JOB DESCRIPTION
TITLE:
DEPUTY GENERAL SECRETARY SUPPORT (SC11)
GRADE:
BAND 6
DEPARTMENT:
STRATEGY AND COMMUNICATIONS
LOCATION:
HAMILTON HOUSE
RESPONSIBLE TO:
PRINCIPAL OFFICER
ROLE OF DEPARTMENT
Strategy and Communications Department
The Department is headed by the General Secretary.
The Strategy and Communications Department includes the offices of the General
Secretary, the Deputy General Secretary and the President. Within its responsibility
for strategy, the Department takes the lead on national campaigns and national
action; the Union’s relations with national and local government, including
Parliament; the Union’s relations with the TUC, including organising the Union’s
presence at TUC Congress; and to Union’s external relations, within Europe and at
international level. It is responsible for the strategic direction of the Union, including
the establishment of annual priorities and the Union’s budget. The Department is
responsible for overall co-ordination across committees and departments.
It is the lead Department for communications, including ‘The Teacher’, Press and&
Media matters, the Union’s website, Hearth and NUT Community.
The aim of the Communications section is to ensure that the strategy of the Union is
communicated effectively across all media.
GENERAL DUTIES
The General Secretary has overall responsibility for the management and
administration of the Union and all Assistant Secretaries and staff work under her or
his general direction. The Senior Solicitor has overall responsibility for legal aspects
of the Union's work. The departments of the Union are headed either by Assistant
Secretaries or senior members of staff who have supervision of the staff of their
departments and are responsible for the management of staff and their effective
deployment to allow the Union to respond to and initiate activities in the most
dynamic way.
Professional/Administrative Assistants are responsible to an Assistant Secretary or
other senior employee as their Head of Department and to a Principal Officer who
has day-to-day managerial and administrative responsibilities for the relevant areas
of work within the Department.
Professional/Administrative Assistants are responsible for providing assistance of an
organisational, administrative, professional or technical nature relevant to their
particular areas of work.
Broad responsibilities are allocated to particular Professional/Administrative
Assistants in their departments.
Professional/Administrative Assistants are also
expected to co-operate and liaise with other departments, under the guidance of their
Head of Department or responsible Principal Officer, where there may be overlapping
policy responsibilities.
Where reasonable, staff may be required to work across departmental boundaries on
the understanding that no member of staff will be expected to undertake tasks
outside their scope or talent. The general expectation will be for employees to
undertake the work for which they are employed within the employing department.
On occasions where the General Secretary identifies specific tasks requiring special
attention, such work may be co-ordinated by another department on a basis to be
agreed by Departmental Heads.
Professional/Administrative Assistants may be asked to assist Principal Officers in
reviewing procedures and systems relating to their areas of work within their
departments, including the use of new technological developments where
advantageous.
Professional/Administrative Assistants may be required to attend
Conference and any such other conferences as may be necessary.
National
PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES
The Deputy General Secretary’s office forms part of the larger Strategy and
Communications Department.
The Deputy General Secretary Support Assistant, under the overall direction of the
Deputy General Secretary, will report to the Principal Officer S&C. The duties of the
DGS Support Assistant will be:
1.
To assist the Deputy General Secretary in the day-to-day administration of
his/her work, in particular to ensure that correspondence is dealt with
effectively, that the office filing systems are efficiently maintained and that the
Deputy General Secretary’s diary engagements are organised.
2.
To assist as required with recording and maintaining accurate notes of officebased meetings under the responsibility of the Deputy General Secretary.
3.
To ensure that telephone calls and enquiries to the office are dealt with
effectively, as directed.
4.
To undertake research appropriate to grade and to maintain up-to-date
relevant briefing and resource materials for the office. This will involve
collating such materials from within the Union and/or from external sources
including the Internet.
5.
To assist with project work undertaken in support of policy areas from time to
time under the responsibility of the Deputy General Secretary.
6.
Under the direction of the Deputy General Secretary, or Principal Officer S&C,
to assist with the servicing of sub-committees or working groups as
necessary. This will involve the organisation of room bookings and
refreshments for meetings, circulating advance notice of meetings, providing
assistance with the preparation and despatch of agendas, accompanying
papers and reports.
7.
To make full use of information communication technology in support of the
efficient organisation of the office including data inputting and the production
of reports, the maintenance of computer based files, contact lists and an
office-forward diary system.
8.
To provide administrative support within the Strategy and Communications
Department, appropriate to grade, as may be required from time to time.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
1.
Skills, Knowledge and Abilities
Essential Criteria
i)
ii)
iii)
iv)
v)
vi)
vii)
viii)
Ability to work as part of a team
Excellent telephone manner
Good oral and written skills
The ability to prioritise work
Excellent attention to detail
The ability to utilise Office 2000 packages, particularly Word, Excel,
Outlook as well as Internet Explorer
The ability to maintain confidentiality
The ability to develop, up-date and maintain an extensive filing system,
both paper and electronics-based
Desirable Criteria
The ability to use other Office 2000 packages, such as Powerpoint, Access as
well as other database packages
2.
Qualifications/Education
Essential Criteria
A good standard of general education
3.
Experience
Essential Criteria
i)
ii)
iii)
iv)
Previous experience in an organisational or administrative role
Experience of working as part of a small team
Experience of dealing with telephone queries in a polite, efficient and
confident manner
Experience of accurate note taking
Desirable Criteria
i)
4.
Experience of working on own initiative
Special Conditions
Essential Criteria
An understanding of and commitment to the Union’s Equal Opportunities
Employment Policy
Desirable Criteria
An understanding of membership
representing professionals
based
organisations/trade
unions