Terms of Reference

ETHIOPIAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION INSTITUTE 

Position:                            Executive Assistant

Term of Employment:    Six month

Duty Station(s):               Addis Ababa

Required Number:          One

Application deadline:      July 10, 2022

Background: 

 The Agricultural Transformation Institute (ATI) has been established by the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) to identify and address systemic bottlenecks to Ethiopia’s agricultural development. The Institute does this through problem-solving, implementation support, and capacity building of stakeholders involved in the implementation of interventions that address the systemic bottlenecks. 

ATI has an exceptional team of highly competent and committed staff with proven track records of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results. Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great results as an individual and as a member of a team. 

ATI provides a unique platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector. We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training.  We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our teams with the tools, training and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals.

The programmatic focus of the Institute responds to a core set of needs identified by the Ministry of Agriculture and other sectors along commodity value chains. Across the programs, the ATI engages public, private, and non-governmental stakeholders to support strategic planning, manage and strengthen implementation capacity and test innovative models. Currently, ATI is tasked to coordinate the revised Agriculture and Rural Development policy agendas of the sector and such sectoral level delegation requires high level expertise in the policy areas and skillsets in coordination and networking with multiple stakeholders.

Position Summary:

The Executive Assistant will provide administrative support to the Director General and Deputy Director General in a one-on-one working relationship. The Executive Assistant will prioritize urgent issues requiring attention, monitor deadlines, ensure the accuracy of communications, and serve as the primary point of contact for internal and external constituencies on all matters pertaining to the Office of the DIRECTOR GENERAL. The Executive Assistant will also serve as the Office Manager for the Office of the DIRECTOR GENERAL, taking responsibility for the day-to-day organization and coordination of office operations, procedures, and resources to facilitate the effectiveness and efficiency of the Office.

The Executive Assistant will report to and support the Director General (DG) with matrix reporting to Deputy Director General (DDG).

Essential Duties:

• Swiftly monitor, prioritize, and deal with all incoming correspondence to the DG/DDG on a wide variety of often complex subjects.
• Proactively sort what needs action by the DG/DDG and what can be dealt with by other members of the ATI, making the connections with others who will need to contribute. Follow up with others to ensure timely responses to deadlines to ensure the DG/DDG does not inadvertently miss deadlines and opportunities.  
• Ensure the DG is properly prepared and briefed for events and meetings; arranging briefs to be written from different staff members of the ATI; quality controlling and pulling together advice; organizing pre-meetings and where appropriate attending to take notes.
• Manage the DG schedule including proactively managing stakeholder engagement; arranging meetings; making judgments about priorities and rescheduling where necessary; exploring travel options; organizing business itineraries; and making all practical arrangements to ensure the smooth running of the schedule and best use of the DG’s/DDG’s time. Maintain the DG’s/DDG’s stakeholder and other contact information.
• Undertake secretariat/admin support activities, including drafting letters and reports, taking notes/minutes, preparation of documents and presentations, data collection, preparing agendas, responding to incoming mail, record management, as well as reviewing and compiling various documents.
• Act as first point of contact for the DG office for visitors and telephone inquiries, internal and external, and often very senior people, using judgment to determine where individuals should be passed on to alternative managers.
• Assign, monitor and ensure the distribution of Incoming correspondences regularly and timely.
• Identify and deal appropriately with urgent requirements when the DG/DDG is absent or engaged. 
• Other duties as assigned

Master’s degree in business administration or related fields of study with 3 years relevant experience respectively, out of which at least 2 years as Assistant to high level management

• Excellent oral and written communication and interpersonal skill
• Demonstrated behaviour towards organizational values with high integrity.
• Fluency in English & Amharic language
• Highly collaborative with well-developed organizational skills
• Ability to multitasking and prioritizing tasks.
• Excellent and effective time management skills and punctual
• Attention to details
• The ability to effectively manage email, calendar, travel, and meetings  
• Ability to work under pressure and in a constantly evolving and challenging environment
• Proficient in the use of MS- Outlook, Power Point, excel and Word.