Executive Assistant

Job Summary

The Department of Human Genetics is seeking an Executive Assistant to join our administrative team. This position plays an important role in supporting the department's academic mission by coordinating events, supporting student-facing programs, assisting with training grant administration, and ensuring smooth day-to-day administrative operations.

This is a highly collaborative, people-centered role for someone who enjoys coordinating events, managing details, supporting faculty and students, and helping academic programs run smoothly. The successful candidate will bring demonstrated experience with event coordination and complex scheduling/calendar management. Training will be provided for University of Michigan systems, departmental procedures, purchasing, reimbursement processes, and training grant administration.

The ideal candidate will have excellent interpersonal and communication skills, strong organizational and problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, sound judgment, and a commitment to providing outstanding service to faculty, staff, students, trainees, and visitors.

This role may be especially appealing to candidates interested in developing a career in student services or academic program administration.

This position reports to the Chief Department Administrator and works closely with the Department Chair, GTP Director, Student Affairs Administrator, Research Administration Team, and other administrative staff.

Responsibilities*

The primary priorities for this position are event and seminar coordination, programmatic support for a training grant, complex scheduling and administrative support for department leadership, and support for other departmental academic activities.

Administrative and Leadership Support

• Coordinate meetings and provide complex calendar and scheduling support for the Department Chair.
• Schedule meetings involving multiple internal and external stakeholders; resolve scheduling conflicts and communicate changes professionally and promptly.
• Prepare and process expense reports and Emburse transactions for the Department Chair, Chief Department Administrator, visiting speakers, short courses, and lectureships, ensuring compliance with departmental and institutional policies.
• Research and resolve reimbursement, travel, purchasing, and payment discrepancies.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Event Management and Visiting Speaker Coordination

• Coordinate departmental events, seminars, lectureships, visiting speaker programs, retreats, and other academic or community-building events.
• Manage event logistics, including room scheduling, catering, equipment, vendor coordination, invitations, RSVPs, event communications, materials preparation, day-of support, and post-event follow-up.
• Collaborate with department leadership, faculty, staff, and external guests to ensure event objectives are met.
• Coordinate visiting speaker logistics, including travel, lodging, itineraries, reimbursements, honoraria, and related communications.
• Support major annual events such as the department picnic, faculty retreat, annual retreat, and other department-sponsored activities.

Training Grant Programmatic Support

Provide administrative and programmatic support for the Genetics Training Program, an NIH-funded training grant program that supports graduate trainees in genetics. This role works closely with the GTP Director, DHG Student Affairs Administrator, DHG Research Administration Team, and student services staff to coordinate program activities, track deadlines, support trainees, and ensure compliance with NIH and program policies. Training will be provided on NIH training grant processes, University systems, and program-specific procedures.

• Learn and apply NIH training grant policies, as well as GTP-specific procedures.
• Assist the GTP Director with program communications, recruitment, and admissions activities.
• Process trainee appointments, reappointments, changes, and terminations in xTrain.
• Compile program data and prepare xTRACT tables for annual progress reports and renewal applications.
• Enter and update trainee stipend, tuition, and benefit payments in student financial and HR systems.
• Maintain the GTP alumni, faculty, and faculty representatives data.
• Course support for the GTP-related courses.
• Process trainee travel awards in accordance with GTP Director approval.
• Coordinate Short Course seminars and the GTP Retreat, including agendas, poster sessions, travel, reimbursements, and honoraria.
• Update website content related to the Genetics Training Program.

Other Programmatic Support

• Support department-sponsored academic activities, including coordinating student and research fellow attendance at the American Society of Human Genetics conference and organizing the department's alumni event at the conference.
• Assist staff and faculty arrangements for student recruitment activities at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists conference.
• Provide support for the department's Genetics Immersion Program, which introduces high school students to genetics.

Primary Purchasing Back-up

• Serve as the department's primary purchasing back-up, assisting with Marksetsite+ and Amazon Business purchases and preparing purchase orders based on submitted purchase request forms.
• Ensure purchasing activities comply with university and departmental policies.
• Training will be provided on University of Michigan purchasing systems and procedures.

General Front Office Support

• Serve as a key front office contact by answering phones, greeting visitors, accepting packages, opening and closing the office, maintaining shared spaces after hosted events, scheduling conference rooms, and distributing mail.
• Provide welcoming, professional service to faculty, staff, students, visitors, and external partners.

Required Qualifications*

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, higher education administration, or another related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Three years of relevant experience including demonstrated experience coordinating events and managing complex scheduling/calendar management.
• Demonstrated experience planning and coordinating events, meetings, seminars, or conferences, including managing logistics such as timelines, budgets, room scheduling, catering, travel arrangements, vendor coordination, event communications, and day-of support.
• Demonstrated experience arranging travel and visit agendas for outside visitors.
• Experience preparing expense reports, reconciling transactions, or using Emburse or similar systems.
• Familiarity with University of Michigan travel, reimbursement, procurement, and financial policies and procedures.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a team.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent organizational skills, accuracy, attention to detail, and follow-through.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, meet deadlines, and adapt to interruptions or changing needs.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, solve problems, and maintain confidentiality.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat, and Google Workspace.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate and partner professionally and effectively with a diverse range of stakeholders, including faculty, staff, students, visitors, vendors, and external partners.
• Demonstrated professionalism, reliability, flexibility, and commitment to excellent service.

Desired Qualifications*

• Four or more years of relevant administrative, academic program, student services, research administration, event coordination, or executive support experience.
• Experience in a university, medical school, or research environment.
• Experience with programmatic support for training grants, student programs, academic programs, or recruitment activities.
• Experience with NIH systems such as xTrain and xTRACT.
• Proficiency with Marketsite+, Purchasing Software, and Qualtrics.

Why Join Michigan Medicine?

This position offers the opportunity to be part of a collaborative and mission-driven academic department with strong connections to research, education, and student success. The role is ideal for someone who enjoys variety, takes pride in excellent service, and wants to grow professionally.

Michigan Medicine is one of the largest health care complexes in the world and has been the site of many groundbreaking medical and technological advancements since the opening of the U-M Medical School in 1850. Michigan Medicine is comprised of over 30,000 employees and our vision is to attract, inspire, and develop outstanding people in medicine, sciences, and healthcare to become one of the world's most distinguished academic health systems. In some way, great or small, every person here helps to advance this world-class institution. Work at Michigan Medicine and become a victor for the greater good.

What Benefits can you Look Forward to?

• Excellent medical, dental and vision coverage effective on your very first day
• 2:1 Match on retirement savings

Modes of Work

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

Work Schedule

Standard work hours are Monday to Friday during regular business hours, with occasional early morning, evening, or weekend work to support events.

Work Locations

Due to the