** Personal Assistant to the CEO – Role Profile **

Role Overview

The Personal Assistant to the CEO provides dedicated, proactive and confidential support to the Chief Executive Officer. The role is centred on understanding and managing the CEO’s priorities, commitments and working requirements so that the CEO can focus on strategic leadership, organisational performance, key relationships and decision-making. 

The postholder acts as the principal coordination point for the CEO’s office, taking direct direction from the CEO and using sound judgement to organise time, information, meetings, travel, communications and follow-up. The role does not depend on, or require routine engagement with, a Chief of Staff. 

Key Responsibilities

1. CEO priority and diary management 

• Own and actively manage the CEO’s diary, balancing strategic, operational, client, Board and people commitments in line with the CEO’s priorities. 

• Anticipate conflicts, pressure points and preparation needs, resolving issues before they affect the CEO’s effectiveness. 

• Protect appropriate thinking, preparation and travel time, while maintaining flexibility for urgent or high-value matters. 

• Ensure the CEO has a clear forward view of key commitments, deadlines, decisions and follow-up actions. 

2. Inbox, correspondence and information flow 

• Monitor and organise the CEO’s inbox and correspondence in accordance with agreed access, confidentiality and escalation protocols. 

• Identify urgent, sensitive or decision-critical matters and bring them to the CEO’s attention promptly. 

• Draft and format correspondence, brief responses, meeting notes and routine communications for the CEO’s review or issue. 

• Maintain an effective system for tracking requests, commitments, approvals and responses involving the CEO. 

3. Meeting and decision support 

• Coordinate meetings chaired or attended by the CEO, ensuring the purpose, agenda, attendees, venue or technology and supporting material are confirmed. 

• Gather papers and briefing material from relevant owners and present them in a concise, accessible format for the CEO. 

• Prepare meeting packs, capture agreed actions where requested and track follow-up to completion. 

• Ensure decisions and actions requiring the CEO’s attention are clearly identified, scheduled and supported by the right information. 

4. Board, leadership and governance administration 

• Provide administrative support for the CEO’s engagement with the Board and senior leadership forums. 

• Coordinate deadlines for CEO papers, reports, presentations, briefings and approvals. 

• Maintain accurate and controlled records of CEO-level papers, decisions and correspondence in accordance with company arrangements. 

• Work directly with paper owners and meeting organisers to secure complete, accurate and timely contributions for the CEO. 

5. Travel, events and external engagements 

• Plan and coordinate UK and international travel, accommodation, itineraries, visas and associated logistics for the CEO. 

• Prepare complete itineraries that integrate meetings, travel time, contact details, briefing material and contingency arrangements. 

• Coordinate the CEO’s participation in client meetings, industry events, speaking engagements and internal business events. 

• Process expenses and maintain supporting records accurately and promptly. 

6. CEO office coordination and stakeholder service 

• Act as a professional and responsive first point of contact for matters directed to the CEO. 

• Manage access to the CEO fairly and appropriately, using judgement to prioritise, redirect or schedule requests in line with the CEO’s instructions. 

• Maintain effective working relationships with Board members, senior leaders, employees, clients and external stakeholders on behalf of the CEO. 

• Coordinate directly with relevant teams and individuals to meet the CEO’s requirements, without creating unnecessary layers or dependencies. 

7. Confidentiality and professional judgement 

• Handle commercially sensitive, personal and confidential information with absolute discretion. 

• Exercise judgement within agreed boundaries and escalate matters where risk, sensitivity or authority requires the CEO’s decision. 

• Maintain high standards of accuracy, integrity, responsiveness and professional conduct. 

• Represent the CEO’s office in a manner consistent with DBD’s values and expected leadership behaviours. 

Operating principles 

Decision-making and role boundaries 

• May organise, prioritise, coordinate and communicate on behalf of the CEO within clearly agreed parameters. 

• May request information, papers and updates required to support the CEO’s commitments and decisions. 

• May redirect routine requests to the appropriate owner where CEO involvement is not required. 

• Does not make executive, commercial, people or financial decisions reserved for the CEO or another authorised role. 

• Escalates sensitive, high-risk, ambiguous or potentially reputational matters directly to the CEO. 

Indicative working rhythm 

Person specification 

Essential experience and capability 

• Proven experience supporting a CEO, Managing Director, Board member or similarly senior executive in a demanding environment. 

• Exceptional diary, meeting, travel and administrative management skills. 

• Ability to understand executive priorities and translate them into a disciplined schedule and follow-up system. 

• Excellent written communication, document preparation and attention to detail. 

• Confidence engaging professionally with Board members, senior leaders, clients and external stakeholders. 

• Strong judgement, discretion and experience handling highly confidential information. 

• Ability to work at pace, manage competing demands and remain composed when priorities change. 

• High proficiency in Microsoft 365, including Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Teams and related collaboration tools. 

Personal attributes 

• Proactive, organised and dependable. 

• Commercially aware and able to see the wider business context. 

• Clear, professional and appropriately assertive. 

• Service-focused without being passive or purely reactive. 

• Trusted, resilient and comfortable working with ambiguity. 

Measures of success 

• The CEO’s diary consistently reflects agreed priorities and is supported by sufficient preparation and travel time. 

• The CEO receives accurate, concise and timely information ahead of meetings and decisions. 

• Actions, commitments, correspondence and approvals involving the CEO are tracked and progressed reliably. 

• Meetings, visits, travel and external engagements are professionally coordinated with minimal avoidable disruption. 

• Stakeholders experience the CEO’s office as responsive, organised, discreet and clear. 

• The CEO has confidence that requirements are understood, anticipated and managed without unnecessary escalation. 

Role relationships 

• Chief Executive Officer: direct manager, principal stakeholder and source of priorities and working requirements. 

• Board and senior leadership: coordination of meetings, papers, deadlines, actions and access to the CEO. 

• Employees and business functions: direct liaison to obtain information, organise commitments and route requests appropriately. 

• Clients, partners and external stakeholders: professional coordination of CEO-level engagements and communications. 

**Role profile note: **This profile defines a directly CEO-focused Personal Assistant role. It intentionally removes any requirement for routine engagement with, or dependency on, a Chief of Staff. The CEO may amend working protocols and delegated administrative boundaries as business needs evolve. 

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