Senior Administrative Assistant- Government Affairs

Vertex Pharmaceuticals; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston seeks a Senior Administrative Assistant to support the VP of U.S. Government Affairs & Patient Advocacy, the VP of Federal Government Affairs, and the Executive Director of State Government Affairs.

The role manages complex calendars, travel, meetings, contracting, and invoices with independence and discretion. The position focuses on executive preparedness, team operations, and professional interactions with senior stakeholders across internal and external

Qualifications

• Experience handling confidential, sensitive information with discretion.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a primary administrative point of contact for supported leaders and screen, route, and escalate requests.

Skills

Calendar management

Travel planning

Event coordination

Contract administration

Expense processing

Stakeholder management

Executive support

Document preparation

Tools

Microsoft Outlook

Concur

Coupa

Icertis

Microsoft 365

Job description

Job DescriptionGeneral Summary:The Senior Administrative Assistant will serve as a trusted administrative partner to the Vice President, U.S. Government Affairs & Patient Advocacy; the Vice President, Federal Government Affairs; and the Executive Director, State Government Affairs. The role is responsible for complex calendar and travel management, meeting and event coordination, contracting and invoice administration, executive preparedness, and broader team operations. The successful candidate will work with a high degree of independence, judgment, discretion, and attention to detail while managing competing priorities and interacting professionally with senior internal and external stakeholders.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

Executive and Stakeholder Support

• Serve as a primary administrative point of contact for supported leaders, anticipating needs, applying sound judgment, and appropriately screening, routing, prioritizing, and escalating requests.
• Build effective working relationships with senior executives, administrative colleagues, external consultants, government officials and their staff, trade associations, patient advocacy organizations, vendors, and other stakeholders.
• Handle confidential, sensitive, and time‑critical information with discretion and professionalism.

Complex Calendar Management

• Proactively manage complex and frequently changing calendars in Microsoft Outlook, including scheduling across multiple leaders, functions, sites, time zones, and external organizations.
• Resolve conflicts based on business priorities, protect time for critical work, and communicate scheduling tradeoffs and changes promptly.
• Ensure leaders have appropriate preparation time, meeting materials, locations, technology, and logistical information.

Travel and Expense Administration

• Use Concur to independently arrange domestic and international travel, including air, ground transportation, lodging, itineraries, and other required logistics.
• Prepare and process accurate, timely expense reports and related correspondence; manage reimbursement inquiries and coordinate with travel agencies, airlines, hotels, and internal partners.
• Monitor and resolve time‑sensitive travel and logistical issues during business travel, exercising judgment regarding when escalation is required.

Contracting, Procurement, and Invoicing

• Coordinate the end‑to‑end administrative workflow for consultant and vendor agreements through Coupa and Icertis, including intake, routing, approvals, signatures, purchase orders, Statements of Work, invoicing, payment status, and record maintenance.
• Partner with Legal, Procurement, Finance, business owners, and external firms to support timely and compliant contracting and payment processes.
• Support vendor onboarding, invoice reconciliation, payment tracking, and basic departmental budget administration.

Meetings, Conferences, and Events

• Plan and coordinate recurring team meetings, leadership meetings, conferences, off‑sites, dinners, and external engagements.
• Manage venue sourcing, attendee communications, catering, transportation, audiovisual and technology needs, vendor coordination, on‑site logistics, contracts, payments, and expense reconciliation, as applicable; integrate with Corporate Services as needed.
• Coordinate activities in accordance with company meeting, expense, procurement, and compliance requirements.

Executive Preparedness and Document Support

• Develop agendas, gather and distribute pre‑read materials, maintain organized reference files, and track administrative follow‑ups and action items.
• Support the preparation, proofreading, formatting, and distribution of presentations, correspondence, reports, and other business documents.
• Help ensure supported leaders are prepared for meetings, travel, and external engagements while appropriately distinguishing administrative support from substantive government affairs content ownership.

Team and Department Operations

• Support recurring business routines, team communications, shared calendars and resources, distribution and contact lists, onboarding and offboarding, office access, technology, facilities, and supply needs.
• Lead or support administrative and operational projects requiring coordination across functions, vendors, and external organizations.
• Collaborate with administrative colleagues across the organization, share administrative best practices, and provide or receive backup coverage as needed.

Records, Compliance, and Process Management

• Maintain accurate and organized business records in accordance with company policies and applicable document‑retention requirements.
• Follow established requirements for contracting, procurement, expenses, external engagements, and information handling; identify and elevate potential process or compliance issues appropriately.
• Use Microsoft 365 and other enterprise platforms to improve organization, communication, document management, and administrative efficiency

Knowledge and Skills:Experienc