Executive Assistant at Absa Bank Limited

Job Summary

To support the Managing Director or in the operational management of the business by providing strategic partnering, operational support, administrative support and managerial functions. Act as a strategic assistant and apply professional knowledge and expertise to support Managing Director in all strategic planning activities. Act as the first point of contact for the Managing Director during their absence. Maintain a high degree of confidentiality at all times and to interact with stakeholders at various levels in order to deliver on the work outputs.

Job Description

Accountability: Commercial awareness and strategic partnering

• Translation of the strategic plan into the annual plan and ensure execution of specific projects.
• Assist CEO to track and provide analytical reports on the development of strategic initiatives, financial performance and the market
• Develop and communicate strategic roadmap and ensure implementation of the business strategies.
• Complete all reporting activities accurately and on time
• Drive operational excellence across all facets of the business
• Uses analytics, data and trends both internally and externally to diagnose management issues and recommend effective solutions.
• Actively networks with colleagues outside team and with external contacts in the market.
• Engages in understanding the vision and understands their contribution in the delivery.

Accountability: Operational Process Support

• Act as initial point of entry for escalated client queries. Redistribute the resolution or respond directly to the stakeholders where appropriate and report only major issues to the Managing Executive or Business Unit Head.
• Take personal accountability for resolving complaints lodged directly with the Managing Executive.
• On a monthly basis, compile a summary of the projects and initiatives underway in the business unit and provide an update to the Managing Director on progress, risks and issues.
• Coordinate the preparation of formal performance reviews conducted by the Managing Exec/BU Head by supporting direct reports to collect their portfolios of evidence and collating results from multi-source feedback for each direct report prior to the performance discussion.
• Review financial reports prepared by line managers in the business unit and advise the Managing Exec/BU Head of substantial issues and actions that have been created to address these.
• Review all new marketing and internal communication material from a style and content perspective prior to it being reviewed by the Managing Exec/BU Head and request required changes before presenting for signoff. Monitor BOP error rejections ensuring errors are handled within the prescribed time frames. Identify recurring BOP errors and institute corrective measures
• Act as key advisor to the Managing Director by providing knowledgeable review and recommendations based on an assessment of proposed process or product changes submitted by process owners or managers in the business unit. Support these managers to refine business cases if required.
• Ensure that tactical decisions taken by the Managing Director are communicated to the correct audience in a timely manner and gauge the understanding and commitment from the audience.
• Take charge of general office administration including ordering of stationery and etc.
• Ensure that adequate reserve stock is ordered.
• Enforce company policy in terms of procedures including travel, cell phone, expense claims etc. (i.e. responsible for controlling signatures, taking policy into account, urgency and effecting timeous forwarding of documents).
• On request from the Managing Director attend selected committee meetings on his/her behalf including operational risk forums and project steering committees to stay up to date with operational conditions and provide early warning any probable issues and proposed solutions.

Accountability: Administrative Support

• Manage the diary of the Managing Director, in an efficient manner by using Outlook, to set up meetings requested by the line manager or to accept meetings requested by others where the manager’s presence is needed.
• Track and monitor the acceptances and declines obtained from the relevant parties that have been invited to the meeting. Where possible, resolve issues independently but where needed escalate any concerns and issues to the manager.
• Liaise with relevant parties to re-schedule any meetings, based on a request from either the manager or the original meeting organiser.
• Print all documentation relevant to the meetings and prepare daily meeting packs and give them to the manager for their reference. Liaise with the in-house travel agency to make the travel bookings for any domestic and international trips the manager is required to make and in so doing ensure adherence to the required travel approval process.
• When requested to by the manager, attend in team meetings in order to take the minutes of the meetings. Ensure that the minutes are typed, approved by the meeting chair and distributed to the relevant parties within the agreed time period.
• Ensure that the action points are shared immediately after the meeting and follow up for resolution of the same.
• Oversee the planning and execution of business events for the Managing Director/BU Head such as employee discussion forums, product launches, customer entertainment events and formal functions.
• Prepare the key themes presentations and reviews for the Managing Exec/BU Head by researching and packaging detailed content. Ensure that presentations are designed to reflect the business unit’s brand and Managing Exec/BU Head’s personal style.
• Screen requests for meetings or events to be attended by the Managing Exec/BU Head and determine which ones would be appropriate for personal attendance and which ones should be delegated to other managers in the business unit.
• Liaise with the travel agency to make the travel bookings for any domestic and international trips the MD is required to make and in so doing ensure adherence to the required travel approval process

Accountability: Governance and Control

• Support the Managing Director/BU Head in the signoff process for risk events (losses and write-offs) by obtaining all investigation documentation and making recommendations on whether the BU should take the loss or whether it should be absorbed by a different area. Liaise with other mandate holders in the BU to ensure that they follow a rigorous process before approving write-offs.
• Review all write-offs and near misses each month and provide a report to the Managing Director/BU Head on trends identified and recommended actions.
• Monitor compliance with policies and procedures, identify areas of non-compliance and incorporate/ recommend remedies.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree – Business Management, Business Analysis (Meets all of the requirements), Customer Excellence – Service Delivery (Meets all of the requirements), Digital familiarity (Meets some of the requirements and would need further development), Enabling team success (Meets some of the requirements and would need further development), Experience in a similar environment, Openness to change (Meets some of the requirements and would need further development), Planning and organising (Meets all of the requirements)