• Preparing responses to email and other correspondence and bringing forward papers, email and other documentation to connect them into the relevant correspondence and / or day pack information.
• Maintain an accurate action log of all PCC actions that arise from the various CMA governance Committees that PCC operate with.
• Maintain an accurate forward look of all forthcoming PCC submissions to the various CMA goverance Committees that PCC operate with.
• Work closely with the Executive Office to ensure the logistics, preparation and minute and action log recording for the People and Operations Committee is undertaken in a timely and accurate manner.
• Act as the minute taker for the CMA’s Remuneration Committee.
• Act as the Project Officer for projects personally led by the SD PCC, including recording actions and / or minutes, conducting chase ups, managing risk, action, issues and decision (RAID) logs, establishing project check in meetings, and other associated project duties.
• Working closely with other Personal Assistants across the Corporate Services Directorate, to organise, operate and support regular management and other cross-Directorate meetings as well as senior management 1:1s and other similar meetings. This includes tracking and managing agenda requests, forward planning and collating / circulating agendas and supporting documents in advance and in a proactive manner.
• Organisation and delivery of PCC department away days, events and training, including engagement with external speakers / providers, as required and supporting the delivery of such directorate events as commissioned by the Chief Operating Officer.
• Proactively manage the annual performance management of the SD PCC’s direct reports, eg, setting up quarterly, mid year and full year review meetings, request 360 degree feedback and ensure documentation is submitted in a timely manner.
• Act as deputy to the Executive Assistant to the Chief Operating Officer. Act as the deputy for the PA for the PCC Senior Leadership Team.  Work collaboratively and flexibly with other Personal Assistants in the Corporate Services Directorate, supporting administrative tasks across the whole  Directorate and covering for them during annual leave and busy periods.
• Assist in creating and maintaining internal SharePoint records management sites and folders.
• Actively learn about and engage with CMA work to support your work for the PCC department, the Corporate Services Directorate and the wider CMA.

The CMA is seeking to appoint the best qualified candidate for this role and welcomes applications from under-represented groups.

When completing your written application, please ensure you provide evidence and examples (as far as you are able), in response to the Essential Criteria below, and against which your application will be assessed.

It is essential that you can provide evidence and examples for each of the following selection criteria in your application.

If you do not meet the lead selection criteria in your application, the panel will not be required to score your application against the remaining essential criteria of the role.

Essential Criteria

• Evidence of strong communication and liaison skills, with experience of representing organisations to external stakeholders and tailoring communications according to the needs of different audiences (lead criteria)
• Evidence of written skills demonstrating experience of responding to complex and often highly sensitive correspondence and / or issues.
• Evidence of strong administrative and organisational skills, with experience of successfully prioritising multiple work tasks to meet strict deadlines.
• Proficient at document production and document management in a timely and accurate manner, with the ability to pay strict attention to detail at all times.
• Demonstrable research and analysis skills, with experience of gathering, summarising and presenting information for varying audiences.
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team as well as without close supervision, being responsible for own workload and supporting others in the delivery of work.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Delivering at Pace
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

As well as the interesting and varied work you’ll do to contribute to effective competition in the UK, and to ensure consumers get a good deal when buying goods and services, you’ll also benefit from:

• An exceptionally generous pension scheme with a significant employer contribution and range of options, including a tax-free lump sum at the point of retirement and injury, ill-health and life assurance benefits
• 25 days leave (increasing to 30 days over five years), plus 8 public holidays and an additional day off for the King’s birthday. In addition, you’ll be able to access a wide range of other types of leave as and when you need it, including generous maternity, paternity, shared parental leave and adoption options, as well as paid special leave for volunteering
• Season ticket loans, cycle to work scheme, flu vaccinations and eye tests
• Access to the Civil Service Sports & Leisure, giving discounted gym membership, high street discounts, free access to UK wide attractions and a free Tastecard
• A range of wellbeing benefits, including an employee assistance programme, flexible working options and family friendly policies, regular networking events and professional learning opportunities at work

Any move to the CMA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

Like many other organisations, we operate a hybrid working model with a mix of office and home working. We believe this supports us to deliver our best work while allowing the flexibility to maintain balanced and healthy lives. 

If you’re already a civil servant being appointed on level transfer, you’ll retain your existing terms, including annual leave. If you are being promoted you’ll receive either a 10% pay increase or the new grade minimum, whichever is the greater. Applicants new to the civil service can be considered for appointment at a salary higher than the starting point indicated above, but not more than the advertised mid-point, depending on skills, knowledge, experience and qualifications.

We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We want a diverse workforce that reflects the consumers we serve. We welcome applications from under-represented groups, including ethnically diverse people, people with a disability, people with diverse gender identities and from people of different ages. 

We are an accredited Disability Confident Employer and disabled applicants meeting the minimum criteria for the job will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities at an interview.

Our Values

The CMA delivers impactful outcomes for people, business and the UK economy.​ We are Ambitious and Evidence-based, and always strive for Excellence.​ We treat everyone with Respect, and are Collaborative and Inclusive.​

Everything we do is underpinned by the Civil Service values: Honesty, Integrity, Impartiality and Objectivity.

Job contact :

• Name : Vidya Krishnamoorthy
• Email : recruitment@cma.gov.uk
• Telephone : 020 3738 6399

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@cma.gov.uk