Executive Assistant to the Board and Company Secretary

At Burberry, we believe creativity opens spaces. Our purpose is to unlock the power of imagination to push boundaries and open new possibilities for our people, our customers and our communities. This is the core belief that has guided Burberry since it was founded in 1856 and is central to how we operate as a company today.

We aim to provide an environment for creative minds from different backgrounds to thrive, bringing a wide range of skills and experiences to everything we do. As a purposeful, values-driven brand, we are committed to being a force for good in the world as well, creating the next generation of sustainable luxury for customers, driving industry change and championing our communities.

Job Purpose

The EA to the Board and Company Secretary plays an important role in the working of the Company Secretariat, where supporting the Company Secretary, the role holder has responsibility for providing appropriately successful meeting management outcomes for the Board and Board Committee meetings; as well as providing 'first port of call' support and counsel to the Board members.

To provide a comprehensive level of administrative and organisational support to the Company Secretary to ensure smooth and efficient running of the function. Acting on behalf of the Company Secretary to take action and decisions in agreed areas of responsibility.

Responsibilties

1. Meetings management (c25%)

Lead and accountable for organising and planning all Burberry Group plc Board and Committee meetings and trips/visits, including:

• Annual Strategy meetings of the plc Board.

• Plc Board meetings, internally and off-site/overseas.

Act as point person and lead organiser at all meetings, including off-site/overseas meetings and visits held over a period of 2 to 3 days, with a leading and accountable role in the planning and orchestration to deliver successful meeting and visit arrangement outcomes. At times, this will require agility to accommodate changing priorities.

Organise Board and Committee meeting papers and guidance for presenters and presentations, reacting to the real-time needs of the meeting.

Provide sound Board guidance and sound judgement to the Company Secretary, in particular the ways of working to improve the management of the Board and Committee meetings.

2. Building trusted relationship with Independent Non-Executive Directors and their PAs/EAs (c25%)

Requirement to build trusted relationship with (non-executive) members of the Board and their EAs/PAs, acting as first port of call not only in respect of queries relating to meeting arrangements, travel and expenses and payroll enquiries but also understanding the complexities of each directors' individual needs and arrangements and cultural differences.

The role also is key in acting as responsible facilitator for the Board as a collective group at the Annual Strategy / overseas visits.

The role will support any required induction activities for any new Board members, working in close conjunction with Company Secretary.

Help to provide the right environment for effective Board and Boardroom dynamics, with a right first-time focus, and remaining calm under pressure.

3. Key support for Company Secretary and the Company Secretariat team (c25%)

Help create an effective and successful environment for the Company Secretary, providing an effective and efficient executive right hand person guidance, support and advice as appropriate to support accountabilities 1 and 2.

Be an ambassador for the Company Secretary and have the confidence, trust and authority to speak on her behalf regarding the meetings management of the Board and as first port of call with the non-executive directors.

4. Other (c25%)

Provide support, as appropriate to the Chair, acting on the instruction of the Company Secretary.

Responsibility for co-ordinating the management of the Company Secretariat inbox and department invoicing.

Management of the Company Secretary's diary, travel and expenses

Responsibility for Company Secretarial team engagement activities and team meeting arrangements.

Provide holiday cover support to the EA to the Chair and General Counsel.

Build strong relationships with the Executive Ream and Exec Admin function

Responsible for relevant sections of the Company Secretariat sharepoint site and filing system, appropriately passworded.

Support for Company Secretarial team members on key projects: eg Annual Report (annual directors' expenses schedules) and AGM

• Partnering closely and working as a true right hand to the Company Secretary
• Thorough understanding of departmental priorities and those of the Company Secretary and using this to proactively manage the diary, requests and workload
• Ensuring the Company Secretary is fully prepared for each meeting, providing background information and previous meeting notes for all external and internal meetings
• Handling IT and maintenance queries for Non-Executive Board members and the Company Secretary

Knowledge, Skills and Experience Required

• At least 5 years in an Executive Assistant or equivalent role (desired).
• High level of professionalism, discretion, commitment and ability to express opinions in a clear, practical and commercial manner (essential).
• Strong events management - focused on orchestrating and managing events for successful outcomes (essential).
• Strong influencing skills - able to gain credence from and to appropriately engage with the highest level of management within a multinational plc (essential).
• Ability to make judgments, build trusted relationships (essential).
• Ability to understand real-time meeting needs (essential).
• Ability to work independently, with an acute sense of responsibility and accountability, and sensitively will require a well-developed sense of maturity, judgement and self-confidence to deal with senior and experienced internal and external business executives (essential).
• Ability to juggle the requirements of the Board with the administrative requirements of the Company Secretary.
• Proactively think ahead, anticipate needs and be confident in taking the initiative
• Highly computer literate, particularly in Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel.
• Diligent Boards, Concur, SAP and Ariba knowledge desirable
• Understanding and adherence to the Exec Admin processes and ways of working - filing, file naming conventions, cover and handover procedures
• Experience with using technology for meetings (Teams, VC, teleconference, Skype, Webex)