Senior Administrative Associate

 

Budgeted salary range: $38.46 per hour ($80,000/yr) to $43.27 per hour ($90,000/yr)

Position Summary

The Stanford Alumni Association (SAA) has a mission to reach, serve, and engage all 250,000+ Stanford alumni and students; to foster a lifelong intellectual and emotional connection between the university and its graduates; and to provide the university with goodwill and support. SAA produces a wide array of offerings and programming to connect Stanford alumni, ranging from events such as Reunion Homecoming, to a wide range of volunteer opportunities, to creating content, including STANFORD magazine, and providing travel opportunities, including the Stanford Travel/Study and Stanford Sierra Camp programs.

The Senior Administrative Associate provides high-level administrative, project management, and operational support across the Stanford Alumni Association (SAA), with a particular focus on complex systems and processes, awards administration, financial and contracting workflows, and alumni programs and events.

This role serves as a key operational partner to multiple teams, independently managing projects that require strong attention to detail, sound judgment, institutional knowledge, and coordination across a wide range of stakeholders. The Senior Administrative Associate is expected to develop a deep understanding of Stanford systems, policies, and procedures and use that expertise to help teams work efficiently, consistently, and effectively.

A significant component of the role involves building, maintaining, and managing sophisticated Airtable bases and workflows that support programs and operational processes across SAA. The position also manages key administrative processes for the Associates Awards and Student Awards, provides expertise in Stanford contracting and financial procedures, supports Reunion Homecoming programming for Alumni Education, and provides administrative and event support to the SAA Office of the President and the Alumni Events team.

The ideal candidate will develop strong working relationships across SAA and with Stanford campus partners. Take ownership of complex administrative processes and move projects forward with limited supervision. Look beyond individual tasks to understand the broader workflow, identifying opportunities to simplify processes and improve the experience for both staff and partners. Create tools, templates, documentation, and repeatable processes that reduce administrative burden and support consistency across teams. Balance competing priorities and manage multiple projects with overlapping deadlines. Communicate proactively about project status, risks, deadlines, and decisions requiring stakeholder input. Provide knowledgeable, solutions-oriented support while recognizing when issues require escalation or consultation with subject-matter experts.

In this role you will support:

Stanford Contracting & Financial Processes

• Manage the Office of the President’s financial operations, including processing high-value transactions, reconciling budgets, and managing the approval process for large contracts on behalf of SAA.
• Develop and maintain deep working knowledge of Stanford contracting, procurement, purchasing, payment, reimbursement, and other relevant financial processes.
• Serve as an internal resource to SAA colleagues navigating Stanford contracting and financial procedures.
• Coordinate and track contracts from initiation through completion, ensuring appropriate documentation, approvals, and timelines are met.
• Assist teams with vendor onboarding, purchase orders, invoices, reimbursements, payment requests, and other financial transactions as appropriate.
• Work closely with SAA Finance, Stanford Procurement, and other university partners to resolve questions and troubleshoot complex transactions.
• Help colleagues understand university policies and identify the appropriate process for various purchasing, contracting, and financial needs.
• Maintain organized records and tracking systems for contracts and financial transactions.
• Identify opportunities to standardize and streamline recurring administrative and financial processes.

Alumni Events Support 

• Provide administrative, operational, and event support to the Alumni Events team for Reunion Homecoming and other alumni programs throughout the year.
• Support event planners with project tracking, vendor coordination, contracts, financial transactions, event documentation, signage, supplies, registration, and other administrative needs.
• Maintain project timelines and tracking tools and proactively follow up on outstanding tasks and deadlines.
• Assist with event preparation, setup, onsite execution, and post-event activities as needed.
• Coordinate across internal teams and university partners to ensure event-related administrative needs are completed accurately and on time.
• Provide additional project support during periods of high event activity and help identify administrative processes that can be centralized or streamlined.Partner with the Alumni Education team to support the planning and execution of tours and educational programming during Reunion Homecoming.
• Coordinate administrative and logistical components of Reunion Homecoming tours, including schedules, locations, capacity information, transportation considerations, campus partner coordination, and other operational details.
• Create and maintain Airtable review and briefing interfaces for Reunion Homecoming CWOQ and tours, keeping schedules, locations, capacities, transportation details, and campus partner information up to date to support planning and execution. 
• Maintain accurate tour information across project management and event systems.
• Track deadlines and outstanding needs and proactively follow up with internal and campus partners.
• Assist with the development of clear processes and timelines for recurring Reunion Homecoming programming.
• Provide onsite support during Reunion Homecoming as needed.

 

Project & Systems Management

• Manage and coordinate the administrative and operational aspects of the Student Awards nomination and selection process, including submissions, supporting materials, deadlines, and communications.
• Serve as the primary administrative contact for program stakeholders, maintaining organized and accurate records, including nomination databases and historical documentation.
• Design, build, maintain, and continuously improve complex Airtable bases used to manage programs, nominations, projects, events, and operational workflows.
• Develop effective Airtable structures, interfaces, forms, automations, views, reporting tools, and processes for specific programs based on the needs of internal stakeholders.
• Translate complex or highly manual processes into clear, scalable workflows that improve efficiency and reduce unnecessary administrative work.
• Serve as a knowledgeable Airtable resource for SAA colleagues, helping teams determine how the platform can best support their work.
• Maintain data integrity and establish processes and documentation that support consistent use of shared systems.
• Troubleshoot issues, identify opportunities for process improvement, and recommend solutions.
• Develop and maintain standard operating procedures, process documentation, project timelines, and other resources for recurring programs.
  
   

Qualifications

Required

• Demonstrated experience managing complex administrative projects, programs, or operational workflows.
• Advanced experience with Airtable, with the ability to build and manage sophisticated systems rather than simply enter or retrieve data.
• Strong project management and organizational skills, including demonstrated ability to manage multiple complex projects and deadlines simultaneously.
• Experience with contracting, purchasing, finance, or related administrative processes.
• Excellent attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders and build collaborative relationships.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to independently research issues, identify solutions, and move work forward.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment and appropriately handle confidential or sensitive information.
• Demonstrated commitment to documenting processes and creating sustainable, repeatable workflows.
• Driver’s license

Preferred

• Significant experience working within Stanford University and familiarity with Stanford administrative systems, policies, and procedures.
• Deep knowledge of Stanford contracting, procurement, purchasing, and financial processes.
• Advanced Airtable experience, including forms, interfaces, automations, linked records, formulas, reporting, and workflow design.
• Experience supporting complex events, conferences, alumni programs, or university programs.
• Experience managing nomination, application, selection, or awards processes.
• Experience working in a highly collaborative environment supporting multiple teams or departments.

Key Competencies

The successful candidate will be:

Systems-minded. Able to see how information, people, and processes connect and build tools that make complex work easier to manage.

Highly organized. Comfortable owning detailed, multi-step projects with numerous stakeholders and deadlines.

Resourceful. Able to navigate complex institutional processes, find answers, troubleshoot issues, and determine the best path forward.

Collaborative. Builds strong relationships and approaches administrative support as a partnership with the teams and individuals they serve.

Proactive. Anticipates needs, follows through on commitments, and identifies potential issues before they become problems.

Process-oriented. Looks for opportunities to simplify, standardize, document, and improve recurring work.

Service-minded. Understands that strong administrative operations contribute directly to successful programs, events, and experiences for Stanford alumni, students, volunteers, and campus partners.

Core Duties:

• Act on behalf of the supervisor, department manager, or chair in regards to establishing priorities and identifying and resolving problems that are administrative in nature.

• Oversee and/or perform duties associated with scheduling, organizing, and operating complex conferences, seminars, and events, including arranging with vendors for services, overseeing the production and distribution of materials, administering logistics, and managing event within budget.

• Compose and draft documents and correspondence for presentations, course handouts, grants, conferences, seminars, and reports. Perform substantial editing and fact checking. Create, maintain, modify, and/or ensure accuracy of content in various unit documents, displays, reports, brochures, social media, and/or websites.

• Plan and schedule calendar(s) with limited consultation, resolve calendaring conflicts, and arrange travel in compliance with unit, university, and sponsor policies.

• Create complex reports and spreadsheets which may utilize specialized software and systems.

• Oversee and/or process a variety of complex financial transactions; produce, monitor, and reconcile budget statements; research, identify, and resolve discrepancies. May assist with capital or special equipment requests and/or vendor selection.

• Coordinate and monitor routine maintenance services completion. Plan and coordinate office moves and/or minor renovation projects.

• May lead staff or supervise day-to-day work of student and/or temporary workers, including scheduling, assigning, and prioritizing workloads, setting appropriate deadlines, reviewing work for quality and timeliness, and providing performance review input.

Minimum Education and Experience

High school diploma and four years of administrative experience, or combination of education and relevant experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Advanced computer skills and demonstrated experience with office software and email applications.

• Demonstrated success in following through and completing projects.

• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.

• Excellent Strong verbal and written communication skills.

• Excellent customer service and interpersonal skills.

• Ability to prioritize, multi-task, and assign work to others.

• Ability to take initiative and ownership of projects.

• Ability to routinely and independently exercise sound judgment in making decisions.