Special Assistant (IS-0301-12)

Application Deadline: 9 February 2024

Department: National Museum of the American Indian

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Washington, DC

Reporting To: Director, National Museum of the American Indian

Compensation: $99,200 - $128,956 / year

Description

OPEN DATE: January 22, 2024

CLOSING DATE: February 9, 2024

POSITION TYPE: Trust Fund

APPOINTMENT TYPE:

SCHEDULE: Full Time

DUTY LOCATION: Washington, DC

Position sensitivity and risk:Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Open to all qualified applicants

What are Trust Fund Positions?

Trust Fund positions are unique to the Smithsonian. They are paid for from a variety of sources, including the Smithsonian endowment, revenue from our business activities, donations, grants and contracts. Trust employees are not part of the civil service, nor does trust fund employment lead to Federal status. The salary ranges for trust positions are generally the same as for federal positions and in many cases trust and federal employees work side by side. Trust employees have their own benefit program and may include Health, Dental & Vision Insurance, Life Insurance, Transit/Commuter Benefits, Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance, Annual and Sick Leave, Family Friendly Leave, 403b Retirement Plan, Discounts for Smithsonian Memberships, Museum Stores and Restaurants, Credit Union, Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center (Child Care), Flexible Spending Account (Health & Dependent Care).

Conditions of Employment

• Pass Pre-employment Background Check and Subsequent Background Investigation for position designated as low risk.
• Complete a Probationary Period
• Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer.
• The position is open to all candidates eligible to work in the United States. Proof of eligibility to work in U.S. is not required to apply.
  
  

Overview

The Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) seeks experienced and highly motivated candidates to fill the position of Special Assistant to the Director. The purpose of this position is to ensure successful operation of the Director's office and to assist the Director in managing and meeting all his/her priorities and obligations. The incumbent contributes to the effective and efficient management of NMAI, providing information, program, and issue analyses on a variety of issues. This role translates directly into NMAI meeting its priorities and obligations and achieving its mission.

The NMAI is responsible for affirming to Native communities and the non-Native public, the historical and contemporary culture and cultural achievements of the Indigenous peoples of the Western Hemisphere by advancing, in consultation, collaboration and cooperation with them, a knowledge and understanding of their cultures, including art, history, and language, and by recognizing the Museum's special responsibility, through innovative public programming, research, and collections, to protect, support, and enhance the development, maintenance, and perpetuation of Indigenous culture and community.

This position is located at the National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Occasional travel will be required. The Smithsonian Institution is an equal opportunity employer.

Please note, this is a trust position and applications are not through USA Jobs; all that is required is an uploaded CV or resume to the online job application and a cover letter in the space provided at the online form. Please highlight how your resume and experience connect to the requirements of the position in your cover letter. A resume can be more than two pages given that it should include a description of your paid and non-paid work experience that is related to this job, starting and ending dates of job (month and year), and average number of hours worked per week.

Duties And Responsibilities

• Serves as the Special Assistant to the Director of the Museum ensuring smooth operations in the front office by using organizational skills and exercising considerable diplomacy and tact.
• Serves as the primary point of contact for staff and other visitors to the Director's office.
• Manages Director's calendar, accepting, declining, rescheduling, or arranging alternate representation for meetings, speaking engagements, ceremonies, travel, and other obligations.
• Maintains an awareness of all activities important to the Director, and anticipates all materials needed by the Director for various meetings, reports, and a wide range of museum functions.
• Assists other senior staff in the Director's office as requested by the Director. Provides advice to the Director on the integration, coordination and execution of information and tasks in support of staff actions.
• Keeps informed as to the mission, organizational structure, key personnel, current activities, status of current projects, and any issues affecting the activities over which the Director has responsibility.
• Provides advice and recommendation on matters relative to the coordination, integration, and synchronization of events and activities personally affecting and involving the Director.
• Evaluates and provides recommendations to resolve current problematic conditions or situations in administrative processes, and to prevent potential for future problems. Presents oral reports and briefings associated with ongoing issues, actions, and concerns and provides recommended solutions as appropriate.
• Monitors and facilitates all communications, including regular and electronic mail, telephone calls, and personal visits. Review proposals, inquiries, recommendations, and other communications; gathers, prepares, and analyzes for relevance and/or assures that background information is provided.
• Based on knowledge of Director's preferences, forwards items not requiring the Director's attention to other officials or staff. Reviews issues that are typically diverse in nature and may require input from various activities and staff elements. On the Director's behalf, ensures that all communications include the appropriate managers and staff. Follows up to assure that responses are timely. Ensures that all written materials are in correct format and style and are free of spelling, typing or grammatical errors.
• Contributes to the development, coordination, drafting and implementation of the museum-wide policy and guidance pertaining to office administrative procedures and directives, with advisory, administrative, and technical staff members; to ascertain and evaluate needs, opinions, and anticipated effects when considered appropriate; and to implement higher level policies and guidance.
  
  

Qualification Requirements

• Knowledge of Native American culture, history, and contemporary issues and professional and special interest organizations and groups, and tribal community structures and hierarchies. Ability to meet and deal directly with the public, diverse dignitaries and special interest groups/ professional organizations, and multi-cultural situations.
• Ability to plan and coordinate a wide variety of activities relating to the programs of the Museum, to include coordinating and tracking the flow of incoming and outgoing correspondence; planning and scheduling meetings, conferences and travel; designing and organizing filing systems; locating and assembling information; following up with management and staff for assignments and commitments; organizing, coordinating and prioritizing a large amount of paperwork and electronic documents; and managing day-to-day activities.
• Knowledge of the museum's mission, policies, programs, operations, and administrative procedures to perform and support a variety of management and administrative support functions and to provide technical guidance, ensure constancy of approach among the staff, and analyze and evaluate responses to ensure they are substantively accurate in cases where the issues involve administrative or factual information.
• Skill in planning, scheduling, coordinating, and conducting projects sufficient to evaluate and recommend improvements in effectiveness and efficiency of work operations of programs that are of great personal interest and concern to the Director.
• Knowledge and understanding of management principles, practices, methods, and techniques as well as skill in integrating administrative services with the general management of an organization in order to plan and coordinate functions of the office. This requires knowledge of and skill in dealing with organizations, methods, personnel, and other management resources.
• Skill in customer service to respond to inquiries and assignments from multiple sources; to anticipate and respond to needs of the Director; to support the collaborations between the Director and senior staff, senior SI management and Senior Leadership Team; and to respond to staff and others' visits, phone calls and emails.
• Skill in written communication to prepare, review and edit correspondence, email, and reports for Director.
• Skill in oral communication to delegate on behalf of the Director, receive phone calls and guests, arrange meetings, prepare, and review correspondence, brief executives, and staff on issues of interest to the Director and make arrangements for meetings, travel, and other commitments.
  
  

Applicants, who wish to qualify based on education completed outside the United States, must be deemed equivalent to higher education programs of U.S. Institutions by an organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials. This documentation is the responsibility of the applicant and should be included as part of your application package.

Any false statement in your application may result in your application being rejected and may also result in termination after employment begins.

The Smithsonian Institution values and seeks a diverse workforce. Join us in "Inspiring Generations through Knowledge and Discovery."

Resumes should include a description of your paid and non-paid work experience that is related to this job; starting and ending dates of job (month and year); and average number of hours worked per week.

What To Expect Next: Once the vacancy announcement closes, a review of your resume will be compared against the qualification and experience requirements related to this job. After review of applicant resumes is complete, qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager.

Relocation expenses are not paid.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The Smithsonian Institution provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation should contact [email protected]. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis. To learn more, please review the Smithsonian's Accommodation Procedures.

The Smithsonian Institution is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We believe that a workforce comprising a variety of educational, cultural, and experiential backgrounds support and enhance our daily work life and contribute to the richness of our exhibitions and programs. See Smithsonian EEO program information: www.si.edu/oeema.