Executive Assistant to Regional Director, South Asia

About IRRI

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) is dedicated to reducing poverty and hunger through rice science; improving the health and welfare of rice farmers and consumers; and protecting the rice-growing environment for future generations. IRRI is an independent, nonprofit, research and educational institute, founded in 1960 by the Ford and Rockefeller foundations with support from the Philippine government. The institute, headquartered in Los Baños, Philippines, has offices in 17 rice-growing countries in Asia and Africa, and over 1,000 staff.

Working with in-country partners, IRRI develops advanced rice varieties that yield more grain and better withstand pests and disease as well as flooding, drought, and other harmful effects of climate change.

Job Purpose

We are looking for an experienced Executive Assistant to support the work of the Regional Director, South Asia. Based in New Delhi, India, the Executive Assistant will be responsible for providing highly skilled, proactive, diversified, and confidential administrative management of an executive nature, requiring considerable discretion and independent judgment.  As such, the position requires a well-organized team-player with the ability to effectively work across multiple stakeholders and with the capacity to multi-task in a fast-paced environment.  Attention to detail is an essential element of this role, along with the ability to anticipate needs, think critically, and offer solutions to problems with a high level of professionalism and confidentiality. We seek to fill this opportunity as soon as possible.

This position will be based at the IRRI India Office in New Delhi and may only be filled in by permanent citizens of India

Roles and Responsibilities

• Manage the establishment and operation of the Regional Director’s Office, in its current state and through the One CGIAR transition
• Address business operations processes – provide analysis, options and recommendations and implement (i.e. office space, budgets, travel, staffing, protocol) the best to means to create greater efficiency and effectiveness in RDO functions
• Work closely with IS&S to ensure a smooth One CGIAR transition
• Work closely with stakeholder engagement staff to support high quality stewardship of partners, including managing and updating contact lists of relevant stakeholders, staying abreast of changes in partner status and reflecting that in RDO engagement planning
• Facilitate staff communication on issues related to business operations and the One CGIAR transition, working in close collaboration with regional and global communication staff
• Support internal and external meetings, including preparation of agendas and minutes, tracking follow-up actions as required; communicating agreed priorities and actions in a timely and effective way to all stakeholders; making judgements and recommendations to ensure smooth day-to-day engagements
• Act as a stakeholder point of contact, using good judgement to ensure the Regional Director engages regularly and appropriately with colleagues from across CGIAR. This will include organizing and providing direct implementation support to a range of virtual and in-person events, such as townhalls, webinars, workshops, consultations, touch-base focus groups, and outreach sessions among others
• Engaging with diverse groups of people including senior executives, staff and partners
• Draft read, compile, format, edit and proofread documents, PowerPoint presentations, research information, and route correspondence, ensuring appropriate and timely follow-up as required
• Prepare letters, emails and other correspondence for external and internal stakeholders, as required
• File and retrieve documents and reference materials, ensuring efficient and effective document management and version control
• Proactively manage the Regional Director’s calendar and use of their time, requiring interaction with internal and external executives and assistants to plan and coordinate a variety of complex meetings, often across global time zones. This will require you to prioritize inquiries and requests while troubleshooting conflicts,
• Work closely with the Regional Director to keep them well informed of upcoming commitments and responsibilities, following up appropriately and ensuring preparatory materials are available well ahead.
• Organize and coordinate local and international business travel arrangements to meet organizational priorities, including visa applications, complex flight arrangements, accommodation reservations, transfers, the preparation of itineraries and briefing notes, purchase requests and travel expenses claims

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in any disciplines with a minimum of 5 years of relevant work experience or,

Masters in a related discipline with a minimum of 3 years of relevant work experience, preferably in an international organization

Skills Required

Mandatory

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite with an ability to design and edit graphic presentations and materials in PowerPoint and Word and use the numerical functions and formulas in Excel
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Exceptional organizational skills and an impeccable attention to detail with the ability to link it to larger objectives and think critically.
• Process-oriented with the ability to balance requirements against budgets and timelines to facilitate make optimal decisions.
• Reflect high degree of professionalism and diplomacy
• Ability to operate with a high degree of independence
• Comfortable making appropriate, informed decisions regarding priorities and available time, and an ability to complete tasks and projects with little guidance
• Ability to react with appropriate levels of urgency to situations and events that require quick response or turnaround
• Excellent judgment and a high level of integrity and discretion in handling confidential information

Preferred

• Experience of working in an International Organization or a large multi-national corporation

Allowances

In addition to the base pay indicated above, IRRI also offers the below listed allowances:

• House-Rent Allowance: IRRI provides a house rent allowance of 40% of base pay per month.
• Transport Allowance: A monthly transport allowance is provided to NRS as below: NRS L5: INR 4,000
• Dearness Allowance: One Hundred and Thirteen percent (113%) of employee’s base pay.
• Leave Travel Allowance (LTA): One-month base pay per annum, on availing minimum 2 days of vacation leave
• Education Allowance: INR 1000/- per child per month (limited 2 children)

IRRI offers a highly extensive employee benefits package inclusive of globally-covered medical insurance, retirement plan, life and accident insurance and other allowances. Join our team and be part of our story!

Please note only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Apply:

https://www.irri.org/jobs