Senior Executive Assistant to CEO

Embrace the Middle East – a Christian development charity working to transform lives and restore the dignity of the most excluded and marginalised communities – is seeking a Senior Executive Assistant to the CEO with insight, organisational skills and governance expertise to make a real impact by enabling strong leadership.

• Supporting the CEO in enabling effective governance by the Board of Trustees, ensuring meetings are well planned, documents are circulated in a timely manner, and minutes are accurate and impartial.
• Coordinating the annual Board and committee calendar, including residentials.
• Maintaining action logs and decision trackers, monitoring progress and supporting timely follow-up to strengthen accountability and assurance.
• Supporting compliance with statutory, regulatory, and internal governance requirements, including Charity Commission and Companies House expectations, safeguarding, data protection, and confidentiality.
• Proactively managing the CEO’s diary and inbox, with strong preparation for all meetings and external engagements.
• Booking UK and overseas travel, accommodation and itineraries, and managing expense claims.
• Drafting and proofing short updates, emails and letters for internal and external audiences.
• Supporting project-based work and providing fundraising and communications support with the delivery of supporter events.
• Assisting with governance-related processes, such as Trustee onboarding, induction materials, training coordination, and annual governance reviews.

• Proven experience supporting a CEO or senior leader in a high-demand role.
• Experience coordinating Board or committee governance, including agendas, papers, minute-taking and action tracking.
• Strong judgement, confidentiality and upward management skills.
• Advanced Microsoft 365 skills (Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, One Note, PowerPoint, Excel).
• Exceptional organisational skills, attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple priorities.
• A proactive, anticipatory working style with the confidence to influence senior stakeholders.
• Experience advising on governance processes and best practice.
• The ability to build clear, reliable systems and workflows across teams.
• Skilled in project support, planning and execution within scope, time, and budget constraints.
• Committed to the Christian mission, vision and values of the charity, either as a practising Christian or as someone supportive of and sympathetic to Embrace’s faith-based ethos.
• Remote and flexible working arrangements.
• Pension, with the option to join from day 1 (maximum employer contribution of 10%).
• 32 days’ holiday, including a day off for your birthday.
• Access to a retail discount portal.
• Life assurance at 3x salary.
• Employee assistance programme offering confidential counselling and legal and financial advice, available 24/7, all year round.
• Training and development programmes.
• Commitment to staff health and wellbeing.

Salary: From £36,000 to £37,500 per annum plus £312 working from home allowance.

Contract: Full-time, two-year fixed-term contract with the potential to extend.

Location: High Wycombe / hybrid (minimum one day per week in the office, with flexibility).