Special Assistant, Corporate and External Affairs Group

Position Description
 

Clark Construction Group, LLC is seeking an experienced Special Assistant in its Corporate and External Affairs Group. The Special Assistant will serve as a key operational and administrative partner, helping to ensure the effectiveness and responsiveness of the group. The ideal candidate will have at least five to seven years of demonstrated experience serving as an office manager, executive assistant, or chief of staff in a C-suite environment in a diplomatic or legislative office, as part of a trade association or think tank, or similar. The ideal candidate will be highly organized, professional, proactive, as well as have the ability to anticipate and adapt to changing priorities. He or she will bring a solutions-oriented, “can-do” attitude and thrive on variety in a fast-paced environment. Given the group’s engagement with a wide variety of external stakeholders, the ideal candidate will operate with a high degree of professionalism, diplomacy, cross-cultural competency, and responsiveness.  

Key Responsibilities

• Schedule and Work Flow Management: Understand and support the team’s goals, priorities, and responsibilities. Help ensure effective work flow and time allocation by managing daily, weekly, and monthly priorities and schedule. Understand, track, and help respond both to incoming requests from stakeholders as well as to the group’s proactive initiatives and outreach efforts.  

• Trusted Point of Contact: Serve as a highly reliable, trusted point of contact for internal and external stakeholders, including clients, professional advisors, trade association leaders, public officials, and community leaders.  

• Events, Meetings, and Travel Management: Support the planning, budgeting, scheduling, communication and coordination of various executive-level client and stakeholder meetings and events. 

• Financial Management:  Help support departmental budgeting and accounting by monitoring monthly spending.  

• Continuous Operational Improvement with AI: Support continuous improvement of departmental workflow and processes by utilizing the company’s AI tools. 

• Special Projects: Provide management and coordination for special projects that support department and company priorities. 

Qualifications

• Associates’ or Bachelor’s degree in a related field; 

• Minimum of five to seven years of relevant experience, including supporting senior executives;

• Demonstrated ability to think and act proactively to anticipate the needs of executives;

• Strong interpersonal skills and the demonstrated ability to manage multiple and changing priorities;

• Strong command of the English language, both written and verbal; native fluency or full professional proficiency in German desired but not required; 

• High degree of professionalism, client focus, and ease when interacting with various internal and external stakeholders, including company executives, clients, advisors, partners, business leaders, public officials, and community leaders; 

• High level of diplomacy and cross-cultural competency, including demonstrated ability to interact and build rapport with local, state, federal, and international stakeholders; 

• Strong planning and organizational skills, as evidenced by successful project and process management as well as the ability to track and manage various requests, action items, and other priorities;

• Attention to detail and the ability to develop documents, plans, or presentations that are complete, concise, and accurate;

• Flexibility and willingness to provide support to other projects and/or parts of the company;

• Ability to maintain discretion and confidentiality in all aspects of job responsibilities;

• Ability to work independently, problem solve, and use good judgment, with a high degree of self-motivation and initiative; 

• Ability to work overtime if/when needed to meet business requirements; 

• Proficiency with AI tools to streamline work processes highly preferred; and 

• Expert proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and Google Suite (Mail, Docs, Sheets) required. 

This is a full-time, in-person position based in our Washington, DC and/or McLean, Virginia office. The office is Metro-accessible; however, access to a car for transportation is a plus.  

The Physical Side of the Role: Given that a good portion of your day will be spent at a desk, you should be comfortable with prolonged periods of focused work, whether it's collaborating with colleagues, analyzing data, or developing strategies. The role demands effective communication and sharp visual acuity for reviewing complex documents and performing detailed computer work. While there are times for quiet concentration, you'll also be expected to move actively throughout the office and travel occasionally to various locations, including dynamic construction sites, utilizing different modes of transportation. The ability to lift and move objects up to 10 pounds regularly, and up to 25 pounds on occasion (think a box of files or small office equipment), is also required.

Your Work Environment: Your primary workspace will be in our professional office, which has a typical, quiet-to-moderate noise and light levels. As part of your work, you may also be required to visit active construction sites. These environments are naturally more dynamic and can include exposure to outdoor weather conditions, louder noise, and moving equipment. Your safety is our top priority, and you'll be expected to follow Clark Construction's safety policies and procedures, and all applicable laws, at all locations.

Our High-Performing Culture: This is a demanding, high-performance environment. We are looking for candidates who are energized by challenge, thrive under pressure, and are prepared to do what it takes to achieve exceptional results. Success in this role requires significant commitment, including flexibility to work extended hours, especially during critical project phases or client deadlines. Beyond regular working hours, there will be occasions where business needs require your attention, particularly for time-sensitive matters or emergencies. You are expected to monitor and respond to communications (phone calls, emails, text messages) as required to address these situations effectively. Your ability to manage these expectations and be responsive when critical issues arise is key to your success in this role and our collective success as a team.

A Drug Free Workplace: Clark promotes a drug free workplace. A pre-employment drug “fitness for duty” screening is required, and the company conducts random quarterly drug “fitness for duty” tests.

Clark offers a total compensation package that includes base salary, bonus potential, and a comprehensive benefits package including health/dental/vision benefits, paid time off, retirement/401k, and Company Contribution plan. Additional benefits include life insurance, commuter benefit, short & long term disability, fitness reimbursement, FSA, tuition reimbursement, back-up daycare, tutoring & family support benefits, EAP/Work-Life assistance, and a holiday contribution program. For this role the base salary range is $45,000 - $110,000. Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. Base pay is one part of the Total Compensation Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work. https://www.clarkconstruction.com/careers/clark-experience