Office Assistant – G06

Office Assistant – G06

Duties and Responsibilities:

- Coordinate work activities related to official travel and visa requirements with other support staff in consultation with their respective supervisor.

- Ensure that target dates and deadlines are met, reminding professional and support staff of such, to ensure that correspondence and queries are responded to in a timely manner, as well as verifying that outgoing correspondence is presented in accordance to the GS/OAS style and quality standards, checking language, grammar and accuracy prior to submitting for signature and clearance as appropriate; ensuring that technical reports and documents are in line with to the OAS standards, rules, practices and procedures, editing and correcting them, as necessary.

- Perform secretarial duties, including, but not limited to, drafting general or administrative correspondence on own initiative or on the basis of instructions, to finalize correspondence/reports; prepare letters and Memoranda of Agreement, purchase orders, contracts, etc. which include, but is not limited to, monitoring their completion and following-up on payment; liaising with the Assistant to the Secretary/Director, as appropriate; analyzing incoming correspondence and requests in the light of background material, instructions, policies and precedents; researching, obtaining and attaching background information in anticipation of the supervisors' and other professional staff members’ needs, or redirecting them as appropriate; identifying and highlighting incoming documents and background information, those areas requiring action by professional staff members, and drawing their attention to specific items and deadlines.

- Request information from various areas of work within and outside the Secretariat / Department, programs, agencies and institutions to facilitate action independently or as instructed.

- On a regular basis and in a timely manner maintain, and/or ensure the maintenance of, the area of work’s filing system, ensuring that all technical documents are available; controlling access to confidential documents, and obtaining relevant documents as required.

- Type documents, tabular materials and prepare presentations using Power Point and other software packages on own initiative or on the basis of instructions.

- Organize and/or oversee the organization meetings, workshops, seminars, etc. which includes but is not limited to drafting agendas, lists of participants, letters of invitation, ensuring that briefings and participants' files are prepared and readily available, meeting room are reserved, official travel arrangements and reservations processed in due time, etc; attending meetings to take notes and drafting minutes when required; during meetings, to provide or ensure that secretarial support is available.

- Screen and receive visitors and telephone calls with tact and discretion; making appointments, answering queries and/or redirecting visitors/callers with diplomacy and courtesy, obtaining background information on the purpose of appointments.

- Within the delegated authority, enter and check that data and documents concerning budget and financial matters are up-to-date, ensuring that expenditure codes are valid and funds available.

- Perform other related duties as assigned, including replacing and backstopping for others.

Qualifications:

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

Essential: High school or technical/commercial training and 7 years of relevant experience in administrative operations and/or secretarial work OR advanced training and 5 years of relevant experience. Training in the use of a broad range of software including Oracle or a similar financial management system.

COMPUTER SKILLS: Ability to effectively work using Microsoft Office (e.g. Outlook, Word and Excel) and other software applicable to the area of work.

Essential – Proficient in at least two of the following languages: English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish (read, write and communicate). Language proficiency examination will be required.

Desirable – Working knowledge of the other two languages.

PERSONAL COMPETENCIES: Client Orientation, Knowledge Sharing, Teamwork, Interpersonal Skills. Ability to clearly communicate in the languages required for the post.

The GS/OAS embraces equality, diversity and inclusion. Thus, the GS/OAS, in accordance with its rules and regulations, is committed to providing equal opportunities in employment, achieving a diverse staff, and will take into account a wide geographic representation, as well as gender equity and equality, in the selection of candidates.

In accordance with paragraph f. of Article 44 of the General Standards, the official languages of the Organization are English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.  No candidate for a position in the General Secretariat subject to the competition requirement shall be contracted until he/she has passed language proficiency exams administered by the DHR in at least two of the official languages. Nevertheless, i) Any candidate, including staff member whose native language is one of those four languages shall only be required to demonstrate proficiency on an exam in one of the others; and (ii) Persons applying for G-1 and G-2 positions at Headquarters and G-3 driver/clerk positions in those Offices of the General Secretariat in the Member States where the language requirement unduly restricts the recruitment of otherwise qualified staff shall be exempt from this language proficiency requirement for as long as they occupy those positions. Subsequently, in order to be eligible to compete for a higher-level position, any staff member who has benefited from this exemption must demonstrate proficiency in a second official language of the Organization. (iii) A person selected as the best candidate may receive a fixed-term contract, which will be considered to have lapsed in case the person does not pass the required language examination within the 36 months following the appointment.

Please note that the mandatory retirement age for staff members at the General Secretariat of the OAS is 65.