Executive Assistant (Communications)

The Mellon Foundation

Executive Assistant, Communications (Temp-to-Perm - 30-35 hours per week)

Please note this is a temp-to-perm hire. As a temp-to-perm hire, you will begin in a temporary capacity with the intention of transitioning to a permanent position after a successful evaluation period. While on temporary assignment, a third-party staffing agency will be the employer of record for the selected candidate. Accordingly, this role will not be eligible for the Foundation’s benefits until the transition to a permanent role.

The Mellon Foundation (“Foundation”) is a not-for-profit, grant making organization that believes that the arts and humanities are where we express our complex humanity, and we believe that everyone deserves the beauty, transcendence, and freedom to be found there. Through our grants, we seek to build just communities enriched by meaning and empowered by critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive. The Foundation makes grants in four core program areas - Higher Learning, Arts and Culture, Public Knowledge, and Humanities in Place - and through its signature Presidential Initiatives. The Foundation seeks an Executive Assistant for our Communications team.

Position Summary:

The Executive Assistant will support the departmental operations of communications, a group of professionals who are tasked with raising the visibility for the Foundation’s mission, grantees, and story while working in close partnership with other departments across Mellon.

The executive assistant is a results- and team-oriented professional with well-honed communication competencies (verbal and written), organizational skills, and excellent judgment. The work is detail oriented and time sensitive, and the executive assistant will need to be adaptable, timely, sensitive both to the priorities and to the circumstances of the moment, and an adept problem solver. They will also need to be a clear writer and oral communicator.

There will be daily tasks to keep the trains running for the team: calendaring meetings, preparing agendas, taking meeting notes, and sending emails to internal and external parties; as well as occasional projects that include data entry, research, and writing as assigned.

Position Description:

The executive assistant works with the department and collaboratively with staff across the Foundation on the following duties:   

• Correspondence: Assists in the preparation of correspondence, memoranda, presentation decks, and other documents, and has facility with technology tools that enable this work.
• Quality Control: Processes, formats, and proofreads copy for spelling, grammar, layout, and typographical errors and is a strong writer.
• Organization and file management: Maintain the organization, structure, and cleanliness of the Communications team’s Box folders and files. Ensures work-in-progress and master documents are stored electronically on a continual basis. Identify and clean up outdated, duplicate, or unnecessary files in accordance with team records-management practices.
• Travel planning: Manages travel arrangements, ensuring detailed itineraries are accounted for, confirmations are maintained, and advance materials are coordinated.
• Expenses: Prepares expense reports and manages and tracks expenses through the reimbursement process in accordance with Foundation’s policies.
• Finance operations: Work closely with Finance department to create, submit invoices for services rendered, projects, licensing, honoraria, and various payment requests; ensure invoices are tracked and paid.
• Collaboration within the department and across the Foundation: Work collaboratively and collegially with counterparts across the Foundation, remote and in-person, to facilitate scheduling, support meeting planning, events, and other coordinated activity that drives the work.
• Data entry and records management: Support the team in maintaining a centralized and reliable source of information for vendor and consultant contacts. Using Salesforce, ensure key records for external providers are updated in the database and that entry is completed in a timely fashion so as to prevent backlogs.
• Other administrative and operational tasks as assigned to support the efficiency of the Communications department.

Qualifications:

Successful candidates will have the following qualifications:

• Associates or Bachelor’s Degree, plus relevant work history
• Excellent knowledge of administration, process management, and project management.
• Attention to detail in composing, processing, and proofing materials, effectively establishing priorities, and meets deliverables with grace and finesse.
• A self-starter, who can be self-directed, manages well through ambiguity, yet consults appropriately.
• Experience doing data entry and records management; use of Salesforce, Box.com, or Monday.com is a plus
• Exceptional oral and written communications skills
• Highly organized with experience trafficking a high volume of tasks
• Ability to quickly cultivate strong relationships within an organization
• Ability to manage and coordinate multiple projects and tasks simultaneously, with careful attention to detail.
• An interest in the humanities, the arts, and higher education is desirable.

The Mellon Foundation is committed to building an inclusive workplace where all individuals are treated with dignity and respect. Employment opportunities are based on individual qualifications, merit, and organizational need, without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions), gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We welcome applications from qualified individuals of all backgrounds.

Mellon is committed to access and inclusion for our applicants. If you have accessibility requests to support your participation in the hiring process, please let us know at your earliest convenience.

Mellon is committed to providing compensation that is competitive and equitable within the philanthropic sector. The hourly pay rate for this role is $56-$59 USD (annualized to 109K – 115K). The amount of pay offered is determined by several factors, including but not limited to qualifications, unique skills, credentials, or experience that is expected to impact the candidate’s contribution to the role. We also consider market data as well as the Foundation’s internal pay equity framework.

Please note that Mellon maintains a hybrid work schedule, with three days per week in person at the Foundation’s Manhattan offices.

Candidates should apply by submitting a cover letter describing their fit for the position and a resume. Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.

The Foundation will consider each complete application carefully but only contact those individuals it believes are most qualified for the position.