Senior Administrative Associate

Job Description

General Summary:

The Senior Administrative Assistant will serve as a trusted administrative partner to the Executive Director, Seattle Research Site Head. The role is responsible for calendar and travel management, meeting and event coordination, contracting and invoice administration, executive preparedness, and broader team operations. The successful candidate will work with a high degree of independence, judgment, discretion, and attention to detail while managing competing priorities and interacting professionally with senior internal and external stakeholders. 
 

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Executive and Stakeholder Support

• Serve as a primary administrative point of contact for supported leaders, anticipating needs, applying sound judgment, and appropriately screening, routing, prioritizing, and escalating requests.
• Build effective working relationships with senior executives (Seattle and Boston Research site heads), administrative colleagues, and other stakeholders.
• Handle confidential, sensitive, and time-critical information with discretion and professionalism.

Complex Calendar Management

• Proactively manage complex and frequently changing calendars in Microsoft Outlook, including scheduling across multiple leaders, functions, sites, time zones, and external organizations.
• Resolve conflicts based on business priorities, protect time for critical work, and communicate scheduling tradeoffs and changes promptly.
• Ensure leaders have appropriate preparation time, meeting materials, locations, technology, and logistical information.

Travel and Expense Administration

• Use Concur to independently arrange travel, including air, ground transportation, lodging, itineraries, and other required logistics.
• Prepare and process accurate, timely expense reports and related correspondence; manage reimbursement inquiries and coordinate with travel agencies, airlines, hotels, and internal partners.
• Monitor and resolve time-sensitive travel and logistical issues during business travel, exercising judgment regarding when escalation is required.

Budget and Invoicing

• Support administrative workflow for vendor agreements through Coupa and Icertis, including intake, routing, approvals, signatures, purchase orders, Statements of Work, invoicing, payment status, and record maintenance.
• Support and manage site budget inclusive of events, employee swag and basic departmental budget administration.

Meetings, Conferences, and Events

• Coordinate recurring team meetings, leadership meetings, conferences, off-sites, dinners, and external engagements.
• Manage attendee communications, catering, transportation, audiovisual and technology needs, vendor coordination, on-site logistics, contracts, payments, and expense reconciliation, as applicable; integrate with Corporate Services as needed.
• Coordinate activities in accordance with company meeting, expense, procurement, and compliance requirements.

Executive Preparedness and Document Support

• Develop agendas, gather and distribute pre-read materials, maintain organized reference files, and track administrative follow-ups and action items.
• Support the preparation, proofreading, formatting, and distribution of presentations, correspondence, reports, and other business documents.
• Help ensure supported leaders are prepared for meetings, travel, and external engagements while appropriately distinguishing administrative support from substantive government affairs content ownership.

Team and Department Operations

• Support recurring business routines, team communications, shared calendars and resources, distribution and contact lists, onboarding and offboarding, office access, technology, facilities, and supply needs.
• Lead or support administrative and operational projects requiring coordination across functions, vendors, and external organizations.
• Collaborate with administrative colleagues across the organization, share administrative best practices, and provide or receive backup coverage as needed.

Records, Compliance, and Process Management

• Maintain accurate and organized business records in accordance with company policies and applicable document-retention requirements.
• Follow established requirements for contracting, procurement, expenses, external engagements, and information handling; identify and escalate potential process or compliance issues appropriately.
• Use Microsoft 365 and other enterprise platforms to improve organization, communication, document management, and administrative efficiency

Knowledge and Skills:

• Experience supporting senior leaders in a complex and fast-paced organization.
• Experience managing confidential matters and interacting with senior internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience with procurement, events or vendor administration, invoice workflows, and enterprise systems such as Concur, Coupa, and Icertis, or the ability to learn comparable platforms quickly.
• Proficiency in Microsoft 365, including Outlook, Teams, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel, with strong document-formatting, proofreading, and written communication skills.
• Ability to effectively leverage AI-enabled productivity tools (e.g., Microsoft Copilot and other approved enterprise technologies) to improve efficiency, enhance organization, streamline administrative processes, prepare meeting materials, conduct research, and support day-to-day business operations while exercising sound judgment and maintaining compliance with company policies.
• Proven ability to independently manage multiple projects while maintaining accuracy, follow-through, and attention to detail.
• Strong judgment and problem-solving skills, including the ability to resolve non-routine issues, communicate conflicts and tradeoffs, and escalate matters appropriately.
• Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills, with a highly professional and service-oriented approach.
• Ability to anticipate needs, adapt quickly to changing priorities, and remain composed and effective under pressure.
• Excellent organizational skills, initiative, accountability, and motivation.

Pay Range:

Disclosure Statement:

Flex Designation:

Flex Eligibility Status:

In this Hybrid-Eligible role, you can choose to be designated as: 
1.    Hybrid: work remotely up to two days per week; or select
2.    On-Site: work five days per week on-site with ad hoc flexibility.

Note: The Flex status for this position is subject to Vertex’s Policy on Flex @ Vertex Program and may be changed at any time. 

#LI-Hybrid
 

Company Information

Vertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation.

Vertex is committed to equal employment opportunity and non-discrimination for all employees and qualified applicants without regard to a person's race, color, sex, gender identity or expression, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, marital status, or any characteristic protected under applicable law. Vertex is an E-Verify Employer in the United States. Vertex will make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with known disabilities, in accordance with applicable law.

Any applicant requiring an accommodation in connection with the hiring process and/or to perform the essential functions of the position for which the applicant has applied should make a request to the recruiter or hiring manager, or contact Talent Acquisition at [email protected]