Job Description

ARA’s Southern Division is seeking a full-time Senior Office Administrator to support a team of approximately 50 engineers, scientists, software developers, and other professionals. This is an on-site position in Vicksburg, Mississippi.

The Senior Office Administrator plays an important role in the day-to-day operations of the Southern Division, providing high-level administrative, proposal, and business support to the Division Manager and division staff. The successful candidate will be highly organized, detail-oriented, proactive, and capable of managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced professional environment.

What you will do as a senior office administrator:

• Provide high-level administrative and operational support to the Division Manager and division staff, including coordinating priorities, tracking action items, managing calendars and travel, planning meetings and activities, and anticipating upcoming needs.
• Support the preparation, review, and submission of proposals and technical reports, including document formatting, quality control, compliance with submittal requirements, and coordination of required materials.
• Develop the knowledge and expertise necessary to serve as a Trusted Cost Proposal Expert (TCPE), supporting the development and review of cost proposals, budgets, cost projections, and estimates for accuracy, completeness, and compliance with established procedures.
• Maintain proposal records, databases, and other document-management and record-keeping systems to ensure information and associated documents are accurately tracked and maintained.
• Collect, analyze, synthesize, and organize information from multiple sources to prepare and review correspondence, reports, spreadsheets, presentations, briefings, and other business materials for accuracy, consistency, and compliance with company templates and style guidelines.
• Proactively communicate with the Division Manager and division staff regarding priorities, deadlines, required information, potential issues, and follow-up actions to help ensure tasks are completed in a timely manner.
• Research, plan, develop, and support division communications and marketing materials for internal and external audiences, working with technical staff to translate complex information into clear, effective content and selecting appropriate communication methods and formats to support division objectives.
• Exercise sound judgment, initiative, and discretion in managing multiple priorities and resolving routine administrative and operational matters with minimal supervision.
• Perform other administrative and division support activities as needed.

Senior office administrator requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 5 years of relevant experience, master’s degree with a minimum of 3 years of relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
• Experience providing senior-level administrative, program, or business operations support.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Adobe Acrobat, including the ability to organize and analyze data and prepare professional reports and presentations.
• Exceptional organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to independently prioritize and manage multiple assignments and competing deadlines while maintaining a high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, with strong proofreading and editing capabilities and the ability to prepare polished, professional business documents.
• Demonstrated initiative, sound judgment, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to work independently with minimal supervision, proactively obtain information, follow up on assignments, and drive tasks to completion while contributing effectively as part of a team.
• Ability to work effectively with technical professionals and become familiar with technical terminology and subject matter.
• Experience researching, planning, and developing communications and marketing materials for internal and external audiences, including working with technical staff to translate complex information into clear, effective content and selecting appropriate communication methods and formats.

About ARA:

ARA is an employee-owned international research and engineering company recognized for providing technically superior solutions to complex and challenging problems in the physical sciences. The company, founded in Albuquerque, NM, in 1979, currently employs more than 2,200 professionals and continues to grow. ARA offices throughout the United States and Canada provide a broad range of technical expertise in civil technologies, computer software and simulation, defense technologies, systems analysis, environmental technologies, and testing and measurement. The corporation also provides sophisticated technical products for pavement analysis, environmental site characterization, and robotics.

At ARA, employees are our greatest assets. The corporation realizes that employee ownership spawns greater creativity and initiative along with higher performance and customer satisfaction levels. ARA gives its employees the tools, training, and opportunities to take more active roles as owners. The culture is challenging; innovation and experimentation are the norm. Employees are eligible for contributions which not only add to the company’s success, but also their own through the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). The motto, “Engineering and Science for Fun and Profit” sums up the ARA experience.