Office Manager

Aktis Strategy is a new organisation led by some of the world’s foremost consultant practitioners in problem-solving for fragile and conflict-affected countries. With knowledge and expertise across the spectrum of security sector reform, political governance and justice/rule of law, Aktis specialises in devising, managing and evaluating complex programmes to address challenging political and institutional problems. From organisational change projects with the security forces in fragile states, complex governance reform programmes, to advanced analytical programmes, Aktis personnel have demonstrated their excellence at delivering innovative management consultancy support in some of the most challenging situations.
Aktis is looking to hire an experienced Office Manager to support our growing project portfolio in Lebanon and the Middle East region. This is a new position that entails responsibility for the office with elements of finance and general administration, to support Aktis’ activities in Lebanon and the region.
The successful candidate will have several years of experience in office administration and management and be excited by the opportunity to work collaboratively in a multi-disciplinary, internationally-dispersed team within a growing and ambitious international company. The role is Beirut based but there may be some short-term international travel for training and development purposes. 
Key responsibilities
Office administration

Prime responsibility for the running of the Beirut office and guesthouse; be the first port of call on all office management issues;
Streamlining and improving general working processes and procedures by initiating and implementing changes or reinforcing existing practices;
Maintaining up-to-date records on information management systems (Box and Salesforce) and hard-copy filing;
Ensuring the maintenance of office and guesthouse supplies and a weekly inventory of all stationary and supplies;
Overseeing the effective management of office facilities, including repairs, maintenance, services, rent, rates, moves and changes to existing or future space;
Liaison with local authorities, lawyers and accountants to ensure compliance with Lebanese law and the application of the Aktis Code of Conduct;
Maintaining office legal and registration documents, and liaising with the Lebanese authorities to ensure compliance with regulations including employment law and company reporting requirements;
Perform general clerical duties not limited to: photocopying, scanning, filing, faxing, mailing;
Update mail/phone directories and staff lists;

Internal and external mail dispatch.

Financial administration

Submission of timely and accurate cash flow projections and requests; liaising with Aktis headquarters to ensure sufficient funds in the Lebanon account through timely disbursements requests;
Management and weekly reconciliation of Aktis Lebanon bank and cash accounts;
Monitor insurance coverage, apartment leases, utility services;
Ensure timely payment of bills;
Scanning of finance vouchers and receipts and entry into accounting software;
Act as first point of contact with suppliers and contractors;
Support to office budgeting;
Liaising with accountants.

Logistics

Coordinate staff movements, both vehicle and flight bookings;
Update movement tracker to accurately record planned and actual staff movements and safety check-ins;
Manage staff accommodation bookings;
Logging staff and associate deployments on Salesforce and office calendars;
Offer support to the office in obtaining travel documents e.g. visa, travel permits, work permits;
Manage shipment of supplies and equipment to field offices.

Human resources

Providing advice to management on human resources and legal issues in Lebanon and developing local HR policies;
Provide administrative support to recruitment processes;
Maintain HR files including tracking staff leave and absences.

Procurement

Develop requests for quotations, order requests and contact vendors and suppliers for quotations;
Maintain and update vendors/suppliers lists.

Project Support
When required the Office Manager will also provide support to project teams, working in collaboration with project officers and project coordinators to provide the following:

Support to event management: booking venues, caterers, liaising with facilities’ managers;
Preparation and formatting of documents;
Filing and scanning documents;
Language support through translation and interpretation; where there is excess demand, coordinating with and managing external language assistants;
Processing timesheets and expense claims.

Other

Additional tasks as assigned.

 
Requirements
Professional Experience
The successful candidate will have:

Significant experience in office administration / office management roles (three years minimum preferred);
Sufficient financial knowledge and experience to fulfil the financial management responsibilities outlined above. In particular, this person will have prior experience of daily bookkeeping and weekly financial reconciliations;
Used information management systems and ensured up-to-date filing systems;
Regularly used MS Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Outlook.

It would be advantageous if this person has:

A track record of demonstrably improving the management of an office and/or administrative team;
Experience of working for an international company;
Experience of working in the international development or professional services sector.

Personal attributes and skills
The successful candidate will:

Have verbal and written fluency in English and Arabic;
Be educated to at least to an undergraduate university level but preferably with a master’s degree, in a relevant subject;
Have a desire to take on a challenging, fast-paced role in an expanding company;
Possess strong time management skills and a proven ability to multitask;
Have effective communication and inter-personal skills;
Have excellent writing and reporting skills, particularly in English;
Be a self-starter who strives for excellence, takes the initiative, and naturally sees opportunities for change and improvement;
Be a person who gains the trust and respect of his/her colleagues, has the highest level of integrity, is a team player and provides leadership to his/her reports.