Office Secretary

Executive Secretary, Creative Coalition

Who are we?

We are the Creative Coalition. We are an association of 44 advocacy groups from the cultural and creative sector, representing a total of more than 45,000 members. Together, we advocate for the interests of everyone working in the cultural and creative sector. We are committed to ensuring a healthy, safe, and fair labor market in our sector. Fair Practice—including Fair Pay, Fair Share, and Fair Chain—are the Creative Coalition’s priorities for the coming period.

Following its founding phase, the association is currently in a transition toward stabilization. This role places a strong emphasis on professionalizing the support provided to the association. In recent years, the Creative Coalition, together with its members, has gained an increasingly strong position in The Hague’s political arena and has represented the voice of working people. It is partly up to the office secretary to highlight these developments and raise the Coalition’s profile.

If you'd like to learn more about what we do, please visit our website: decreatievecoalitie.nl

Who are we looking for?

You will be working in a dynamic environment with members who are highly active in their own professional practices within the cultural and creative sector. You are passionate about the cultural and creative sector and the labor market challenges it faces.

We are looking for an enthusiastic colleague who enjoys working in a political environment to further develop support for the association’s board. We are looking for someone capable of handling all aspects of supporting the board. You are a well-rounded individual, and if there is something you don’t know, you seek out solutions. You have integrity, connect easily with others, are approachable to members, and are available to everyone for questions. You are organized, maintain an overview of all tasks, and can respond quickly and effectively to issues that require follow-up. You take the initiative when you believe action needs to be taken.

You will report to the director and work closely with the director and chair, your colleagues, and, depending on the activity, members of the board. The board consists of a minimum of five and a maximum of ten members.

The administrative staff supports the association and the board. The administrative staff consists of a director (0.8 FTE), an office secretary (0.6 FTE), a project manager (0.8 FTE), a marketing and communications officer (0.6 FTE), and staff hired on a freelance or project basis.

What will you be doing?

General:

• Performing general secretarial duties for the association, including managing email, handling necessary purchases, scheduling appointments for the board and director, making necessary phone calls, booking venues, filing documents, serving as the first point of contact for IT issues, managing membership records, processing mail and email at the administrative level, and liaising with suppliers (including IT and the administrator), etc.
• Monitoring, coordinating, and overseeing the implementation of the association’s (legal) processes (ensuring that elections are conducted accurately and in a timely manner, maintaining and tracking the rotation schedule throughout the association, and communicating accurately and in a timely manner in accordance with the provisions of the bylaws).
• Managing the association's various (legal) documents.

Financial:

• Preparatory financial tasks in collaboration with the administrative office.
• Assisting the director in tracking actual expenditures against the budget.
• Organizing and helping to prepare the (financial) annual report and annual plan in collaboration with the director and the board.

Meetings:

• Developing the annual agenda in collaboration with the director. Determining meeting topics together with the director, chairperson, and board secretary.
• Planning, preparing, documenting, and organizing meetings (including general membership meetings and board meetings). Preparing the materials: writing some of them myself and overseeing the drafting of others.
• Reporting on the follow-up of the board’s action items to the director and supporting the director in the implementation of (board) decisions.
• In consultation with the director, communicate with the association regarding decisions that have been made and share documents (from the meetings).

Communication:

• Work with the director to ensure that external communications, such as letters and position statements, comply with the Creative Coalition’s policy principles.
• Ensuring that the schedule is included in external communications and archived.
• Streamlining communication channels within the association.
• Providing information about the association’s day-to-day operations to external contacts, in consultation with the director.

What do we need?

You are an excellent communicator (both verbally and in writing), with an eye for diversity, the level of the people you are communicating with, and political dynamics. You have at least a college-level education and way of thinking. We expect accuracy and diligence in performing your duties. You recognize and acknowledge the diverse positions within the association and the influence they hold, and you know how to leverage that influence positively toward the goals of the Creative Coalition. You oversee situations and processes and identify challenges that arise. You can systematically address these to arrive at effective solutions. You do this through collaboration with members and stakeholders.

What do we offer you?

• This is a salaried position.
• The position is initially for a period of one year. If the candidate proves to be suitable, the contract may be extended.
• The position is for 24 hours per week, with a gross salary of up to €2,250 for 24 hours, depending on experience, excluding vacation pay and a 3% year-end bonus.

We don't have an office yet. Depending on where our employees live, we'll look for workspace at members' locations or rent space elsewhere. You'll also work from home.

We strive to achieve a good balance of diverse backgrounds within our board and our organization, including age, sex, gender, experience, and cultural background. We therefore warmly invite all interested candidates to apply.

If you are interested, please email your cover letter and resume by February 25, 2023, to annemarieharmsen@decreatievecoalitie.nl, addressed to Anne-Marie Harmsen. For more information: 06-46613250. Introductory interviews are scheduled for the last week of February and the first week of March.