Business Support Officer

Job id: 085865. Salary: Grade 4: £32,979 - £ 36,396 per annum, including London Weighting Allowance.

Posted: 06 March 2024. Closing date: 01 April 2024.

Business unit: King's Education. Department: King's Foundations.

Contact details:Laura Martin. [email protected]

Location: Strand Campus. Category: Professional & Support Services.

Working at the centre of King’s Foundations, the Business Support Team delivers a human-centred service, continuously ensuring that the team is well organised, effective and efficient.   

The successful candidate will have excellent interpersonal skills and bring a commitment to quality and consistently deliver excellent customer service. You will be highly organised, demonstrate professionalism and high standards.  You will have a good eye for efficiency and process improvement, with energy and enthusiasm. The role encompasses the following areas: 

• Departmental business support, including maintaining/auditing departmental inventories, financial support including purchasing and invoicing, IT/Estates support and Health & Safety
• Event management: internal and external events and conferences
• Human resources support, including pay/expense claims, staff recruitment support, staff induction support
• Communications, including managing the team inbox and responding to staff queries, sharing departmental news and events, active use of MS Teams for staff updates
• Resources: physical resources for office areas, memberships, licences

This post will be offered on an indefinite contract. This is a full-time post - 100% full time equivalent

General

• To work within the Business Support principles and responsibilities to deliver a pro-active, approachable service.
• Act as a key point of contact for King’s Foundations Staff providing a friendly, efficient and professional service, including reception cover. 
• Ensure all users are aware of, and abide by, appropriate College and Faculty policies including use of IT, copyright compliance, equal opportunity regulation, health and safety and fire evacuation regulations and local or department guidelines and procedures relating to acceptable use of the Centre’s facilities 
• Ensure that staff and visitors, have appropriate space and equipment, liaising with Estates and Facilities and IT as appropriate. 
• Act as a Health and Safety Officer. 
• Embrace the core values and responsibilities of the Business Support team to provide a service that is not only proactive but also personable and accessible. 

Departmental business support

• Support the administration of day-to-day departmental financial transactions, including purchasing, invoicing, records reconciliation, expense claims, maintaining comprehensive electronic and hard copy records and escalating any problems to senior staff. 
• Resolve issues with departmental resources by working closely with colleagues throughout the College such as IT or AV services, Facilities and Estates, HR, Finance and other academic departments. 
• Undertake a range of procurement activity in accordance with King’s Financial Procedures, including managing physical resources, ordering and receiving deliveries. 
• Provide advice to departmental staff on financial processes. 
• Deliver efficient administration of meetings, including scheduling meetings according to the annual meetings calendar, servicing (note-taking or formal minuting) and supporting Chairs with follow up activity. 
• Organise department events such as staff socials and Away days, including liaison with organisers, outside speakers, compiling risk assessments and ground support on event days. 
• Provide general administrative support for health and safety compliance 

Staff Communications

• Deliver King’s Foundations all-staff communications and information areas  
• Manage the team mailbox, triaging and responding to staff queries in a timely and professional manner 
• Maintain and communicate information about the department on the notice boards, within staff handbooks, on departmental web pages, intranet, MS Teams and through staff newsletters 

Human resources

• Support new starter induction for teaching and professional services staff, including GTAs, acting as a point of reference for queries and advising them on the College procedures and referring them to appropriate College services and contacts (e.g. Security, HR, IT) 
• Provide administrative support for a range of HR processes, such as probation, appraisals, promotion, working patterns, recognition pay, CPD, AEP applications  
• Assist with the recruitment of staff, ensuring recruitment processes and guidance are followed. 
• Maintain electronic and manual filing systems in accordance with GDPR. 
• With the Senior Business Support Officer, process pay and expense claim forms and manage local staff records  

Communication and networking

• Develop excellent relationships with key internal and external stakeholders
• Participate in departmental, Centre, campus and college-wide fora and networks as appropriate, covering for colleagues as required 
• Participate in and contribute to Business Support Network meetings  
• Communicate effectively following King’s Communications Guidance ensuring inclusive and accessibility styles are adopted. 
• Regularly communicate with Business Support team, the King’s Foundations Executive team, all King’s Foundations staff, CIEL colleagues and other teams across King’s College as required. 

Teamwork

• Contribute to the overall professional services team, to planning and delivering professional support to staff 
• Provide training to support teaching and professional services staff in the use of College systems, providing written guidance notes or manuals  
• Assist with any other duties as may be required from time to time, including providing cover for colleagues, both within KF and across the Centre and College 

Other

• Undertake any other duties that might reasonably be required  
• Collect, interpret and analyse sets of data to inform decision making 

The above list of responsibilities may not be exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such tasks and responsibilities as may reasonably be expected within the scope and grading of the post.

Essential criteria

1.       Excellent interpersonal and customer service skills, able to interact with a wide variety of people in a professional and assured manner 

2.       Confident and competent IT skills, including the use of electronic resources, MS Office applications and databases 

3.       Excellent communication skills and attention to detail, including appropriate use of English in formal documents, professional emails and writing for the web 

4.       Competent in managing complex data and generating user friendly reports 

5.       Demonstrable ability to work independently and pro-actively, multi-task and to balance competing priorities in a busy, pressured work environment  

6.       Ability to regularly review processes and propose improvements 

7.       Commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion 

Desirable criteria

8.       An understanding of business and/or income generating activities 

9.       Understanding of the Higher Education sector