Executive Assistant to the Chief Financial Officer

Carnegie Mellon University; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Retirement contributions

Tuition benefits

Paid time off

Life insurance

Bus pass

Family concierge

Fitness center

Job summary

Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute seeks an experienced Executive Assistant to support the CFO and manage the CFO’s Office and Finance & Business Services division. You will coordinate calendars, meetings, travel, and communications, building strong relationships across CMU to keep priorities moving.

The role emphasizes discretion, initiative, and independent work, with on-site presence in Pittsburgh.

Qualifications

• Associate's degree and 5–8 years of executive support experience.
• Strong calendar management and coordination skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; high discretion.

Responsibilities

• Proactively manage the CFO's complex calendar and priorities.
• Coordinate leadership meetings, reviews, and key activities.
• Track commitments and ensure follow-through to completion.
• Serve as a liaison between CFO's Office, Finance, and staff.
• Coordinate travel, expenses, meetings, and logistics.
• Identify opportunities to improve administrative processes.

Skills

Executive support

Calendar management

Relationship building

Written and verbal communication

Discretion and judgment

Education

Associate's degree

Tools

Outlook

Teams

SharePoint

Job description

Position Summary Are you someone who anticipates what needs to happen next rather than waiting to be asked? Do you enjoy bringing structure to competing priorities and following things through to completion? Are you comfortable building relationships across an organization to find answers, solve problems, and keep things moving? Do you exercise good judgment and know when to take something on independently and when to ask for help? The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) is seeking an experienced Executive Assistant to support our Chief Financial Officer and help manage the priorities, commitments, and daily rhythm of the CFO's Office and broader Finance and Business Services division. This role is a great fit for someone who takes ownership, asks thoughtful questions, and enjoys being at the center of a busy organization. You'll work closely with the CFO while building relationships across the SEI and Carnegie Mellon University, helping connect people and information, anticipating needs, and making the CFO's Office and broader division more effective.

What You'll Do

• Proactively manage the CFO's complex calendar, anticipating conflicts, priorities, sequencing needs, and preparation requirements.
• Help the CFO stay ahead of upcoming commitments, deadlines, meetings, and follow-up activities.
• Coordinate leadership meetings, quarterly financial reviews, and other key activities, ensuring the right people, objectives, materials, and information are in place.
• Track commitments and follow-up items and help ensure they move forward to completion.
• Serve as a key point of coordination between the CFO's Office, Finance and Business Services teams, administrative staff, and other groups across the SEI.
• Build strong relationships across the organization and proactively find the information and resources needed to get things done.
• Help coordinate division communications, shared information and reference resources, leadership activities, and division events.
• Identify opportunities to improve administrative processes, information flow, and coordination.
• Coordinate travel, expense reports, purchase requests, meeting logistics, space needs, and other administrative and operational activities.
• Handle sensitive executive, financial, personnel, and organizational information with discretion and sound judgment.

Who You Are

• You have an associate's degree and 5–8 years of progressively responsible experience in executive support, senior administrative support, or administrative coordination.
• You are highly organized and detail-oriented, but able to adapt quickly as priorities change.
• You take initiative and can work independently without losing sight of when collaboration or escalation is needed.
• You build relationships easily and are comfortable working with people across all levels of an organization.
• You are an excellent written and verbal communicator with strong judgment and follow-through.
• You are proficient with office and collaboration tools such as Outlook, Teams, and SharePoint.
• Experience directly supporting a senior leader or working in higher education, research, government, defense, nonprofit, or another mission-driven environment is a plus.

Work Arrangement

This is a full-time, on-site position in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with an expectation of working in the office five days per week. Consistent in-person presence is important to the role given the close interaction with the CFO, division leadership, administrative partners, and teams across the organization.

Why SEI

At the SEI, you'll support an organization with a unique national mission while being part of the Carnegie Mellon University community. You'll work closely with senior leadership, build relationships across a complex organization, and have a visible impact on how the CFO's Office and Finance and Business Services division operate.

Joining the CMU team opens the door to an array of exceptional benefits.

• comprehensive medical, prescription, dental, and vision insurance
• generous retirement savings program with employer contributions
• tuition benefits
• paid time off and observed holidays
• life and accidental death and disability insurance
• free Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus pass
• Family Concierge Team to help navigate childcare needs
• fitness center access

For a comprehensive overview of the benefits available, explore our Benefits page.

At Carnegie Mellon, we value the whole package when extending offers of employment. Beyond credentials, we evaluate the role and responsibilities, your valuable work experience, and the knowledge gained through education and training. We appreciate your unique skills and the perspective you bring. Your journey with us is about more than just a job; it’s about finding the perfect fit for your professional growth and personal aspirations.

Location: Pittsburgh, PA

Job Function: Executive Administrative Support

Position Type: Staff – Regular Full Time/Part time, Full time Pay Basis: Salary

More Information: Please visit “Why Carnegie Mellon” to learn more about becoming part of an institution inspiring innovations that change the world.

Click here to view a listing of employee benefits

Carnegie Mellon University is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Disability/Veteran.

Learn more about Student Employment. Please see Faculty Careers.