Senior PA to Executive Director, International Directoratenew

A fantastic opportunity has arisen to work as Senior PA in the Executive Director’s (ED) Office in International Directorate (ID) based in either our Leeds or London office.

Job Description

This is a challenging and rewarding role with a varied and interesting workload. It would suit an experienced PA or secretary who is highly organised, proactive, discreet and comfortable working in a fast-paced senior office environment. The successful candidate will play a central role in ensuring the smooth and effective running of the ID ED Office, working closely with the Executive Director, the Private Secretary, the wider ED Office team, ID senior leadership and colleagues across the Directorate.

There are a wide range of demands and responsibilities in this area, so the jobholder will need to be very well organised, an excellent communicator, comfortable liaising at all levels internally and externally, and able to handle competing priorities while managing multiple tasks simultaneously. The role requires sound judgement, attention to detail, discretion and the confidence to engage with senior stakeholders across the Bank and externally.

Regular responsibilities include:

• Providing high-quality diary management and administrative support to the Executive Director, ensuring the ED’s time is used effectively and priorities are well managed.
• Working closely with the Private Secretary to prioritise the ED’s internal workflow and external engagement, including the flow of papers, briefings and supporting material.
• Acting as a key point of contact for the ED Office, including close liaison with the Governors’ offices, Deputy Governor (DG) offices, other Executive Director offices and senior colleagues across the Bank.
• Serving as a first port of call for senior external stakeholders, including HM Treasury, the FCA, other central banks, regulators and international organisations.
• Coordinating travel arrangements for the ED, including programmes of meetings, itineraries, supporting documents and expenses in line with Bank guidelines.
• Supporting effective information flow within ID, helping to cascade key messages and ensuring the ED Office is joined up with the ID Leadership Team, ID SLT and wider Directorate.
• Working collaboratively with the Private Secretary, PA colleagues and wider ID support team to ensure the effective running of the ED Office and good communication across the Directorate.
• Maintaining confidentiality and handling sensitive information with a high degree of discretion at all times.
• Acting as a role model for support staff across the Directorate and helping to promote a collaborative, inclusive and high-performing office environment.

Role Requirements

The core of the role is providing excellent PA support to the Executive Director, working closely with the Private Secretary and wider ED Office team. The jobholder will also play an important role in the day-to-day running of International Directorate and will need to demonstrate the following:

Essential Criteria

• Ability to build and sustain strong working relationships and networks, with excellent interpersonal skills and the confidence to deal with senior internal and external stakeholders on a regular basis.
• Experience providing high-quality support to a senior leader, ideally at Scale B level or above.
• Experience supporting complex diary management, travel, meeting logistics, arranging papers and briefings for a principle. 

Minimum Criteria

• Strong organisational, prioritisation and time management skills, with the ability to work in a structured way to a high standard against tight deadlines.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks, issues and stakeholders simultaneously, quickly and effectively.
• Ability to be part of, and work in, a strong team environment, displaying enthusiasm, reliability and flexibility, and being willing and able to take on new challenges.
• Experience of being a self-starter who can operate proactively with limited guidance, using their own initiative.
• Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with a high degree of discretion, maintaining confidentiality at all times.
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Demonstrated commitment to the Bank’s values.
• Ability and willingness to engage with new forms of technology to help the ED Office run efficiently.
• Some experience of managing or helping to set the workload of other staff.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience of having supported an Executive Director or equivalent senior leader.
• Experience coordinating work across a wider support team or helping to promote consistent standards across a group of PA or support colleagues.

About International Directorate

International Directorate’s objective is to maintain the safe economic and financial openness of the UK economy. We do this by monitoring and assessing the impact of global economic and financial risks on the UK, feeding analysis and assessment into the Bank’s statutory policy committees, and by setting and delivering the Bank’s international strategy.

ID leads much of the Bank’s engagement in international policy fora, including through the Finance Track of the G7 and G20, as well as at the IMF, FSB, BIS, NGFS and OECD. We work closely with colleagues across the Bank, HM Treasury, the FCA, other central banks, regulators and international organisations. This is a particularly exciting time to join ID, given the Governor's role as FSB Chair and the UK’s upcoming G20 Presidency in 2027 and G7 Presidency in 2028.

ID is a unique place to work. There is never a dull moment and no shortage of interesting and novel issues to support. ID is also passionate about delivering the Bank’s diversity agenda — retaining and attracting diverse talent and ensuring that the Directorate is a place where all staff feel they belong.