Sr Administrative Assistant; R&D

Summary

This role exists to increase the leverage, focus, and effectiveness of the CTO and the global Technology & Innovation leadership team. The Senior Executive Assistant is not only responsible for administrative excellence; the role serves as a trusted operating partner who protects executive time, anticipates needs, improves decision flow, and helps the organization run with greater clarity, speed, and discipline.

The right person will bring exceptional judgment, discretion, organization, and communication quality. They will create a high-standard experience for internal and external stakeholders and help connect the daily operating rhythm of the office to larger priorities: innovation impact, global execution, talent development, and the ambition to meaningfully expand the number of lives Hollister improves.

Hollister Incorporated operates in a hybrid work environment. Employees are expected to come into the office a minimum of 4 days per week. Sponsorship to work in the US is not available at this time.

Responsibilities

Executive operating rhythm and follow-through

• Support the operating cadence for the Office of the CTO, including leadership team meetings, operating reviews, department forums, talent discussions, and strategic initiative checkpoints.
• Coordinate agendas, capture decisions and action items, track follow-up, and ensure commitments do not get lost between meetings.
• Maintain simple, reliable systems for priorities, deadlines, key documents, and recurring deliverables.
• Help identify gaps, bottlenecks, or repeated friction points and recommend practical improvements.
• Support processes such as Annual Operating Plan, Development and Succession Planning, Technical Career Ladder, innovation governance, stage/gate activities, P3, legal agreements, and related executive workflows.

Stakeholder experience and communication

• Represent the CTO office with professionalism, warmth, discretion, and credibility in every interaction.
• Draft, edit, format, and distribute high-quality communications, presentations, reports, meeting materials, and leadership messages as needed.
• Facilitate regular department and company communications through appropriate channels, including SharePoint and other collaboration platforms.
• Coordinate visits, external meetings, consultant engagements, interviews, and leadership interactions so participants are prepared and the experience is seamless.
• Serve as a trusted point of contact for internal and external stakeholders, using judgment to triage, redirect, escalate, or resolve requests.

Meeting, event, and forum execution

• Plan and execute key global and Libertyville-based meetings, including quarterly department meetings, recognition events, leadership sessions, and team gatherings.
• Coordinate agenda design, logistics, rooms, virtual meeting tools, attendee registration, catering, materials, minutes, and follow-up.
• Ensure meetings have clear purpose, prepared participants, disciplined execution, and documented outcomes.
• Support global inclusiveness by managing time zones, virtual access, pre-reads, and communication flow for associates outside Libertyville.

Travel, expenses, purchasing, and office operations

• Arrange domestic and international travel with attention to efficiency, cost, visa/logistical needs, and executive preferences.
• Prepare and submit accurate expense reports for assigned leaders in a timely manner.
• Support purchasing, invoices, office supplies, mail distribution, vendor coordination, and other administrative needs for the Libertyville-based team as required.
• Assist visiting associates, outside consultants, and external guests with logistics and site coordination.

Information, systems, and reporting administration

• Own and maintain selected functional systems and collaboration spaces, including Global R&D / Technology & Innovation SharePoint content and structure.
• Maintain records and enter data accurately in function-specific systems, including Planview, LMS, laboratory notebook administration, and other tools as needed.
• Prepare or support preparation of recurring reports and dashboards, including portfolio, IP, project, or department status reporting as requested.
• Highlight trends, gaps, data quality issues, or follow-up needs rather than simply passing information through.
• Partner with HR, IT, Facilities, Finance, Legal, and other functions to support onboarding, records retention, access needs, and administrative compliance.

Essential Functions of the Role

Education & Work Requirements

Education & Work Preferences

• High school diploma required; bachelor degree preferred or equivalent professional experience.
• 5-8+ years of progressive administrative or executive support experience; experience supporting a senior executive strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex calendars, confidential information, travel, meetings, documents, and competing priorities.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; able to draft, edit, format, and polish executive-level materials.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office, Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, and related collaboration tools.
• Experience with Planview, LMS, expense systems, project reporting, document repositories, or similar enterprise systems preferred.
• Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and comfort operating in a fast-paced, global environment.
• Ability to work independently, make practical decisions, and build trust across levels and functions.

Competencies