Administrative Associate

Administrative Associate

Cérélia operates a state-of-the-art commercial bakery and production facility in Whitehall, Ohio, a 150,000-square-foot plant that opened in September 2021 and serves as the U.S. manufacturing hub for the Jus-Rol brand. Our Whitehall facility specializes in ready-to-bake chilled dough products—including pizza dough, pie crusts, puff pastry, and cookie dough—and continues to expand with new product lines to support national growth. Team members enjoy modern onsite amenities such as a fitness center and EV charging stations, all within a clean, innovative, and fast-growing environment. While our Whitehall plant is new, Cérélia's roots trace back to 1974, evolving from a France-based bakery into an international leader in dough innovation. As we grow, our people grow with us—if you're passionate about doing meaningful work with a company on the rise, we'd love to hear from you.

Role Profile

The Administrative Associate supports site operations by providing comprehensive, reliable, and timely administrative and operational assistance in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. This role is responsible for scheduling and planning, travel arrangements, visitor coordination, data entry, transcription, expense processing, and customer communication management. Success in this position requires strong attention to detail, proactive follow-through, adaptability, and the ability to manage multiple priorities while supporting diverse stakeholders and maintaining production-focused operations.

Role Location & Work Schedule

This Administrative Associate role is based fully onsite in Whitehall, Ohio. Core business hours are from 8:00 am - 5:00 pm Mon - Friday.

Primary Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive administrative and operational support to ensure smooth, efficient, and professional daily site operations in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Serve as a trusted administrative partner to site leadership, demonstrating strong executive presence, professionalism, and sound judgment, and supporting C-suite interactions during site visits and through coordination with international administrative partners.
• Communicate confidently and professionally with site leaders, managers, employees, visitors, vendors, and external partners in person, by phone, email, and video.
• Prepare, distribute, and track meeting agendas, materials, minutes, and follow-up actions while maintaining strict confidentiality of sensitive information.

• Manage complex scheduling and calendar coordination for site leadership, proactively resolving conflicts and prioritizing operational needs.
• Coordinate leadership meetings, site visits, and cross-functional discussions, ensuring logistics, materials, and follow-through are completed accurately and on time.
• Act as a liaison between site leadership and internal teams to support clear communication and timely execution.

• Coordinate domestic and international travel arrangements, including itineraries, lodging, ground transportation, and policy compliance; manage changes as needed.
• Support onsite leadership visits and executive engagements by coordinating visitor access, security requirements, meeting space, and hospitality.
• Plan and support meetings, trainings, and events, including catering, room setup, materials, and headcount coordination.

• Perform accurate data entry, transcription, and record maintenance across systems and spreadsheets, ensuring data integrity and confidentiality.
• Follow up with internal and external stakeholders to obtain required or time-sensitive information.
• Analyze administrative or operational data and prepare clear, professional PowerPoint presentations and summaries for leadership review based on requirements.
• Maintain organized and secure digital and physical filing systems; conduct quality checks to ensure accuracy and completeness.

• Prepare, process, and reconcile expense reports and vendor invoices with accuracy and discretion.
• Verify purchase orders, receipts, and related financial documentation; escalate discrepancies appropriately.

• Prioritize multiple tasks and manage work through the full task lifecycle while consistently meeting deadlines.
• Apply sound judgment when handling confidential matters and resolving routine issues; escalate risks or concerns as appropriate.
• Adhere to company policies and procedures and support a respectful, inclusive, and professional multi-cultural work environment.
• Perform other duties as assigned to support evolving business needs.

Working Conditions

• Fully onsite role in a professional office environment with up to 24/6 operations; overtime may be required.
• Business casual and/or professional attire required.

Minimum Qualifications Education and Experience

• High school diploma or equivalent required.
• 1–2 years of administrative support experience in a professional environment preferred; relevant education or training may substitute for experience.

Technical and Administrative Skills

• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) with strong keyboarding and typing skills; ability to quickly learn other administrative software and office technology.
• Experience with data entry, transcription, document organization, scheduling/calendar management, expense reporting, and invoice processing.
• Comfortable utilizing approved AI-enabled tools and technologies to support administrative tasks such as data organization, document preparation, communication drafting, and reporting.
• Demonstrated interest in identifying opportunities to responsibly use AI to streamline processes, improve efficiency, and reduce manual work, while maintaining accuracy, confidentiality, and compliance with company policies.

Professional Competencies

• Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion and professionalism.
• Strong organizational skills with high attention to detail, accuracy, and the ability to multitask and meet deadlines.
• Excellent verbal and written communication, customer service, and interpersonal skills.
• Sound judgment, problem-solving skills, and understanding of when to escalate issues.

Work Style and Attributes

• Self-motivated, adaptable, and able to manage changing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Calm and professional under tight deadlines.
• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively within a team.
• Positive attitude and commitment to timely, high-quality work.

Physical Requirements

• This position requires the ability to remain in a stationary position (sitting or standing) for extended periods while performing computer based tasks.
• The employee must be able to operate a computer and other office equipment, including keyboards, phones, and printers.
• The employee must be able to communicate effectively in person, via phone, and in written communication.
• The employee must be able to move within the office to access files, attend meetings, and interact with colleagues.
• The employee may occasionally be required to lift and move items up to approximately 10–15 pounds (e.g., office supplies or documents).
• The role requires visual acuity to view a computer screen and read documents with or without corrective lenses.
• The employee must be able to work in a food manufacturing environment where pork products, alcohol, gluten, dairy, and common allergens—including tree nuts and peanuts—are present.

Core Competencies

• Drive High Performance: Establish clear accountability for outcomes. Stays focused and disciplined in planning and execution. Takes initiatives to overcome challenges. Celebrates wins and acts with urgency to keep momentum.
• Collaborate: Works as One Team. Builds relationships and makes commitments to others and follows through. An active listener who understands and communicates openly while engaging in healthy debate. Supports and execute decisions when they are made.
• Innovate: Challenge the status quo by pro-actively identifying opportunities to make things better. Encourages team to share best practices, be creative and try new things. Experiments, incorporates learning and adjusts as needed. Acts with speed and agility while accepting and learning from failure.
• Can-Do Attitude: Has a pragmatic view on reality while understanding the challenges and perspectives across the organization. Pro-actively and easily connects with the customers, factories and the different stakeholders. Acts like an owner by providing ready-to-go solutions.
• Independent: Ability to work independently while proactively updating the Senior Management team about challenges, opportunities and progress.
• Learning Agility & Knowledge Retention: Demonstrates the ability to absorb and retain new information effectively. Documents key processes and applies prior training. Takes ownership of personal learning and builds independence over time.
• Information Seeking: Actively researches and verifies information to ensure accuracy and