Business Coordinator in South East London

Good Growth is responsible for delivering and implementing the Mayor's environment, transport and economic strategies and for the effective implementation of the London Plan. The Directorate is also responsible for regeneration (where the programme is not housing led), enterprise, growth, capital projects and design work.

The GLA Transport Team is seeking an outstanding candidate to fill a vacancy left by an internal secondment. This is a part-time role of 18.5 hours and we are open to discussing how these hours are managed through the week for the suitable candidate. Working in a busy team, you will act as a first point of contact for enquiries to the team, both internally and externally, including from senior officers and politicians, and respond promptly to requests. You must be able to cope with high volumes of emails, keep track of a large number of tasks and most importantly be able to assess and prioritise work confidently and quickly. You will be relied on to manage processes on behalf of the team and therefore will have outstanding organisational skills and attention to detail. You will have experience in a fast-paced office environment and thrive under pressure. Experience in a political environment would be an advantage, as you will work on sensitive matters on a daily basis.

The successful candidate will join a small team already operating on a job share basis. As such you need to have excellent communication skills and be able to use and improve monitoring processes to ensure you can all keep track of tasks.

What your day will look like:

• Coordinating responses to a high volume of complex correspondence
• Drafting responses to the public, boroughs, politicians and other key stakeholders, in liaison with key contacts at Transport for London.
• Managing briefing requirements for the Transport team on behalf of the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor for Transport
• Liaising with Transport for London to ensure queries from the Mayor, his office and his advisors are dealt with effectively and in a timely manner.
• Raising purchase orders and completing goods received notices via the finance database to ensure the timely confirmation and delivery of required goods and services.
• Developing and maintaining appropriate administrative systems and processes.

Skills, knowledge and experience:

To be considered for the role you must meet the following essential criteria:

• A high level of competence using office information and IT applications, and practical experience of using this to provide high-quality business support, including developing processes and managing confidential information.
• Evidence of proficiency in dealing with complex written correspondence cases.
• Substantial knowledge and evidence of delivering high quality customer services and proven success in applying this knowledge in a comparable high-profile organisation.
• Sound relationship management skills, with the ability to establish and maintain relationships with external stakeholders to help deliver results, including at senior levels.

Behavioural Competencies:

Building and Managing Relationships is developing rapport and working effectively with a diverse range of people, sharing knowledge and skills to deliver shared goals.

Level 2 indicators of effective performance:

• Develops new professional relationships
• Understands the needs of others, the constraints they face and the levers to their engagement
• Understands differences, anticipates areas of conflict and takes action
• Fosters an environment where others feel respected
• Identifies opportunities for joint working to minimise duplication and deliver shared goals

Stakeholder Focus: is consulting with, listening to and understanding the needs of those our work impacts and using this knowledge to shape what we do and manage others' expectations.

Level 1 indicators of effective performance:

• Listens to understand requirements without making assumptions
• Demonstrates an enthusiastic and can-do attitude to all requests
• Provides timely, accurate and personalised responses
• Provides a polite and helpful first point of contact for stakeholders
• Learns from feedback to improve personal service to others

Planning and Organising: is thinking ahead, managing time, priorities and risk, and developing structured and efficient approaches to deliver work on time and to a high standard.

Level 2 indicators of performance:

• Prioritises work in line with key team or project deliverables
• Makes contingency plans to account for changing work priorities, deadlines and milestones
• Identifies and consults with sponsors or stakeholders in planning work
• Pays close attention to detail, ensuring teams work is delivered to a high standard
• Negotiates realistic timescales for work delivery, ensuring team deliverables can be met

Problem Solving: is analysing and interpreting situations from a variety of viewpoints and finding creative, workable and timely solutions.

Level 1 indicators of effective performance:

• Breaks down work issues, seeking further information if necessary
• Provides workable solutions to solve immediate work problems
• Makes suggestions and implements improvements to personal work processes
• Actively supports new initiatives and tries different ways of doing things
• Learns from others' experiences

Organisational Awareness: is understanding and being sensitive to organisational dynamics, culture and politics across and beyond the GLA and shaping our approach accordingly.

Level 2 indicators of effective performance:

• Challenges unethical behaviour
• Uses understanding of the GLA's complex partnership arrangements to deliver effectively
• Recognises how political changes and sensitivities impact on own and teams work
• Is aware of the changing needs of Londoners, anticipating resulting changes for work agendas
• Follows the GLA's position in the media and understands how it impacts on work

Responding to Pressure and Change: is being flexible and adapting positively, to sustain performance when the situation changes, workload increases, tensions rise or priorities shift.

Level 1 indicators of effective performance:

• Stays calm in pressurised and demanding situations
• Responds flexibly to changing circumstances
• Recognises when unable to cope and asks others for help
• Demonstrates openness to changing work priorities and deadlines
• Maintains personal well-being and achieves a balance between work and home life

The GLA Competency Framework Guidelines further detailing each competency and the different level indicators can be found here: GLA Competency Framework.

This role is based at London Fire Brigade's Head Office (Union Street SE1 0LL) but with regular attendance at Palestra, TfL's Southwark office.

How to apply:

If you would like to apply for the role you will need to submit the following:

• Up to date CV
• Personal statement with a maximum of 1500 words. Please ensure you address how you demonstrate the competencies outlined above in the advert.
• Please ensure your CV and Personal Statement have a maximum file size of 1.5MB each and upload your Personal Statement to the CV and Cover Letters section of the form, ensuring you address the competencies in your Personal Statement.
• Word or PDF format preferred and do not include any photographs or images. Please ensure your CV and Personal Statement are saved with the job reference number as part of the naming convention (E.g., CV applicant name - 012345)

As part of GLA's continuing commitment to be an inclusive and equal opportunity employer we will be removing personal identifiable information from CVs and Personal Statements that could cause discrimination.

If you have questions about the role:

If you wish to talk to someone about the role, the hiring manager Kat Stretton would be happy to speak to you. Please contact them at Katherine.Stretton(at)london.gov.uk.

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, contact the glaopdcrecruitment(at)tfl.gov.uk who support the GLA with recruitment.

Assessment process:

Once you have submitted an application, your details will be reviewed by a panel. If shortlisted, you'll be invited to an interview/assessment. The interview/assessment date is: Week commencing 4 August 2025.

Equality, diversity and inclusion:

London's diversity is its biggest asset, and we strive to ensure our workforce reflects London's diversity at all levels. We welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity, sexual orientation, faith or disability. We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic candidates and disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce. We are committed to being an inclusive employer and we are happy to consider flexible working arrangements. We would welcome applications from candidates who are seeking part-time work as this role is open to job share.

Please note we are a Disability Confident Employer so for candidates who wish to be considered under the scheme and meet the essential criteria, they will automatically be invited to interview. Please note, should you require any adjustments through the process, we will accommodate as much as possible. Please contact the recruitment team for further information if required.

Benefits:

GLA staff are hybrid working up to 3 days a week in our offices and remotely depending on their role. In addition to a good salary package, you will be paid every four weeks, providing frequent salary payments. We also offer an attractive range of benefits including 30 days annual leave, interest-free season ticket loan, interest-free bicycle loan and a career average pension scheme.

Additional Information:

Please note, all candidates will need to confirm that the information provided in this application form is true and correct. Should a candidate deliberately give false information, including the use of AI software, they understand that this would disqualify them from consideration. Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record (DBS) check but some roles may require additional security screening.

Secondment Opportunity:

If you are a GLA employee applying for an internal fixed-term position, as an internal secondment opportunity, you must ensure you satisfy the following secondment policy criteria listed below before applying:

• On a permanent contract or a fixed term contract where the time left on the contract at the point at which you apply for secondment is longer than the secondment period;
• Successfully completed your probation period and are performing to the required standard for your current role; and
• At least 18 months service with the GLA.

If you do meet the criteria listed above, you will need to complete the Approval for secondment application form and gain line manager approval, before emailing the fully completed form to the Resourcing Assistant who is managing the vacancy. This form must be received by the closing date of the vacancy. Failure to provide this form will mean your application cannot be progressed. If you are unable to satisfy all of the criteria, unfortunately, you are not eligible to apply for this vacancy as an internal secondment. For further information, please see Secondment Policy and Procedure.

IMPORTANT: If you are a current GLA employee on a fixed-term contract, which is due to end BEFORE the end date of this vacancy, you DO NOT NEED to complete the Approval for secondment application form as it is not a secondment. If you are successful in securing this secondment opportunity, you will need to be released from your existing role, so please ensure that you make your line manager aware of your application.

More Support:

If you have a disability which makes submitting an online application form difficult, please contact resourcingteam(at)london.gov.uk. The GLA is proud to be a Level 2: Disability Confident employer. We are committed to becoming a more inclusive and accessible organisation and creating a truly inclusive and accessible workplace and culture for our disabled staff. We have named Disability Equality as a key corporate priority within our EDI Strategy. We welcome and encourage applications from disabled applicants. Should you wish to opt into the scheme, please let us know during your application.