SmartPA

Business Operations Assistant

SmartPA  •  South Africa (Remote)  •  1 month ago
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Job Description

This role is dedicated to one of our key client accounts — a global tech leader — offering the opportunity to work within a fast-paced, high-performing international environment.

Working within SmartPA’s client-facing Centre of Excellence (COE), you’ll be part of the dynamic driving force behind our business, where strategy comes to life to deliver high-impact, tailored support every day.
This is an assignment-based position focused on delivering structured business support tasks, managing workflows, and contributing to operational performance.

Alongside core administration, you will have a multi-disciplinary remit spanning data management, governance, and visual reporting. Because this role supports a global operation, your working hours will be aligned to cover the EST business day, working closely with international stakeholders.

You will play a key part in day-to-day service delivery while ensuring information is accurate, compliant, visually engaging, and accessible to stakeholders.

This role suits a highly organised, systems-confident professional who combines analytical thinking and attention to detail with a natural aptitude for data governance and digital reporting.

Key Responsibilities and Skills

Core Business Support & Workflow Delivery

  • Working within a small team, collaborating onthe end-to-end delivery of business assignments.
  • Prioritising and organising workload across multiple tasks and workstreams.
  • Tracking progress against SLAs and KPIs using digital tools.
  • Maintainingaccuratedocumentation and ensuring quality standards are met.
  • Using systems, platforms, and digital tools to deliver work efficiently.
  • Collaborating with team members to ensure consistent, high-quality output.

Data Operations

  • Managing the lifecycle of complex, unstructured research datasets while ensuring data integrity, compliance, and quality standardisation.
  • Processing, cleaning, andvalidatingraw data using spreadsheets and digital tools.
  • Designing, building, andmaintaininginteractive dashboards, reports, and internal knowledge bases (i.e.GoogleWorkspace,MicrositesandNotebookLM).
  • Translating raw data into clear, visually compelling, and actionable insights.
  • Acting as a guardian for brand and narrative consistency by ensuring all reports, dashboards, and content updates align with brand guidelines and visual standards.
  • Supporting the development and maintenance of communication assets, reporting templates, and data definitions.
  • Developing and documenting standardised processes, standards, and best practices for the content and data lifecycle.

Stakeholder Communication

  • Providing updates to stakeholders on project progress, outputs, and dashboard findings.
  • Working with stakeholders to understand reporting needs, communication requirements, and KPIs.
  • Communicating complex ideas and technical data concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
  • Supporting issue resolution, service quality, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Skills

We hire for attitude as much as experience. A growth mindset and strong sense of accountability go a long way.

Essential

  • Proven experience in administration, business operations, data entry, content management, or operational support roles.
  • Spreadsheet skills (e.g., Excel or Google Sheets), including functions, data validation, and pivot tables.
  • Expertproficiencyin at least one major data visualisation tool (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, or Looker Studio).
  • A demonstrable ability toshowcasehigh-quality dashboards or reports during the interview stage thatshowcaseanalytical clarity and visual standards.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to simplify complex information.
  • Confidence working with multiple systems, software, and platforms in a tech-enabled environment.

Desirable
While not essential, the following would be advantageous:

  • Strong understanding of relational databases and experience querying data using SQL.
  • Experience working with CMS or CRM platforms.
  • Experience with advanced dashboard functionality like calculated fields, complex filters, and parameters.
  • Familiarity with data governance, version control, or structured documentation best practices.
  • Experience working in a fast-paced, KPI/SLA-driven environment.
  • Relevant qualification, formal training, or certification in Data Science, Statistics, Communications, or a related field.

We value transferable skills and diverse experience, so if your background doesn’t align perfectly but you can demonstrate strong organisational capability and professionalism, we still encourage you to apply.

Experience

You will thrive in this role if you:

  • Have experience in administrative, operational, or service delivery roles.
  • Are comfortable and experienced working an afternoon/evening shift pattern to support international time zones.
  • Are highly organised and comfortable managing multiple workstreams simultaneously under tight deadlines.
  • Enjoy working with data and turning complex information into clear, structured, and user-friendly formats.
  • Have a keen eye for formatting consistency and strong attention to detail.
  • Are passionate about making data accessible and understandable to non-technical users.
  • Understand that a beautiful dashboard or report is only as good as its underlying data integrity.

Work Remotely

Yes

Schedule

Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Monday–Friday

  • UK:14:00–22:30 GMT/BST
  • South Africa:16:00–00:30 SAST
  • Shift Alignment: Aligned to cover the 09:00–17:30 EST business day, where key client contact is based.
    • Please note:a later shift pattern can be accommodated if preferred, but we are unable to support an earlier start time for this role.

Job Type

Full-time, permanent

What's in it for you?

We’re ambitious about where we’re going and we’re looking for people who want to grow with us.

  • Competitive salary
  • 33 days holiday
  • Fully remote
  • Ongoing development and career opportunities
  • Department incentives
  • Employee Assistance Programme
  • A genuinely positive, people-first culture

How to Apply

Step 1: Please send us a copy of your CV and a cover letter that outlines how your experience maps to the three core areas of this position: business support, data operations, and stakeholder communication.

Step 2: We ask that you commit to completing a short AI interview which will last no longer than 5 minutes.

Step 3: If successful you'll get an opportunity to meet our team for an online interview. Please note that we may ask you to prepare a short task ahead of the interview.

SmartPA

About SmartPA

We deliver value by taking care of admin and non-core tasks, enabling the productivity of our clients’ stakeholders. Get in touch: info@smart-pa.com

SmartPA ultimately:

🗹 Increase efficiency

🗹 Drive productivity

🗹 Maximise profits

Traditional business models and working practices have changed in recent years. Driven by pressures of the global economy, cost, efficiency goals, and personal work/life balance incentives.

Consumer habits have also evolved, and businesses need to serve their customers when, where, and how they want. Hire a Virtual Assistant and never miss out on that important customer again.

As an agile outsourcing service provider over a decade of experience, SmartPA integrates seamlessly into our clients’ processes, systems, and culture. We become an extension of their team helping to drive efficiencies and generate competitive advantage.

Our mission is to deliver sustained improvement – every step of the way.

We train and mentor our resource pool so we can be relied on to make a continuous positive impact on business operations. With the widest range of administrative skills backed up by a global support community, together we are unstoppable.

➤ Smart Service

Customer experience is at the core of what we do. This means we take pride in ensuring that our service packages are tailored to the specific needs of our clients.

➤ Virtual PA Services

Supporting businesses with diary & email management, transcription, typing, document production and more. Specialist Virtual PA services include EA, HR & Employment, Bookkeeping and Supplier Management, CRM management, social media, and marketing support.

➤ Corporate

We’ve learned and perfected how best to provide agile, flexible, and scalable virtual support for clients of all sizes across the globe. Drawing on a virtually limitless global pool of talent, enabling us to support your business 24/7x365 worldwide.

Industry
Administrative & Office
Company Size
51-200 employees
Headquarters
Edinburgh, GB
Year Founded
2008
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