Administrative Assistant

Staff - UnionJob CategoryCUPE 2950Job ProfileCUPE 2950 Salaried - Administrative Support 3 (Gr6)Job TitleAdministrative AssistantDepartmentAdministrative Support | Department of PhilosophyCompensation Range$4, $4,676.00 CAD MonthlyPosting End DateJuly 21, 2024

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.

Job End Date

At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.

Job Summary
Founded in 1915, the Department of Philosophy at UBC is one of the oldest departments in the Faculty of Arts. With approximately 800 undergraduate students, we offer major, minor and honours degrees in philosophy as well as combined majors in philosophy and economics, philosophy and political science, history and philosophy of science, and cognitive systems. We also offer Masters and PhD programs for those at the graduate level.

The Philosophy Admin Assistant supports the daily operations of the department in addition to assisting with the administrative functions of the undergraduate and graduate programs. The position serves as the department receptionist, provides admin support to the Department Head, the Department Administrator and the Graduate Program Coordinator in various areas including HR, finance, and general program functions of the department. This position also provides support as a Workday HR Analyst.

Organizational Status
The Philosophy Administrative Assistant is an integral member of the department academic administration team and works under the general direction of the Department Head, the Department Administrator and the Graduate Program Coordinator. They report directly to the Department Administrator. The position also Liaises with Arts ISIT, the ASC and ISC.

Work Performed

Reception & General Office Support

• Acts as receptionist; responds to telephone, email and in-person enquiries based upon knowledge of the department and University policies and procedures.
• Collects, distributes and forwards department mail, receives deliveries, and arranges courier service.
• Monitors status of office equipment and provides guidance on equipment operation to department members. Performs routine maintenance on department printer (e.g., paper and toner replacement) and submits service requests in a timely manner as necessary.
• Monitors use of common areas and reports issues related to cleanliness and function.

Head's Assistant Support

• Supports the Department Head's schedule and ensures all materials are prepared in advance of meetings, maintaining 'bring-forward' items for the Head; arranges meetings on the Head's behalf, and must be available to attend meetings and take notes as appropriate.
• Provides administrative assistance with P&T, Annual Merit Review, Leave Requests.
• Assists with filing and document preparation, including the submission of grant applications & other documents requiring Head's signature.
• Arranges travel for the Department Head, as required.
• Pulls Adhoc Stats, Data & Reports; compiles and tracks data including faculty award nominations and successful outcomes.

Administrative Support

• Assists admin team with coordination of meetings and events, including room bookings, preparation of materials, and catering.
• Submits requests for keys and programs fobs on behalf of the Department Administrator.
• Assists the Department Administrator and the Graduate Program Coordinator with the facilitation and trouble-shooting of issues relating to the set-up of new staff, faculty, and graduate students, including email accounts, systems access, and telephone set-up with support from Arts ISIT and other units on campus.
• Assists the Department Administrator with the submission of Planon, DVA and Arts ISIT service requests.
• Assists with the scheduling of SEoI Reports.
• Assists with digitizing records and maintaining filing and naming conventions.
• Works with the Department Administrator to carry out strategic goals and initiatives to create an effective Staff team.
• Serves as the Department Staff Representative on the Buchanan Complex Local Safety Team.
• Performs any other duties related to the requirements of position.

Financial and HR Processing

HR

• Acts as a HR Analyst (WD Security Role).
• Reviews of monthly WD reports from the ASC-HR team; identifies action items and reviews with Department Administrator before submitting completed report to the ASC-HR team.
• Provides administrative assistance with faculty recruitment (including advertising, coordinating visits, etc.) under the direction of the Department Administrator.

Finance

• Serves as Cost Centre Fin Analyst in order to obtain Worktag balances and review ledger transactions.
• Processes the financial claims of faculty, students and guests as appropriate; reconciles the Department Visa; seeks proper approvals, assigns expenses to correct Worktag and Expense/Revenue codes.
• Provides monthly FIN & HR reports to the Department Administrator and the Graduate Program Coordinator for review and approval.

Consequence of Error/Judgement

Errors in judgement, mistakes, inefficiencies, or breaches of confidence in any of the areas of responsibility would negatively impact all aspects of Department administration and would affect the reputation and credibility of the Department including its Head, Administrator, faculty, and staff; moreover, this could cause undue stress to Philosophy Graduate and Undergraduate students. The reputation of the Department of Philosophy and the University of British Columbia could be seriously diminished by poor performance. Finally, errors in financial claims could result in a potential financial loss to the Department and the University.

Supervision Received

The Philosophy Administrative Assistant works independently under the general direction of the Department Head and the Department Administrator. They will be required to exercise tact and discretion and be able to interpret and follow Philosophy and UBC policies and practices. They will receive specific instructions on unusual problems or on matters that significantly depart from established policies and procedures. They will also receive work from the various Program Chairs and the Graduate Program Coordinator.

Supervision Given

Is not required to supervise; may explain work procedures to new or inexperienced staff.

Minimum Qualifications
High School graduation, plus one year of post-secondary education, plus four years of related experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one's own

Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one's own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

Experience in academic administration preferred. Advanced experience with MS Office suite, particularly Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Teams, and OneNote. Ability to learn new software systems like Workday and SISC.

High level of accuracy and attention to detail. Ability to prioritize and accurately maintain schedules and processes. Ability to work under pressure to meet deadlines and complete work without errors. Ability to solve routine problems based on Philosophy and UBC's policies and procedures, and refer more complex problems to senior staff. Ability to respond to routine inquiries verbally and in writing. Ability to listen actively and obtain clarification as required. Ability to deal with people in a courteous, calm, professional manner and have excellent customer service skills. Ability to develop and maintain cooperative and productive working relationships with Philosophy faculty, staff, students, guests, Faculty of Arts staff, and stakeholders. Ability to work effectively independently and in a team environment.

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