Project and Administrative Assistant

The successful candidate will assist the Head of the Project Management Department as well as various Project Managers within the Department (some of which are located in Chile) in the fulfilment and execution of overall administrative activities as well as in a supporting role for project management activities. Such activities will include the support of the document management system (PDM) as well as running collaborative platforms and tools catering to the needs of the projects. The assistant is expected to work independently on assignments and is able to set priorities for her/his own day-to-day activities. Team spirit, a sense of duty and a pro-active approach are key qualities for this position.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

Administrative activities will include but are not limited to:

• Day-to-day administrative assistance for the Head of the Project Management Department and various members of the PM Department. This includes scheduling and organising of travel and meetings both in-house and abroad.
• Taking, drafting minutes of meetings, distributing correspondence, reports and technical documents.
• Supporting administrative operations of the PM Department with Facility Management and Logistics, Contract and Procurement, and Human Resources.
• Maintaining the Department's intranet web pages, set-up and maintenance of collaborate platforms/tools (e.g. Teams, sharepoint, etc.).
• Organisation of conferences for ESO staff and external participants and support for special events such as ESO Open House or media visits, and
• Provide coverage and support during the absence of other administrative assistants.

Basic duties related to the ESO document management system (PDM) include:

• Supporting PMD Project Managers in creation, editing, approval and archiving of documents.
• Quality control of a subset of documents in PDM, and
• Basic system administration tasks for PDM.

Support for project management activities:

• Assist project managers by preparing meeting agendas, taking minutes, follow-up of action item lists etc, and
• General support of planning and resource management activities.

The above responsibilities are not exhaustive and a flexible approach and willingness to adapt to unexpected needs is required.

Reports to:

Head of the Project Management Department

Key Competences and Experience

Applicants should have minimum 3 years of experience as an administrative assistant preferably in an international environment. Experience in supporting project work, ideally supporting a project management office, or similar responsibilities, preferably within an international working environment.

Essential Competences and Experience:

• Experience in project office work and supporting an organizational unit (group/department) with a strong customer focused attitude in all administrative aspects: organizing meetings, travel, purchases, keeping records, etc.
• Experience in documentation management.
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Office software (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, etc.) is mandatory.
• Ability to set-up and maintain collaborative platforms and tools, tailored to the needs of the department and projects.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills; friendly and service oriented, able to anticipate needs and interested in well-being of staff.
• Self-directed and highly motivated, with discretion and diplomacy.
• Ability to balance conflicting demands and priorities, day-to-day activities versus longer-term tasks, and to work under time pressure.
• Provide clear, concise and timely oral and written communications, and
• Ability to work both on your own initiative and within teams in an international and multicultural environment.

Desirable Competences and Experience:

• Familiarity with concepts of project management and tools is desirable.
• Experience with JIRA-based applications.
• Experience with Enterprise Resource Planning applications is an asset.
• Advanced knowledge of PDM systems and experience with system administration.
• Experience with configuration control and quality assurance, and
• Willingness to acquire new skills and keep up-to-date with the tools used in the daily work, as well as to adapt to new procedures and identify means to optimize the daily workflows.

Qualifications

Essential educational level:

• University degree (bachelor) in administrative matters, or formal qualification as a secretarial/administrative diploma as a bilingual secretary or equivalent professional training.
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Office software (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams etc.) is mandatory, and
• Qualifications which would be an asset: Training in a field related to Project Management, configuration management or quality assurance.

Language skills:

High (fluent) proficiency level in English both written and oral is essential, good knowledge of German is an asset, knowledge of Spanish is an advantage.

Remuneration and Contract:

We offer an attractive remuneration package including a competitive salary (tax free), comprehensive pension scheme and medical, educational and other social benefits, as well as financial help in relocating your family and the possibility to place your child/children in daycare.

The contract is for a fixed term duration of three years, and is subject to successful completion of the probation period. There may be a possibility of extension(s) subject to individual performance and organisational requirements, in particular for the ELT Programme, and as defined in the applicable policies and staff rules and regulations. For any further information, please visit https://www.eso.org/public/jobs/conditions/intstaff/. Please note that the contract policy and in particular the regulations concerning fixed-term and indefinite contracts are currently under review which may lead to changes in the contractual conditions applicable to this position.

Duty Station:

Garching near Munich

Career Path: II

Application:

If you are interested in working in areas of frontline science and technology and in a stimulating international environment, please visit http://www.eso.org for further details.

Applicants are invited to apply online at http://jobs.eso.org/. Applications must be completed in English and should include a motivation letter and CV. Within your CV, please provide the names and contact details of three persons familiar with your work and willing to provide a recommendation letter upon request. Referees will not be contacted without your prior consent.

Deadline for applications is 1 September 2020.

Interviews are expected to start soon after this date.

No nationality is in principle excluded, however, recruitment preference will be given to nationals of Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Chile irrespective of gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, race or religion.