About the job

Job summary

Do you offer excellent administrative and organisational skills, with the ability to successfully manage multiple tasks and tight deadlines?

Do you bring a positive attitude, confidence, and the ability to build great relationships with senior stakeholders?

If this sounds like you, this is an exciting opportunity to play a key role supporting the CEO of a world leading organisation.

About the CMA

We help people, businesses, and the UK economy by promoting competitive markets and tackling unfair behaviour. Our work is wide ranging, ambitious and often new and challenging.

You can read more about working at the CMA in our candidate pack.

Job description

Working as a key member of the CEO’s private office team, you will provide efficient and responsive diary management and support for the CEO. By helping to facilitate the first-class functioning of the private office, you will be supporting the CEO to deliver effective leadership and achieve their priorities across the organisation.  

 You will act as the key link between the CEO and the rest of the CMA, providing high quality logistical support and assistance with administrative tasks.

You will also identify upcoming issues and meeting conflicts, utilising your sound judgment and discretion to resolve issues, implement effective solutions and prioritise appointments, whilst acting as a lead point of contact with relevant stakeholders.

Person specification

It is essential that you can provide evidence and examples for each of the following selection criteria in your application. For tips on how to make the most your application, please have a look at our guidance document.

Essential:

• First-rate administrative and organisational skills, with the ability to successfully prioritise multiple work tasks to meet tight deadlines whilst maintaining standards of excellence. (Lead criteria)
• Good interpersonal and communication skills (both written and oral), and the ability to work effectively as part of a team, particularly when working at pace. (Lead criteria)
• Effective analytical skills to process complex information, and ability to take initiative to suggest proactive solutions to problems and tasks relating to diary management, while working in often ambiguous and fast-moving situations.
• Attention to detail and commitment to delivering a quality service, particularly in relation to diary and document management, with the ability to efficiently use Microsoft Office products such as Outlook, OneNote and SharePoint.
• Strong relationship management skills and the ability to build a network of contacts and relationships both internally and externally, in order to support the CEO’s engagements and priorities.

If successful you must hold, or be willing to obtain, security clearance to SC level and possibly DV level.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £36,550, Competition & Markets Authority contributes £9,868 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

The selection process will comprise of the sift (CV & application review) and interview.

 An initial sift based on lead criteria 1 and 2 may be held if a large number of applications are received.

If your application then progresses to a full sift, all elements of the essential criteria listed under Person Specification of the role profile will then be considered.

The sift will take place week commencing Monday 15th July 2024.

If your application is successful, you will be invited to attend an interview.

This will be a 45-60 minute panel interview, where you will be asked behaviour-based questions based on the behaviours, experience and values specified in the role profile.

Please note that interviews will be held in-person at the London office.

The first part of interview will comprise of a presentation or written assessment, the topic of which will be shared with you should you be selected for an interview and advance preparation may be required.

You will be notified via email to log-in to your Civil Service Account to book your interview slot. You will then be sent an email with full details of your arrangements for interview.

Interviews are expected to be held week commencing Monday 29th July 2024.

Reasonable adjustments:

In order for a person with disabilities not to be put at a disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process.
For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you are deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.