Executive Assistant to CEO | ITV PLC | (November 2023 to present)
Fast-paced corporate role supporting a senior member of ITV’s executive leadership team, providing comprehensive administrative support
- Managing calendars: managing the back-to-back diary of an extremely busy principal. Scheduling meetings at board level, co-ordinating with multiple senior stakeholders, requiring great attention to detail, the ability to multitask and prioritise effectively
- Time management skills: managing time for the COO, slashing time spent on administrative tasks and ensuring preparedness and punctuality
- Inbox Management: responding or referring as appropriate, to up to 150 emails per day, ensuring prioritization and maintaining strict confidentiality around sensitive information.
- Travel arrangements: booking national travel arrangements and accommodation ensuringand that the company T&E policy is adhered to. Management of expense reports via Concur, ensuring a thorough filing and reference system is in place
- Stakeholder Management: liaising with industry leaders, board members and A-list talent building good relations and representing the company
- Document preparation: printing and photocopying documents and preparing Board Packs. Typing up, editing & checking business correspondence and presentations and spreadsheets and overseeing overall document management against pressured deadlines.
- Event planning: assisting with planning & overseeing hospitality budgets to manage large seasonal team social events for 400 people.
- Confidentiality: using established protocols, applying good judgment and utmost discretion in handing sensitive and confidential information.
- Representing the COO: maintaining rigorous professionalism at all times in and out of the office
- Meeting follow-up: attending meetings to capture meeting minutes, and gather important action points.
- Ad-hoc: researching and making restaurant reservations, ensuring personal, social and family logistics are synchronised with work priorities, always ensuring tact and discretion. Booking private appointments, making reservations, paying bills.
Owner & Customer Service | Monkey Music June (2010 to June 2023)
Ensured the smooth running of the back office and systems, coordinating events, workshops and weekly classes for a premium award-winning activities provider, providing for up 1000 families weekly (including multiple UHNW) in London
- Schedule management: complex class scheduling requiring advanced organisational skills, ensuring 1000 people were in the right place every week.
- HR & leadership: managing a team of 8 diverse personalities ensuring collaboration and team building leading to strong performance & retention of 80% over 10 years
- Change Management: implemented strategies to manage pre-existing team and optimise existing sales & marketing processes and tripled growth in first year
- Systems & processes: CRM design, technical support, extensive vendor management & negotiating contracts, leading to streamlined booking & work processes
- Technology & website management: updated website regularly and implemented improvements. Ensured all devices were updated with correct software and applications, maintained hardware and oversaw networking of devices and synchronising of accounts.
- Finance systems: placing orders, invoicing and producing detailed reports of expenses on Excel and Quickbooks
- Customer Service: handled a high level of enquiries and ensured any complaints were dealt with effectively.
- Marketing: created and placed press releases, posted and updated social media accounts over multiple platforms, monitoring and improving engagement over time.
Power Television | Chief of Staff | June 1996 to June 2010
Original linchpin team member, providing exceptional executive support, project management and office management, working in partnership with the UHNWI CEO & founder at C-suite level in a TV production and distribution company creating drama award-winning series for ITV & BBC
- Administrative Support: complex calendar management, gatekeeping and prioritising meetings, ensuring optimal time use across multiple time zones and facilitating smooth communications between our CEO and stakeholders over a portfolio of companies. Triaging & drafting correspondence or responding to correspondence on behalf of principal, ensuring tact, diplomacy and confidentiality.
- Direct reports: Heads of Finance, Marketing, Production, Legal and all the office support staff were all direct reports. I was also responsible for staffing and overseeing the smooth running of the Family Office.
- Personal: was the primary contact for organising personal commitments including assisting with household management, planning of holidays, school events, social engagements, personal fitness and medical appointments.
- HR & leadership: candidate selection and first round interviews and negotiated contracts with new hires. Ensured high employee retention & stability in the team.
- Event Planning & Management: arranged company events (up to £250k budget) in London, Cannes & LA . These included large press conferences, film launches launches and networking events managing budgets and cost management. This often requiring strong problem-solving skills, creative solutions & robust negotiations and complex logistics.
- Stakeholder management: acted as company ambassador with agents, A-list talent & senior 3rd party stakeholders
- Marketing: directly line managed the marketing department overseeing press releases, brand development and production of sophisticated marketing materials for TV titles
- Project coordination: conducting research and delivering on a diverse range of stand-alone projects: including £30k new website build, digitising back catalogue of 10k hours & setting up overseas offices in 5 territories.
- External Advisers: liaising with lawyers and various advisers on a number of complex multi-jurisdictional legal and tax matters (business and personal)
- Travel arrangements: coordinated frequent complex private & commercial international global travel including: understanding preferences, preparing detailed itineraries, organising visas, booking flights, arranging accommodation, producing seamless travel experiences. Booked family holidays with £50k budgets.
.
