Executive Assistant to Founder

Blackbook Associates; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Blackbook Associates in Philadelphia seeks an experienced Executive Assistant to the Founding Partner, who travels between Philadelphia and Belgium, and a CFO in New Jersey. The role demands strong gatekeeping, calendar management, and cross-time-zone coordination.

You will handle travel, prepare briefing materials, interact professionally with LPs, and support ad-hoc projects. The environment is fast-paced, discreet, and performance-driven.

Qualifications

• Prior EA experience in private equity, investment banking, hedge funds, or a comparable high-pressure financial services environment.
• Solid working knowledge of PE operations — understanding deal cycles, fundraising cadence, and what that means for workload.
• Exceptional organised with high personal standards — the Founding Partner is detail-oriented and will notice what others miss.
• Composed under pressure and adaptable when plans shift at the last minute.
• Presentable and confident in investor-facing settings.
• Discreet, professional, and trusted with sensitive information.
• Based in or able to commute to Philadelphia — two to three days per week in the office, with increased presence expected during active fundraising.

Responsibilities

• Complex calendar and schedule management across multiple time zones, with the expectation that things will change and you will adapt without friction
• Proactive gatekeeping for the Founding Partner — protecting his time and ensuring he stays on schedule
• End-to-end travel management: flights, ground transport, accommodation, itineraries — often at short notice and subject to change
• Investor-facing duties: representing the firm professionally when interacting with LPs, counterparties, and external contacts
• Coordination support for the CFO: travel, ad-hoc projects, research, and getting things done on his behalf
• Preparation of briefings, correspondence, and materials as required
• Anticipating needs before they are voiced — not waiting to be asked

Skills

Private equity experience

Investment banking exposure

Hedge funds exposure

High-pressure environment

Job description

The Firm

A specialist investment firm headquartered in Philadelphia, currently deploying its fourth fund having invested over $115 million across portfolio companies in the US and Europe. The team is small, highly experienced, and operates at pace - led by a Founding Partner with deep industry and M&A credentials accumulated across senior executive and board-level positions in Europe, and a CFO based in the tri-state area.

This is not a bureaucratic environment. Decisions move fast, priorities shift, and the people around the table are serious operators. The right EA will thrive here.

The Role

You will be the primary point of coordination for a Founding Partner who splits his time between Philadelphia and Belgium, and a CFO based in New Jersey. The Founding Partner requires more intensive day-to-day support; the CFO needs sharp coordination, travel management, and someone who can chase information and move things forward on his behalf.

The transatlantic dimension is real. The Founding Partner operates across ET and Central European time, and your working pattern will reflect that. During fundraising cycles, the pace increases significantly - you should expect this and welcome it.

Day-to-day responsibilities include:

• Complex calendar and schedule management across multiple time zones, with the expectation that things will change and you will adapt without friction
• Proactive gatekeeping for the Founding Partner — protecting his time and ensuring he stays on schedule
• End-to-end travel management: flights, ground transport, accommodation, itineraries — often at short notice and subject to change
• Investor-facing duties: representing the firm professionally when interacting with LPs, counterparties, and external contacts
• Coordination support for the CFO: travel, ad-hoc projects, research, and getting things done on his behalf
• Preparation of briefings, correspondence, and materials as required
• Anticipating needs before they are voiced — not waiting to be asked

What We're Looking For

The outgoing EA has been exceptional and has an excellent relationship with the team. She has set a high standard. Her successor will need to earn trust quickly, get up to speed without hand-holding, and operate with the discretion and polish this environment demands.

• Prior EA experience in private equity, investment banking, hedge funds, or a comparable high-pressure financial services environment
• Solid working knowledge of how PE firms operate — understanding deal cycles, fundraising cadence, and what that means for workload
• Exceptionally organised with high personal standards — the Founding Partner is detail-oriented and will notice what others miss
• Composed under pressure and adaptable when plans shift at the last minute
• Presentable and confident in investor-facing settings
• Discreet, professional, and trusted with sensitive information
• Based in or able to commute to Philadelphia — two to three days per week in the office, with increased presence expected during active fundraising