Special Assistant to the Dean

Position Summary

The Special Assistant to the Dean (SA) manages all aspects of executive support for the Dean of Columbia Law School. Reporting directly to the Dean, and working closely with the Dean’s Office team, the SA oversees the planning and management of the Dean’s calendar, including on- and off-site meetings and travel. The SA reviews and directs a high volume of correspondence and ensures that tasks are tracked, prioritized, and completed. The SA serves as the primary point of contact on the Dean’s behalf, and works closely with the Dean’s Office staff—as well as colleagues throughout the Law School and the University—to ensure smooth and efficient operations.

Responsibilities

• Manages the Dean’s highly complex calendar. Schedules appointments and plans travel, exercising sound judgment to assess and prioritize commitments, resolve conflicts, and adapt in response to changing needs. Ensures that the Dean is fully prepared for all meetings, events, and other engagements. Works proactively and engages in long-term planning. Secures space and makes arrangements for technology and facilities support for meetings hosted by the Dean. Books travel for domestic and international business trips, and creates necessary itineraries. Ensures that all arrangements are confirmed and accurate. Interacts with the Dean’s guests and contacts in a welcoming and professional manner.
• Reviews and tracks all incoming communications, including many that pertain to highly sensitive and/or confidential topics, and uses independent judgment to assess their substance and next steps. Identifies priority communications for the Dean’s review; makes recommendations to the Dean for directing inquiries and delegating to senior administrators as appropriate. Drafts email messages, responses, and other correspondence on the Dean’s behalf—with grammatical precision and accuracy in tone and style—as directed by the Dean. Keeps close track of tasks and projects, and follows up to ensure that tasks and threads of conversation are brought to an appropriate resolution in a timely manner.
• Maintains a coherent database of files, including the Dean’s contacts, speeches, remarks, and other relevant information. Answers the Dean’s Office phone and reviews messages received in the Dean’s Office email inbox in the absence of the Executive Assistant/Office Manager.
• Assumes additional responsibilities as needed, including planning and executing certain events that the Dean may host, supporting University-level administrative work in which the Dean may be involved, performing research and/or liaising with the Library to facilitate the Dean’s scholarly work, compiling reports or other information to aid in the Dean’s decision making, and providing assistance on a variety of personal matters for the Dean.
• Prepares materials and coordinates the Dean’s schedule as it relates to courses the Dean may teach. This also includes maintaining the Dean’s course web page, as well as updating any relevant information on other web pages that relate to her teaching or administrative duties.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree. A graduate degree, or time spent in a graduate program, is preferred.
• Four to six years of direct work experience in an academic, government/non-profit, law firm, or corporate environment, providing high-level administrative support to one or more executives.
• Experience working with highly sensitive and confidential matters.
• Prior work in a complex, multi-layered, fast-paced, multi-stakeholder environment is especially desirable.
• Exceptional written communication skills, including the ability to consistently draft correspondence free of spelling or grammatical errors.
• Must be able to type quickly and transpose verbal direction into clear action items and cogent written correspondence.
• Experience with editing and proofreading is a plus.
• Comprehensive knowledge of Gmail, Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides), Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Zoom, and other similar applications, and the ability to learn new technology quickly.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple competing responsibilities at once, be poised under pressure, exercise judgment in prioritizing tasks, and remain calm and focused when faced with urgent issues that may arise.
• Superior organizational skills and a commitment to accuracy, organization, and detail orientation.
• Ability to work irregular hours, including evenings and weekends, on occasion.
• Impeccable judgment and discretion. Articulate, respectful, welcoming, professional, and collegial in an office setting.
• Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to exercise tact and diplomacy, while also being firm and confident. Must have a solution-oriented approach to conflicts.
• Commitment to strong performance, high standards of accountability, and openness to feedback.
• Commitment to the mission of the Law School, including working with diverse constituencies and fostering an inclusive work environment.