Personal Assistant

Job summary

Do you want a career where you can make a real difference? Do you want to have an impact on the UK and beyond? If yes, then a career at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) could be for you.

Here at DESNZ we are delivering our mission to make the UK a clean energy superpower, with clean electricity by 2030 and accelerating the UK’s journey to net zero.

Our work is helping ensure clean energy for all, keep bills down and seize the opportunities to lead the world in new green industries, taking back control of our energy with Great British Energy and encouraging greater energy efficiency across the UK. The work of the department has never been more timely or relevant, and by joining us you will be part of making that difference.

Our work is varied, interesting and most importantly it's impactful. Our DESNZ Values are interwoven into everything we do; we are bold, we are collaborative, we are inclusive, and we learn. As a department we are committed to these values to build a culture where everyone can thrive.

We work in an agile way. This means that, as our priorities evolve, your work may adapt to meet emerging needs and help us deliver our mission. This approach offers opportunities to develop your skills, gain new experiences, and contribute where you can make the greatest impact. This relates to the nature of the work rather than contractual terms, such as location or working pattern.

We offer great working benefits including a world-class pension, flexible working options and a career where your learning and development is taken seriously. We are enormously proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We support candidates with adjustments throughout our recruitment process. Information about disability confidence and just some examples of the adjustments that you can request can be found in the reasonable adjustment section below.

Find Out More

We regularly run events where you can find out more about the department and tips for the application and interview process. You can sign up for upcoming events here: https://forms.office.com/e/pqUhdr3L72

You can also follow our LinkedIn Careers Page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/desnz-careers/

Job description

This is a role for a personal assistant (PA), providing support for 1 Director and Deputy Directors in a rapidly growing directorate. The role sits in a small business support team for the Electricity Security & Market Reform directorate.

The post provides an excellent opportunity to build on existing skills, develop new ones, and gain exposure to a wide range of new and up-and-coming policy areas. Within this role, you will be the first point of contact for the Director and Deputy Directors' diaries and be a familiar face throughout the directorate.

The Electricity Security & Market Reform Directorate is a friendly place, and we have teams covering a broad range of energy-related policy subjects, you will find ample opportunities for career development. We are a diverse and welcoming bunch, with a range of different career paths and levels of experience within the Civil Service.

We are committed to work-life balance and flexible working and the Directorate has senior sponsored groups focussing on making the directorate the best place to work in DESNZ. You will have the opportunity to shape how we work together, for example joining diversity and inclusion networks.

Person specification

Run two or more diaries on a daily basis to ensure the Director and Deputy Directors' time is effectively organised and prioritised and maintain a balance of meetings and desk time.

• Proactively running the Director and Deputy Directors’ mailbox, ensuring they are aware of urgent or important e-mails, forwarding on for action or information or looking after them yourself where appropriate.
  
• Support the Director and Deputy Directors to balance a range of senior partner meetings, advising on urgent requests and suggesting delegation of meetings when necessary.
  
• Arrange meetings and requests from internal and external partners. This includes checking availability of attendees; booking rooms; providing conference call details; issuing appointments; rescheduling if necessary; arranging deputies and ordering refreshments and collecting visitors if needed.
  
• Prepare meeting papers, obtaining background papers, briefing notes, etc and liaising with meeting organisers or others to ensure your Director or Deputy Director has everything they require.
  
• Booking travel arrangements for the Director and Deputy Directors, and occasionally the wider team when necessary.
  
• Build strong working relationships with other Deputy Directors in the directorate, their PAs and the wider team.
  
• Co-ordinate offsite, and events for the team or the directorate
  
• Undertaking duties and tasks as assigned by the Director and Deputy Directors, such as expenses
  
• As part of our Business Support team, you'll help deliver essential services across the directorate, from supporting recruitment campaigns, processing invoices to raising Purchase Orders.

Depending on the role there is the opportunity to spend a proportion of your time supporting the policy team. This policy support is flexible and may include things like providing the secretariat for policy boards or helping with policy workstreams.

Essential Criteria

• Strong organisational and prioritisation skills, with the ability to manage multiple tasks and competing deadlines effectively.
  
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to build positive working relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
  
• Experience of working in a fast-paced environment and adapting to changing priorities.
  
• Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with discretion and professionalism.
  
• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications (including Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel and PowerPoint) and able to maintain accurate records and information.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience in providing high-quality administrative and diary management support to senior leaders.
  
• Experience of organising meetings and events, including coordinating schedules, preparing papers and managing logistics.

Behaviours

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

• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together
• Making Effective Decisions

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £30,940, Department for Energy Security & Net Zero contributes £8,963 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
• An extensive range of learning & professional dev