Laura Underwood

Currently providing professional operational and business support to two Directors within Risk Senior Leadership Team. This includes providing all aspects of organisational and administrative support.

• Proactive day to day management of Directors diary, inbox, travel, and logistics. Ensuring optimum use of time, managing conflicting priorities and meetings with Directors, and advising all parties of changes to scheduling.
• Providing support to Directors and being responsible for managing their diary ensuring best use of their time.
• Ensuring Directors are fully prepared for meetings and have copies of pre-meeting materials with key points highlighted. Progressing actions on their behalf when asked.
• Providing preparation and support for regular and ad hoc events including meetings, conferences.
• Ensuring smooth business travel arrangements for senior management.
• Maintaining confidentiality of documents, ensured secure handling of sensitive information.
• Managing correspondence, reducing response time by ensuring timely replies.
• Supporting and where appropriate managing department workstreams and contribute to preparing communications and varied correspondence such as draft responses for emails and presentations.
• Supporting of specific department People agenda elements such as communications, engagement and production of reports to track objectives.
• Communicating and developing good relationships with other teams and senior stakeholders as required.
• Supporting Directors to ensure successful delivery of projects and activities as well as ensuring optimum customer experience is provided.
• Demonstrating cross team collaboration, sharing learning and best practices.
• Developing and helping director’s execute communications plan.
• Supporting Directors by analysing department engagement dashboards highlighting strengths, opportunities, common themes, sensitivities, and proposed actions.
• Building collaborative relationships with teams and business area.
• Maintaining up to date structure chart and skills profiles.
• Maintaining department talent grid and high- level development plans.
• Supporting recruitment, helping Directors as instructed e.g admin behind new hires.
• Supporting any organisations change initiatives.
• Promoting and encouraging good culture and behaviours personally and across Team.
• Identifying, assessing, managing, and reporting risks, taking initiative-taking personal responsibility for ‘doing the right thing’ in compliance with regulatory requirements and frameworks and policies.
• Monitoring trends, and carrying analysis of key KPIs (i.e., absence and attrition) for Business area, supporting through relevant business activity to address issues.

I provided comprehensive Executive and Secretarial support to Executive Management Team, which include Finance Director, Commercial Director, HR Director, Repairs Director, Asset Management Director, Housing Management Director and Developments Director.

• Provided PA and secretarial support to 7 Departments.
• Provided full diary management to all Directors and CEO. Organise complex personal and professional calendars, supplying timely reminders of upcoming meetings and events.
• Detailed accurate meeting minutes, promptly collating and distributing to Senior Managers, Directors and Board Members.
• Scheduled Board of Directors meetings, assisting with meeting materials, resources, agendas and minutes.
• Maintained and coordinated Executive Management, Board and Committee meetings and travel schedules.
• Served as professional representative of CEO to executive clients, Members of Parliament, Councillors and Board members.
• Collaborated with department teams on special projects.
• Coordinated travel itineraries within budget for varying schedule needs.
• Coordinated events and conferences, offering support with set-up and resources to guarantee smooth operations.
• Responded to emails and other correspondence from Members of Parliament and local Councillors, facilitating positive communication for enhanced business processes.
• Attended HR meetings including disciplinary hearings and providing detailed and accurate minutes.
• Drafted correspondence, compiled reports and prepare presentations with keen attention to detail.
• Processed mail, email and phone enquiries, minimising correspondence backlogs.
• Drafted and distributed professional business letters and email correspondence.
• Set travel arrangements and provided relevant tickets and documentation for management and executive staff.
• Produced documents, updated spreadsheets and crafted presentations with outstanding attention to detail.
• Maintained databases and filing systems to boost team efficiency.
• Performed ad-hoc personal errands to fulfil varied support functions.
• Engaged with stakeholders to build relationships and brand awareness.

I provided comprehensive Administration support for Head of Procurement and Senior Buyers. Acting as key contact for Procurement Team for wider business and our external suppliers.

• Supporting Buying team on specific projects to learn foundational procurement skills
• Responding to emails received into procurement inbox from internal customers and taking actions where appropriate, forwarding to other members of team, or escalating to management.
• Liaising with external suppliers for basic queries received into procurement inbox
• Raising and Processing Purchase Orders via company business system, including annual blanket orders and carriage charges
• Placing orders within set SLA for urgent requests from business and follow these through to approval and order placement
• Order revisions and cancellations
• Raising Purchase Orders via supplier web sites/ portals
• Manage admin, users and permissions on RS and ARCO portals
• Expediting goods and services
• Dealing with payment queries from external and internal customers and resolution of these. Working closely with Finance and respective members of procurement team. Conducting root cause analysis to improve numbers.
• Investigate and resolve supply chain issues through root cause analysis, communicating causes for concern with Senior Buyers
• Setting up of and leading key supplier invoice and non-conformance resolution meetings.
• Monitoring and maintaining Procurement administration tasks KPI information using excel and pertinent web portals
• Completing housekeeping protocols including but not limited to, maintaining category supplier identifications, supplier removal and reinstating, open orders monitoring and management, contract and price revisions and updates, supplier contact information
• Producing reports from Maximo to provide information relevant to Supplier spend, orders placed, etc to support Procurement Team and stakeholders
• Raising and placing of consumable Kits for upcoming Overhauls
• Monitoring and management of non-conformance inbox. Manage and maintain NCR process and reporting process (tracker and PBI) to support stakeholders and deliver close out times of under 30 days. Improving turn around time and leading team sessions
• Managing new supplier onboarding process and ensure timely completion of process with relevant agreed documents required. With all new supplier requests to be processed to Maximo under 14 days from request. Maintaining monitoring to manage and report on progress
• Use of Microsoft applications, including Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio and Power BI
• Developing PBI reports as required and support in maintaining relevant reports to support Procurement team and business stakeholders
• Supporting supply chain activity development via reports and MI
• Delivering systems training to end users to improve overall competence within business. Updating and managing training materials
• Creating and updating Procurement work instruction sheets
• Involvement in Maximo testing, initial scoping and test sheets creation and then completion
• Supporting wider team where relevant to deliver team objectives and deliver additional value and support supply chain sustainability project and delivery
• Coordinating weekly and quarterly Team Meetings, to include putting together agendas and presentation slides.
• General support for Procurement function

I returned to work as a retail Assistant with Next following time off after having my third child. I was soon Deputising for the Womenswear Manager, taking on responsibility for the shop floor and other Sale Assistants.

• Assisted customers with product selection and sales, recommending coordinating items to increase transaction value.
• Ensured high levels of customer satisfaction through outstanding product knowledge and attentive, personalised service.
• Maintained comprehensive product knowledge across current and past season stock, offering expert customer apparel advice.
• Oversaw training of junior sales staff, providing ongoing mentoring to ensure positive team performances.
• Replenished floor stock and processed deliveries promptly, maximising product availability for customers.
• Facilitated daily and weekly physical inventory counts, maintaining accurate stock records.
• Addressed customer enquiries and concerns, facilitating decision-making and minimising hesitation.
• Explained information about quality, value and style of products to influence customer buying decisions.
• Effectively and efficiently carried out back-of-house maintenance, for clear, easy-to-navigate stockroom management.
• Asked open-ended questions to accurately assess customer needs, exceeding expectations with personalised product recommendations.
• Promptly greeted and assisted customers, tailoring service and sales style to suit personalised requirements.
• Operated cash registers with accuracy and care, effectively processing cash, cheque and card transactions.

In September 2013 I took on a new role at St Andrews as Senior Administrator working with IT Department. I acted as deputy to the Executive Assistant, and provided admin support to Information Governance Team and IT Projects Management Office. I also provided support to 3 Senior Managers and managed their diaries on daily basis.

• Deputise for EA and support IT Director
• Reply to emails on Senior Management Team’s behalf
• Keep Senior Management Team’s diaries and calendars up to date
• Schedule in admin time for Senior Management Team
• Oversee migration of documents from S drive to St Andrews Intranet
• Arrange meetings and booking meeting rooms
• Liaising with EAs/PAs to set up meetings/groups etc.
• Produce/collate material for meetings
• Take minutes at various meetings including Project Boards, Steering Groups, Forums and type these up and distribute accordingly
• Record all annual leave and sickness for IT team
• Produce Quarterly reports Dashboard Reports and Programme Reports for IT Projects Management Office
• Ensure Project Manager’s meet report/update deadlines
• Act as Project Server Administrator
• Ensure all timesheets are completed and submitted for IT department and then produce project and financial reports from these
• Create billing information for external Companies to invoice against
• Responsible for organising and keeping up to date IT department’s personnel files
• SharePoint administrator (responsible for upkeep of IT Administration site on intranet)

In November 2010, I started with St Andrews Hospital as a part time Secretarial Assistant to Head of Procurement. As well as acting as his PA I also carried out general administrative duties for whole Procurement team (23 members in total).

• Take calls for Head of Procurement and take messages
• Reply to emails on Head of Procurement’s behalf
• Arrange meetings and booking rooms
• Produce material for meetings
• Take minutes, type these up and distribute accordingly
• Audio typing up of letters
• Keep Head of Procurement’s diary and calendar up to date
• Record all annual leave and sickness for Procurement team
• Receive all post for team and distribute accordingly
• Place team requisitions onto online database
• Order stationary for team
• Responsible for organising and keeping up to date personnel files
• SharePoint administrator (responsible for upkeep of Procurement site on intranet)
• Responsible for team training records and booking them onto new training courses
• Check Transport team’s overtime every week
• Responsible for keeping filing system up to date and organised, both electronic copies and hard copies
• Create reports and charts for policies
• Securely dispose of confidential waste