THRIVE Administrative Assistant

University of Wisconsin-Madison; Madison (WI); On-site; USD 33,062,000 - 38,573,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work flexibility

Job summary

The Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID) at UW–Madison seeks an organized Administrative Assistant II to support the RISE Initiatives, primarily THRIVE HQ. The role involves coordinating meetings, communicating with campus and external partners, and supporting internal research funding processes.

Applicants must work in-person at the WID office with remote work flexibility. The position offers benefits and opportunities to contribute to interdisciplinary health research across AI, EARTH, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• Experience administering projects, tasks, and deadlines with digital tools.
• Ability to solve problems independently and with others.
• Professional communication with clients.

Responsibilities

• Sends, receives, copies, and distributes communications per policy.
• Schedules logistics for meetings, conferences, travel, and operations.
• Maintains electronic/physical records per policy.
• Acts as first point of contact via phone, in person, and other media.
• Collects, analyzes, and prepares communications from established sources.
• Sets up and supports events on-site (registration, troubleshooting, etc.).
• Updates websites and internal pages.
• Provides administrative support for internal research funding competitions.

Skills

Project management

Communication

Scheduling

Problem solving

Client communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Workday

Microsoft Word

Excel

Adobe Acrobat

Google Drive

Box

Zoom

Microsoft Teams

SurveyMonkey Apply

Adobe/Canva

Job description

Job Profile: Administrative Assistant II

Job Category: University Staff

Employment Type: Regular

Job Profile: Administrative Assistant II

Job Summary: The Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID) is searching for an organized, client-focused team member to support the Research, Innovation and Scholarly Excellence (RISE) Initiatives at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. RISE is designed to help address significant, complex challenges of particular importance to Wisconsin and the world. It has three areas of focus: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Environment and sustainability (EARTH), and THRIVE, which aims to harness and grow the university’s reputation as a global powerhouse in interdisciplinary health research that promotes tangibly healthier lives for Wisconsinites and people and communities around the world. The RISE-THRIVE collaboration Headquarters is based at WID, and the successful candidate will be part of a dynamic team supporting this campus-wide effort to grow our portfolio on interdisciplinary health research, spanning health research in laboratory, clinical, and population sciences. This position will primarily support the THRIVE HQ, with some additional support for cross-cutting projects across the three RISE initiatives. The administrative assistant will organize and manage meetings and events; communicate with campus and external partners; and provide administrative support for RISE internal research funding competitions and other functions. In addition, this position will provide administrative support for collaboration of RISE with the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research. Applicants must be able to work in-person at the WID office located in the Discovery building on the UW–Madison campus. This position offers remote work flexibility.

Key Job Responsibilities:

• 10% - Sends, receives, copies, and distributes communications to the appropriate entities according to established policies and procedures under general supervision
• 25% - Schedules logistics and secures resources for meetings, conferences, travel, and work unit operations
• 10% - Maintains established methods and organizational systems directed at the maintenance of electronic/physical records related to work operations according to established policies and procedures
• 10% - Serves as a first point of contact for individuals and groups, provides basic organizational information via phone, in person and through other communication mediums, and routes more complex inquiries to the appropriate entities
• 25% - Collects, analyzes, and prepares various communication materials from established sources utilizing technology mediums
• 5% - Provides on-site setup, registration, troubleshooting, take down, and cleanup for events
• 10% - Updates websites
• 5% - Provides administrative support for internal research funding competitions

Department: Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research – Wisconsin Institute for Discovery

The Wisconsin Institute for Discovery is a research institute on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison that was built to develop a new approach to science driven by unlikely collaborations among outstanding research minds. Strengths in AI and Health, Engineering for Life, and Systems Optimization enable WID to advance basic research and rise to grand challenges.

Compensation: This position is being posted at two levels. The chosen title and hourly rate will be determined based on the applicant’s experience, qualifications, and skillset. Base rates are negotiable.

Administrative Assistant II

• Early career finalists that qualify for the Administrative Assistant II title can expect an annual base rate minimum starting at $24/hour.
• An applicant that meets the required qualifications and some of the preferred qualifications will be considered for an Administrative Assistant II title.

Administrative Assistant III

• More advanced and experienced finalists will qualify for the Administrative Assistant III title with an expected annual base rate minimum starting at $28/hour.
• An applicant that meets the required qualifications and most of the preferred qualifications will be considered for an Administrative Assistant III title. An applicant’s additional unique experience, qualifications, or skillset may also support consideration for the Administrative Assistant III title.

Employees in this position can expect to receive benefits such as generous vacation, holidays, and sick leave; competitive insurances and savings accounts; and retirement benefits.

Required Qualifications: To succeed in this role, candidates must have previous experience and demonstrate the ability to execute in the following areas:

• Administering or managing projects, tasks, and deadlines using digital tools
• Solving problems both independently and collaboratively
• Communicating professionally with clients

Preferred Qualifications: The following experiences and skills are highly valued and will enhance a candidate’s ability to succeed in this role:

• Administratively supporting a group or a team in a professional setting
• Managing event and meeting logistics such as registration, catering, venue reservations, agendas, presentations, and other details, ideally with some of this experience at UW-Madison
• Coordinating calendars and scheduling meetings for multiple individuals
• Updating websites, ideally using the WiscWeb platform / Wordpress
• Handling financial transactions for an organization or office
• Comfortable utilizing the following platforms: Workday, Microsoft Word and Excel, Adobe Acrobat, Google Drive, Box, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or similar virtual meeting platforms; experience with SurveyMonkey Apply and Adobe design software / Canva is a plus
• Prior experience within the University of Wisconsin System or a similar higher education institution is preferred

Education: Bachelor’s degree required

Institutional Statement on Diversity: Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background - people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, visit the Human Resources Workplace Poster website.

To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Please make your request as soon as possible to help the university respond most effectively to you.

Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment.

The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7).

The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.