Board Advisor

Utrecht is growing like no other Dutch city. You can see that in the city itself and in our organization. We develop ideas and seek solutions that cut across government silos, working together with our residents and partners. Residents and businesses in the region, the Netherlands, and far beyond also benefit from smart solutions for healthy living in the urban region. To assist our administration—the Mayor and Aldermen—in this effort, we are seeking two administrative advisors. This could be a flexible role supporting the entire administration, or linked to one of the administrators and his or her portfolio.

The City of Utrecht is an inclusive organization that welcomes everyone and harnesses the power of its employees’ diversity to achieve better results for the city. Talent as a foundation, diversity as a strength. In addition to your qualities, talents, and motivation, you also bring your age, sexual orientation, background, or disability to the table. You are warmly welcome!

This is your role
As a Management Advisor, you’ll work at the intersection of administration, organization, and politics. In this dynamic environment, you’ll serve the entire municipal executive, whether or not you’re assigned to a specific executive member. You’ll oversee the comprehensive preparation and implementation of the executive’s agenda and ensure coherence across various initiatives and policy areas. You promote fast, sharp, flexible, and high-quality decision-making to achieve optimal results for the city. In doing so, you maintain a focus on collaboration with regional and national partners.

You will work closely with the executive secretariat and spokespersons. Together with this team, you will support and advise both the organization and the executive board on the development and implementation of (executive board) proposals. For the executive(s), you will serve as a critical sounding board and trusted advisor. You are able to provide feedback on their overall performance in the city and in the city council and advise on priorities within the policy areas.

This means that you:

• use your experience and situational awareness to advise and support the organization and its leadership in the (political) administrative process.
• You serve as a sounding board and liaison for organizational units, maintain contact with council advisors and the city council, and are able to effectively balance operational and strategic priorities.
• works with the relevant managers and organizational units to prepare meetings with the alderman and between aldermen, and provides guidance and monitors progress as needed.
• ensures that well-thought-out, comprehensive proposals are on the table in a timely manner and that decisions are made that the organization and the city can build on.
• You establish connections between policy areas and various challenges. In doing so, you provide advice on the course of action to be taken, both tactically and strategically, in collaboration with the other administrative advisors.
• helps optimize the comprehensiveness and quality of the advice provided within the organization; in terms of both process and content, you play a key role in developing well-considered recommendations in collaboration with the organization.

An active role in the crisis management team is part of the job.

Information about the Administrative Support Department (
) Within the Administrative Support Department (40 employees), you will work alongside your fellow administrative advisors, administrative assistants, the Cabinet Affairs team, and the Municipal Secretary’s Office to provide the Municipal Executive with comprehensive advice and excellent support. As such, the department shares responsibility for ensuring that decision-making processes within the Municipal Executive and the City Council are well-prepared. To ensure the highest quality of advice for both the administration and the council, you will work closely with the relevant organizational units and the council clerks. On this level, colleagues also work on developing the strategic agenda, lobbying, (administrative) relationship management, (administrative) communication, and public relations.

The team of administrative advisors currently consists of nine colleagues. We have short lines of communication, work well together, and are very supportive of one another. As a team, we support the municipal executive; we share the same goals and keep each other well informed. We work toward the shared mission of supporting the municipal executive and ensuring that the connection with the civil service runs as smoothly as possible. Through peer review, we learn from one another, and we hold weekly work meetings where we discuss both practical matters and our collaboration. We support one another, seek each other’s advice, and are open to each other’s input.

Here’s what we offer you
We want you to enjoy coming to work. That enjoyment comes from great colleagues, a pleasant work environment, and a job with meaningful work in one of the most attractive cities in the Netherlands. Together with you, we ensure that all residents of Utrecht can live, work, and participate in a pleasant and healthy way. You’ll do this by putting your strengths to good use.

Below is our selection:

• A 36-hour workweek with a gross monthly salary ranging from €4,965 to €6,616 based on 36 hours (pay scale 13). The exact amount will be determined based on your knowledge and experience. Placement on the temporary entry-level pay scale is a possibility;
• A one-year fixed-term employment contract with the option to convert to a permanent contract upon satisfactory performance;
• Excellent leave policies;
• An Individual Choice Budget (ICB) equal to 17.05% of your salary. You decide how to use this budget. For example, you can use it to buy extra time off, receive vacation pay, get a year-end bonus, or have the entire amount paid out once a year. The ICB is in addition to your gross salary;
• A fully equipped home office with modern IT facilities. And for those times when you need or want to be in the office, the most accessible City Hall in the Netherlands is your home base;
• Plenty of opportunities for personal development, such as various courses and training programs;
• Click here for an overview of all other employment benefits, such as travel allowance;
• In addition, working for the City of Utrecht offers many other benefits, such as exercising (online) with colleagues and participating in various networks and activities.

Here’s what we ask of you

• To be successful in this role, it is important that you have strong interpersonal skills and are able to bring clarity to complex processes;
• You have a college-level education and work experience, combined with several years of relevant professional experience;
• You have knowledge of (administrative and managerial) processes and how the organization, the executive board, and the city council operate;
• You have experience advising managers and the board and are politically and administratively astute;
• You enjoy a fast-paced environment where you’re constantly juggling multiple tasks and schedules change quickly;
• You are eager to learn and want to contribute ideas on how to further develop the role.

Good to know:
Ifyou’re excited about the prospect of working as an Administrative Advisor for the City of Utrecht, apply now. If you have any questions about the position, please contact Jorrit Linders, Manager of Administrative Support, at 06 - 46 05 69 78. If you have questions about the application process, please contact Mieke van der Vlis, Recruiter, at 06 – 48 19 23 32.