Executive Assistant, Francis Crick
CEO
£54-62.1k
Biomedical research institute
Be an early applicant
Biomedical research institute
1001+ employees
Be an early applicant
£54-62.1k
1001+ employees
Company mission
To discover without boundaries.
Role
Who you are
- Extensive executive support experience with at least 5 years supporting a C-suite or equivalent senior leader in a complex, high-profile organisation
- Outstanding organisational and problem-solving skills, with a demonstrated ability to think strategically, anticipate challenges, and offer proactive solutions
- First class communication skills with experience of drafting clear and concise briefings, reports and other types of communication for a wide range of audiences, including senior management
- Exhibiting the gravitas and professionalism to act on behalf of the Director with both internal and external stakeholders
- Outstanding inter-personal skills and strong emotional intelligence with the ability to interact effectively with colleagues at all levels within the institute, displaying gravitas and able to offer advice, guidance and challenge where necessary
- Resilient with an aptitude for, and enjoyment of, a dynamic, high workload. Capable of thriving in a high-pressure environment while maintaining professionalism and composure
- High level of integrity, with the ability to handle confidential and sensitive information discreetly
- A background in a scientific, academic or research environment is helpful, but not essential.
- What matters most is your resilience, professionalism, and ability to support a leader operating at the pinnacle of global science.
What the job involves
- This is an exciting opportunity to support Professor Edith Heard as she steps into the role of Director and CEO of the Francis Crick Institute, succeeding Nobel Laureate Sir Paul Nurse.
- We are seeking a highly accomplished and exceptional Executive Assistant to play a key role in supporting her leadership as she shapes the next chapter of the Crick’s remarkable journey
- As Executive Assistant to the Director, you’ll play a pivotal role at the very heart of one of the world’s leading scientific institutions.
- You’ll operate in a fast-paced, high-profile environment, acting as the Director’s trusted advisor, right hand and strategic operator.
- You’ll bring extensive experience supporting senior, high-profile individuals at C-suite level within complex, high-profile organisations and manage a demanding schedule, coordinating national and international engagements
- You’ll be an exceptional communicator, skilled at managing a broad range of diverse senior stakeholders and building credibility and trust, liaising confidently with everyone from Nobel Prize-winning scientists and global research leaders to government ministers, major funders, and royalty
- To succeed in this role, you’ll need exceptional organisational skills, sound judgement, and the confidence to build trusted relationships at the highest level.
- Calm under pressure and able to anticipate needs, you’ll bring clarity, discretion and drive to everything you do.
- You will ensure the smooth and effective running of the Director’s office, and help to deliver the Crick’s bold mission to drive benefits for human health
- Coordinating the Director’s complex and dynamic calendar, maintaining oversight of all priorities and commitments and ensuring optimal alignment of internal and external obligations
- Ensuring the Director is optimally prepared for all meetings and other events, providing all documentation, briefings etc. in a timely manner, and providing effective follow up
- Proactively managing the Director’s high volume email inbox, ensuring timely responses, appropriate delegation and effective prioritisation of critical communications
- Drafting, editing and managing high level correspondence, reports and presentations
- Acting as a ‘gatekeeper’ in communications with global science leaders, institutional partners, government agencies and philanthropic stakeholders
- Acting as the Director’s ‘eyes and ears’, ensuring that all relevant matters are brought to the Director’s attention and presented in the most appropriate and informative way
- Liaising and building effective working relationships with Board members, including the Chairman, and their offices
- Handling confidential information with the upmost integrity and discretion
Salary benchmarks
Our take
The Francis Crick Institute was founded in 2015 through the merger of the MRC's National Institute for Medical Research and CRUK's London Research Institute. Its mission is to push the boundaries of our understanding of how life works, and it is the largest single-site biomedical research institute in Europe.
One of the Institute's strengths is its ability to collaborate extensively with external research groups, boasting partnerships in more than 90 countries. These collaborations, however, pose data protection challenges due to the need to transfer vast amounts of sensitive information across borders. The Institute has addressed this by developing its own Trusted Research Environment toolkit, which allows remote teams to share data securely and compliantly in the cloud.
The institute secured £1 billion in funding back in 2022, and is maximising its effectiveness through the BRIDGE network and investments in AI and machine learning. A notable example is Google’s subsidiary DeepMind establishing a research lab within the institute to enhance biology and genomics research.
Freddie
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
10% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (1 round)
Jul 2022
$1.3bn
GRANT
Total funding: $1.3bn
Company benefits
- 28 days of holiday each year, plus three additional days (usually taken over Christmas) and bank holidays
- Defined contribution pension scheme, with the Crick contributing between 3% - 16% of salary
- Life assurance
- Season ticket/car parking loan
- Annual leave purchase
- Childcare support allowance
- Back-up dependent care
- Discounted annual gym membership
- Bike to Work scheme
- Payroll giving
- Shopping discounts
Company HQ
Somers Town, London, UK
Leadership
Paul Nurse
(CEO)The first Director and Chief Executive of the Francis Crick Institute. Was previously President of Rockefeller University in New York. In 2001 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine as part of a team that discovered the role of protein molecules that control the duplication of cells.
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