Executive Assistant to the Maritime Director

Job summary

Can you build effective working relationships and coordinate activities across a range of stakeholders to help deliver business priorities and achieve successful outcomes?

Have you communicated complex or sensitive information to senior leaders and diverse audiences, adapting your approach to ensure clarity, engagement and understanding?

Do you enjoy working in a fast-paced environment where you can use your organisational skills, initiative and problem-solving abilities to manage competing priorities and drive progress?

The Maritime Directorate plays a vital role in supporting a safe, secure and sustainable maritime sector across the UK. Working at the heart of government, the Directorate develops policy, delivers key priorities and collaborates with a wide range of stakeholders, including industry partners, senior officials and other government departments. The team is responsible for driving progress on complex and high-profile issues that help shape the future of maritime transport. This is a fast-paced and collaborative environment where colleagues are encouraged to innovate, build strong relationships and contribute to meaningful work that has a direct impact on the UK's transport network and economy.

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

The Maritime Directorate plays a vital role in supporting a safe, secure and sustainable maritime sector across the UK. Working at the heart of government, the Directorate develops policy, delivers key priorities and collaborates with a wide range of stakeholders, including industry partners, senior officials and other government departments. The team is responsible for driving progress on complex and high-profile issues that help shape the future of maritime transport. This is a fast-paced and collaborative environment where colleagues are encouraged to innovate, build strong relationships and contribute to meaningful work that has a direct impact on the UK's transport network and economy.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at DFT.

Job description

Join the Maritime Directorate as an Executive Support Officer, providing high-quality support to the Maritime Director and Senior Management Team. This varied and fast-paced role is ideal for a proactive, organised and enthusiastic individual who enjoys collaborating with others, solving problems and driving progress. You'll coordinate key corporate activities, communicate complex information to a range of audiences, including senior leaders, and help deliver Directorate priorities. Success in this role requires strong communication skills, sound judgement and the ability to influence and secure outcomes in a dynamic environment.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

• Diary management – proactively manage the Director’s diary to make best use of their time. Develop a strong understanding of the Directorate’s priorities to identify emerging issues, opportunities and risks, exercise judgement when prioritising engagements, and recognise what needs to be escalated or can be delegated or handled elsewhere.
• Preparing papers – making best use of digital technology to ensure that the Director, or deputy, has the required papers or briefings ahead of meetings.
• Secretariat functions – identify suitable meeting dates; book meeting rooms; refreshments and equipment; draft outline agendas; coordinate and circulate papers; manage invite lists; take minutes; follow up actions identified in meetings and keep updated action logs.
• Task and priority management - monitor and manage work received through the Maritime Director’s Office mailbox, prioritising requests and tracking actions to ensure deadlines are met. Use an understanding of the Directorate’s priorities to identify issues, opportunities and risks, escalating matters where necessary and directing work to the appropriate person or team.
• Administrative support – book travel, accommodation, meetings rooms and refreshments as required; meet and greet external visitors; process the Director’s expenses in a timely fashion.
• Networking - developing and maintaining strong relationships with the Director and wider Senior Management Team, their teams and key stakeholders both internally and externally, taking time to understand their preferences, priorities and the work undertaken by the business area.
• Wider team support – work flexibly to support the Senior Leadership Team and the Directorate. Proactively contribute to events and activities that support delivery of the wider directorates’ objectives.

Flexible resourcing

Colleagues are expected to work with a degree of flexibility, meaning responsibilities may change to support priority delivery.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

Required experience:

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities, adapt to changing demands, and deliver accurate work to a high standard in a fast-paced environment.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with experience of building effective relationships with senior stakeholders and handling sensitive information with discretion, tact and professionalism.

• Ability to work independently, using sound judgement and initiative to resolve issues, prioritise workloads and remain calm, reliable and resilient when working under pressure.

Additional Information

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week.

Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 30 hours per week.

This role is suitable for hybrid working, which is a non-contractual arrangement where a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements.

The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time a month will be spent at either your designated workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, in another office/work location/visiting stakeholders. Your designated workplace will be your contractual place of work. There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

Occasional travel to other offices will be required, which may involve overnight stays.

If you have a question about hybrid working, part time/job share hours, flexible working, travelling for work, or require a reasonable adjustment, ple