Executive Officer - School of Social Policy - 107494 - Grade 6 in Birmingham

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £33,002 to £35,608 with potential progression once in post to £39,906

Grade: 6

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to March 2027

Closing date: 2nd August 2026

This role is also open as an internal secondment opportunity which would need to be agreed by your current line manager.

Our offer to you:

• People are at the heart of what we are and do.
• The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university.
• We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.
• We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential.
• Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements.

In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Background:

Our shared purpose is to understand the world – but also to work collaboratively to change it for the better. We carry out rigorous and relevant research that acts as a starting point for real-world change through our teaching, professional training, policy advice, and work with local communities.

Role Summary:

The Executive Officer plays a key role in supporting the Head of School and SMT in the management of complex tasks and processes which contribute to the academic endeavour of the School. This role requires the post holder to review and analyse School activity as required, to optimise service delivery and compliance with policies and procedures.

Main Duties:

• Provision of high-quality committee support where necessary, taking minutes and ensuring that any action points are followed up in a timely manner.
• Proactive preparation and collation of meeting-related papers and the production of documents, presentations, and briefings in relation to the work undertaken by the Senior Management Team.
• Effective management of a complex and challenging diary for University business and business related to the Head of School’s roles in other external organisations.
• To deliver continuous improvement in the School through enhancing systems, policies, and procedures, and providing advice to colleagues to facilitate them to achieve similar improvements.
• To lead on the administration of WAM in the School, supporting Heads of Department to ensure timely collection of data.
• To establish, manage, and have oversight for databases and tracking systems within the School.
• To work closely and flexibly as part of a team of School Professional Services Managers to deliver the business needs of the School.
• Line manage the Senior Administrators, providing support, development, mentoring and training.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience:

• Qualified to UK level 5 (e.g. Foundation degree, HND) or equivalent work experience, with a proven ability to grasp complex issues.
• Outstanding organisational, administrative and IT skills, including diaries, emails and MS Office suite of programmes.
• Ability to work effectively under pressure, prioritising appropriately in order to meet multiple deadlines with excellent attention to detail and high standards of accuracy.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to inspire confidence and effectively negotiate with others.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, including establishing effective working relationships with a wide range of staff.
• A high degree of resourcefulness, flexibility, a self-motivating approach and personal judgement.
• Experience of producing and analysing complex source material, information and data.
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010, and how to actively ensure in day to day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.

Informal enquiries to Guvinder Kaur Rajania, email: g.rajania@bham.ac.uk