Receptionist / Administrator in St Albans

Mercer & Hole is a Top 50 accountancy practice, which has just celebrated its 120-year anniversary and was recognised as one of the top 100 Great Places to Work in 2026. We remain independent with 28 partners and approximately 300 employees across our four offices. We provide comprehensive accounting, tax, and advisory services to a diverse clientele. Mercer & Hole pride themselves on developing people in a variety of professions such as in audit and tax.

We are looking to enhance our front of house reception, as such we seek a motivated and organised individual – with demonstrable relevant customer facing and administrative experience to join our receptionist team in St. Albans. This is an excellent opportunity to gain hands-on experience in a professional office environment. You will be encouraged to learn, grow and develop by supporting the day-to-day administrative functions of the business, developing key skills in communication, organisation, IT systems, and client service.

Main function of job

We are looking for the right individual who will be primarily based on reception but will be constantly curious to seek out ways to support other departments with administrative duties, projects to develop their role and the front of house offering.

Main duties

• To greet and deal with visitors in a professional manner
• Answer all incoming calls professionally and efficiently
• General Reception duties i.e. booking couriers/ordering lunches etc
• Opening and scanning incoming mail
• Franking all outgoing mail for those who do not have direct administrative support
• Inputting archive data and scanning
• Booking client records/in and out of the building
• Recording client documents and following procedure for their safe keeping
• Keeping meeting rooms tidy and stocked up with pads and pens
• Refreshments for client meetings
• Responsibility of opening and locking front doors
• To assist if required with general administration within other departments, such as HR with work experience programmes
• Supporting with ad hoc reception and administration tasks as required by the business

For the other administrative teams, you will be trained to be able to carry out the following tasks:

• Diary management including arranging and confirming meetings and arranging catering as required
• Drafting correspondence from templates where required
• Where appropriate help to complete client take on documentation and complying with AML procedures
• Managing scanning requirements of different departments such as confidential documentation and arranging for secure return of original documents, or uploading quarterly valuations, annual tax reports, trust working papers so they can then be destroyed
• Maintaining online technical library and circulating links to weekly updates
• Monitoring emails that arrive for partners and forwarding where relevant
• Working with the HR/ Learning and Development team co-ordinating training course administration for professional staff where appropriate and ad hoc administrative tasks
• You will be encouraged to be our Charity Champion
• Helping with arranging required social events
• Getting involved in CCH Data Cleansing

Aptitudes and Skills required:

• Able to deal confidently and effectively with clients, employees and partners
• Good written and oral communication skills
• Able to adapt communication style as required
• Self reliant and pro-active with the ability to use own initiative
• Must be able to multi-task with strong organisation and prioritisation skills
• High attention to detail
• Ability to work effectively within a team

Equipment/Software Packages used and experience required:

• Strong knowledge of MS Suite software (Word, PowerPoint and Outlook)
• CCH or similar Document Management System (desirable)

If you think this is something you would be interested in, then do apply! We really want to attract and retain individuals who share our Values:

• Together: The firm with the family feel. Express gratitude. Smile. Be humble and confident. Have fun.
• Resilient: Change is imminent, and business is imperfect. Be open minded & agile. Assume positive intent and exercise the power of positive thinking.
• Understanding: Each individual matters and will be heard and respected. Honesty, integrity, empathy and kindness are fundamental.
• Supportive: We support what is important to you and show kindness in our behaviour to each other. We encourage each other to realise our potential.
• Thrive!: We strive to be the best, innovate and always do exceptional work. That’s who we are and what our clients deserve.

Mercer & Hole is committed to cultivating and preserving a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). Our people are our most valuable asset. We bring our life experiences, knowledge, creativity, and talents together at Mercer & Hole making it a unique place to work where all can safely thrive.