Job Description

Position Profile: Executive Assistant – Walker West Music Academy

kpCompanies is leading the search for the next Executive Assistant for our client, Walker West Music Academy. The Executive Assistant serves as the primary point of contact for the Executive Director and also serves as a liaison with the Board of Directors. Reporting directly to the Executive Director, the Executive Assistant provides executive support in an one-on-one working relationship.

THE ORGANIZATION: Walker West Music Academy

• Walker West Music Academy (WWMA) is a quality, well rounded community school of music as well as an outreach institution whose artistic purpose is committed to the recognition, education and celebration of diverse cultures through the study of their unique expression and contributions to the language of music.
• For 30 years, Walker West Music Academy has provided people of all ages and backgrounds with music education and enrichment reflective of the African-American experience. Walker West Music Academy has continued to provide accessible community music education to more than 200 students each and every week in the organization's 6,938 square foot facility at 760 Selby Avenue in Saint Paul's Summit-University neighborhood.

POSITION:

Reporting directly to the Executive Director, the Executive Assistant provides executive support in a one-on-one working relationship. The Executive Assistant serves as the primary point of contact for the Executive Director and also serves as a liaison with the Board of Directors. The Executive Assistant must be creative and enjoy working within an environment that is mission-driven, results-driven, and community oriented. The ideal individual will have the ability to exercise good judgment in a variety of situations and will possess strong written and verbal communication, administrative, and organizational skills. The ability to maintain a realistic balance among multiple priorities is imperative. The Executive Assistant must be able to work under pressure at times to handle a wide variety of activities and confidential matters with discretion.

PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Provide comprehensive support services to the Executive Director that ensures outstanding communication and responsiveness.
• Provide sophisticated calendar management; prioritize inquiries and requests, troubleshoot conflicts with little guidance, make judgments and recommendations to ensure smooth day-to-day engagements.
• Support Executive Director with internal and external communications.
• Conduct research and analysis on issues of interest to the Executive Director (i.e. grant research.
• Support multiple projects.
• Manage all scheduling and meeting logistics for the Executive Director.
• Prepare and edit correspondence, presentations, reports, and memos.
• Complete governmental and regulatory compliance paperwork.
• Maintain quality filing and communications systems including contact management,

document management, and archiving.

• Work with the marketing team to manage website and social media accounts.
• Support Executive Director with donor/funder relations (grant research & grant writing support).
• Assist in other administrative tasks as needed.

o Annual work plan development

o Monthly financial reporting

o Audit preparation

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Below are some of the typical requirements for an Executive Assistant. We recognize that skill sets can be a complex combination of experiences. Even if your background does not exactly match these requirements but you have a passion for our work, we would love to hear from you and we recognize the value of transferable skills.

• 2 years related work experience
• Worked in non-profit sector
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to take initiative, multi-task, be a team-player, be flexible, adapt to shifting priorities, and prioritize work
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
• Demonstrated writing and analytical skills
• Excellent organizational skills, commitment to accuracy and attention to detail
• Ability to access a wide range of sources and networks for information
• Good judgment and ability to function independently
• Good working knowledge of all Microsoft Office applications, Google Suite, and social media
• web platforms
• Ability to manage up
• Ability to handle sensitive and confidential situations with diplomacy
• Highly experienced in electronic communications

HOW TO APPLY

Walker West has partnered with kpCompanies in this search.  Interested candidates should submit cover letter, resume, and salary expectations (PLEASE COMBINE RESUME AND COVER LETTER INTO 1 DOCUMENT TO UPLOAD)  no later than 9:00 pm on Wednesday, January 18, 2023. All submissions are received in strictest confidence. 

You can apply by submitting your application online here: https://evoportalus.tracker-rms.com/kpCompanies/MyLite?id=1076

Equity & Salary Disclosure

We believe in practices that create real equity and pay parity regardless of background or identity and we freely discuss compensation with all qualified candidates the first time we interview them. Saving the salary discussion for the first conversation allows us to fully understand the needs of each candidate and to ensure that qualified candidates, even those who’ve historically been overlooked and/or underpaid, don’t self-select out of the processes based on salary alone, as our experience and research suggests. In addition to those who opt out because they fear the salary may be out of reach for them, we equally don’t want to miss out on conversations with candidates who are slightly over the range when in some cases the total compensation including factors such as bonuses, flexibility, and better health benefits, etc may exceed expectations. Finally, as a search firm – we are always looking for top-notch talent to introduce to our clients. Should the salary or any other requirement not be a fit, there is often a chance that someone on our team is working on another position you may be a better fit for. If you would like to discuss your qualifications for this role as well as discuss salary and compensation - just give us a call, we’d be happy to discuss!