Senior/Associate (Executive Assistant), EPD Pillar (Contract)

SUTD (Singapore University of Technology & Design); Singapore; On-site; SGD 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Singapore University of Technology & Design (SUTD) seeks an experienced Executive Assistant to the Pillar Head in the Engineering Product Development (EPD) Pillar. This role requires proactive, high-level support, independent judgment, and ownership across curriculum, research, grants, and stakeholder relations.

Responsibilities include end-to-end calendar management, briefing cycles, drafting concise correspondence, coordinating travel and events, and confidential liaison with faculty and

Qualifications

• 5-8 years of PA/EA experience to senior leadership
• Own outcomes and anticipate needs, not just tasks
• Excellent written communication skills
• Strong calendar and stakeholder management
• Discretion with confidential matters
• Self-directed, organised, proactive
• Collaborative cross-functional teamwork
• Proficiency in MS Office: Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Teams

Responsibilities

• Manage a complex calendar with full ownership and briefings
• Conduct structured daily/weekly briefings to set priorities
• Draft and manage correspondence with complete information
• Coordinate travel, events, and meetings end-to-end
• Liaise with faculty, leadership, and external stakeholders confidentially
• Anticipate issues and minimise disruption
• Exercise sound judgment on urgent vs. planned items
• Collaborate with Programme Directors, Lab Managers, admin teams
• Serve as coordination point between offices and functions
• Build strong cross-functional relationships for effective support

Skills

Executive support

Calendar management

Stakeholder management

Written communication

Discretion

Organisational skills

Team collaboration

MS Office

Tools

MS Office

Job description

About the Role

The Engineering Product Development (EPD) Pillar at the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) is seeking an Executive Assistant to provide high-level, proactive support to the Pillar Head. This is a support role suited to an experienced PA who can operate with a high degree of independent judgment, take ownership of outcomes rather than tasks, and anticipate the needs of a busy academic leadership office spanning curriculum, research, grant review, faculty affairs, and institutional representation.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage a complex, fast-changing calendar with full ownership, proactively resolving conflicts, verifying meeting logistics and access details in advance, and ensuring the Pillar Head arrives at every engagement fully briefed.

• Conduct structured daily/weekly briefings to confirm priorities, close out action items, and surface issues early, keeping a systematic and professional communications.

• Draft, summarise, and manage correspondence with complete, self-contained information, incorporating substantive content directly for clarity and ease of action.

• Coordinate travel, events, and meetings (including the quarterly faculty meeting) end-to-end, with full ownership of outcomes such as attendance.

• Liaise professionally and confidentially with faculty, university leadership, and external stakeholders (government agencies, industry partners) on the Pillar Head's behalf.

• Anticipate potential issues and address them in advance, minimising disruption to ongoing work.

• Exercise sound judgment in distinguishing matters requiring immediate attention from those that can be addressed at the next scheduled briefing.

• Collaborate closely with the wider Pillar administrative team, including Programme Director, Lab Managers, Student Administration, Teaching Support, and Outreach, to ensure effective coordination and information flow across functions.

• Serve as a coordination point between the Pillar Head's office and these functions, following up on cross-team action items and tracking deadlines and dependencies to completion.

• Build strong, collegial working relationships across the administrative team, recognising that effective support to the Pillar Head depends on close cross-functional collaboration.

What We're Looking For

• At least 5-8 years' experience as a Personal Assistant /Executive Assistant to senior leadership, ideally in an academic, research, or institutional setting.

• A demonstrated track record of owning outcomes, not just completing tasks, someone who checks whether a result serves its purpose, not only whether an instruction was followed.

• Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to produce clear, complete, and actionable correspondence.

• Strong calendar and stakeholder management skills, with meticulous attention to detail.

• Discretion and sound judgment in handling confidential academic, personnel, and administrative matters.

• Self-directed, organised, and proactive, with the ability to stay well aligned through regular structured briefings.

• A collaborative, team-oriented working style, with the ability to build good working relationships across a diverse administrative team (Programme Directors, Lab Managers, Student Administration, Teaching Support, Outreach).

• Proficiency in MS Office (Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Teams).

Working Arrangements

This role is based on-site with the Pillar Head, with regular structured briefings forming the core of day-to-day coordination. Work-from-home arrangements may be considered on a planned basis in line with university policy.