A cover letter is required for consideration for this position and should be attached as the first page of your resume. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experience that directly relate to this position.

At Michigan Engineering, we develop the talent and technologies that move society forward and serve our state and national interests. Through discovery and innovation, we create the foundational knowledge and practical technologies to solve not only today's most pressing challenges, but also power industries and change lives. Our programs and community are designed to promote personal well-being and achievement - enabling everyone to unlock their potential and contribute with confidence.

The Multidisciplinary Design Program (MDP) is a large-scale, cross-college initiative supporting 900+ students annually from the College of Engineering and schools across the University. The program aims to provide real world experience through partnerships with both internal faculty researchers and external corporate sponsors. 

MDP functions as a practical sandbox for innovation, offering a range of structured, multidisciplinary experiential learning opportunities while simultaneously piloting and assessing new curricular/management models for instruction in the engineering design process. MDP offers credit for co-curricular student work and all students who participate can elect to earn a minor in Multidisciplinary Design.

In the role of Senior Administrative Assistant, you will play a crucial part in the program's overall success:

• Elevating the student experience through proactive, responsive, and high-quality service
• Planning and executing program events to ensure smooth operations and high engagement
• Supporting financial management including invoicing external sponsors and managing day-to-day purchasing.
• Successfully collaborating with cross campus partners including faculty to maintain and build the strong program reputation and mutually beneficial outcomes.
• Collaborating closely with the existing team to provide general administrative support to ensure smooth daily operations and maintain a professional, friendly customer-service focus. 
   

To be successful in this role, you should be comfortable working in a team-based organization and willing to both lead and support projects and events. . For further program information, please see our website: http://mdp.engin.umich.edu

Office Management:

• Key contact for all front office responsibilities: Provide an organized, professional front office function including: responding to inquiries, visitor support, calendar management, and other duties as assigned. 
• Be the "face" of MDP as the main office point of contact for our students. 
• Manage and distribute loaned and purchased supplies to students. Maintain equipment loan documentation and equipment inventory annually. 
• Collaborate with the part time back office administrative assistant as needed to ensure smooth program operations from a student perspective. 
• Manage and maintain program and event supply inventory and deliveries. 
• Develop and maximize key relationships across the University to deliver excellent service for faculty, staff and students.
• Ensure responsive, professional communications with students, faculty and corporate partners as needed.

Event Planning and Management:

• This role is the lead for planning a variety of MDP events ranging from small information sessions to larger-scale campus events throughout the fall and winter semester as noted below.
• Event planning in MDP includes coordinating the manager of the event, reservations, logistics, management of student staff, advertising/communications, set up and tear down. 
• Plan and execute lead for two College of Engineering student project fairs (Design Expositions) at the end of each of the fall and winter terms. Duties include, but are not limited to: event logistics, communication and marketing, financial reporting, and faculty, departmental, GSI, and student communication.
• Coordinate logistics for student workshops as requested (locations, facilities/equipment, student event staff, attendee, guest instructor support, etc.)
• Planning and execution of other key program events, including design reviews, large two day student recruitment fair in early fall semester, two large kickoff dinners at the beginning of the winter semester, and various workshops and team-building events.

Financial Management & Sponsored Research Support:

• Track and reconcile expenses; prepare and submit expense reports through OPS entry, PCard statement reconciliation in Emburse, etc.
• Coordinate between Office of Research and Sponsored Projects (OSRP) and Accounts Receivable to issue invoices to corporate sponsors, and monitor the receipt of payments for the sponsored projects program manager.
• Provide administrative support to full-time MDP staff members as well as our faculty and student population. May also be in direct contact with many of our corporate sponsors.

Other Projects:

• Participate in sponsor relationship management efforts, supporting communication, visit logistics, and independently addressing external and internal sponsors needs when requested.
• Participate in the creation and periodic review of MDP policy and standard operating procedures. Identify areas where attention is required including identification of issues, comparing and evaluating courses of action, and leading the decision-making process through implementation.
• Actively participate in weekly staff meetings and other planning meetings as needed.
• MDP operates in a flexible and autonomous environment that allows high functioning team members to undertake professional development and engage in projects of interest related to the goals of the program.

• Bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 4+ years of related experience supporting and managing administrative functions in a professional workplace
• Demonstrated ability to coordinate projects and events
• Experience successfully setting priorities, managing complex assignments, and meeting competing deadlines 
• Ability to work independently and as a team member to set priorities and handle multiple, simultaneous assignments and deadlines while communicating status to multiple stakeholders effectively. 
• Strong verbal and written communication skills. 
• High level of professionalism, judgment, and attention to detail.
• Experience with spreadsheet management of data (Google Sheets / Excel). 

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.

This position can be remote 1 day per week during the Fall and Winter terms; we can be more flexible during the summer. 

• The person in this position occasionally moves throughout various buildings to access materials.
• Requires the ability to travel to various locations to conduct work and deliver materials.
• The person in this position routinely presents information at events and in meetings.
• The person in this position must be able to move materials weighing up to 25 pounds to various locations on/near campus for events.
• This position is hybrid with the expectation that there can be no more than (1) remote day per week during Fall and Winter term with the possibility of additional remote days during the spring/summer.
• This position supports student activities that are held outside standard business hours and vary depending on program activities. During the fall and winter semester, there are approximately 5-10 known events annually that require support after 5pm (business hours).

The University of Michigan conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background checks.  Background checks are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the eighth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled any time after the minimum posting period has ended.

The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.