Position Title: Administrative Support Specialist

Supervisor: Executive Director

Employee Status: Full-time, Hourly, Non-Exempt

Food Connects is seeking an Administrative Support Specialist to employ their technical and interpersonal skills in support of our organization. We are an equal opportunity workplace and will not discriminate on the basis of disability or other legally protected categories. If an employee has a disability that makes it difficult to perform their job duties, they are encouraged to notify us to discuss reasonable accommodations. 

Who We Are

Food Connects, located in Brattleboro, VT is a regional food systems non-profit organization with strong roots in the community and a commitment to challenging the status quo. We value a balance of work and life, which is why we offer a flexible hybrid-remote schedule for administrative positions. Our goal is to provide you with the tools to do your job and the trust to get your work done in a way that works for you.

Food Connects has three programs: the Food Hub, Farm to School and Vermont Harvest of the Month. These programs offer a multidisciplinary approach to strengthening local food systems. 

Who We’re Looking For

Behind every successful organization is a strong administrative structure. This position will play a key role in the administrative backbone of the company, supporting our programs and people in various ways. This requires someone with a broad range of skills: you must be comfortable in various tech platforms and advanced spreadsheets, internally motivated, comfortable and approachable in various interpersonal situations, a problem-solver, highly organized and proactively communicative. 

What You Will Be Doing

The Administrative Specialist’s primary responsibility is to upkeep internal systems and act as the staff’s go-to HR person. This means they’ll have their hands in most aspects of Food Connects, including: general business operations, administration, finance and HR. While this role won’t be responsible for any of these areas, they’ll play a critical role in supporting their success. Your technical skills will be put to good use in our efforts to go deeper into transforming the food system into one that puts producers and consumers first.

Core Competencies

• Technical Expertise: The ability to demonstrate depth of knowledge and skill in a technical area.

• Building Collaborative Relationships: The ability to develop, maintain, and strengthen partnerships with others inside or outside the organization who can provide information, assistance, and support.

• Analytical Thinking: The ability to tackle a problem by using a logical, systematic, sequential approach.

• Thoroughness: Ensuring that one’s own and others’ work and information are complete and accurate; carefully preparing for meetings and presentations; following up with others to ensure that agreements and commitments have been fulfilled.

• Time Management: Can organize time for optimum efficacy with regard to deadlines, collaboration, competing priorities, and personal work style.

• Managing Change: The ability to demonstrate support for innovation and for organizational changes needed to improve the organization’s effectiveness; initiating, sponsoring, and implementing organizational change; helping others to successfully manage organizational change.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

Human Resources (40%)

• Serves as primary day-to-day HR administrator, including: recruitment and retention strategies, maintenance of job descriptions, onboarding, benefits administration, policy training and compliance, and offboarding.

• Acts as HR liaison to our HR Contractor, available for compliance, interpersonal and general support.

• Leads efforts to bolster FC staff culture and cohesion, including staff engagement exercises, professional and workplace development efforts, and annual review processes.

• Maintains records and information - sometimes in a manner that maintains confidentiality - including: basic employee documentation, personnel files, complaints, and benefits paperwork. 

• Reviews and prepares data for time and attendance tracking, regular audits for workers compensation insurance, additional as needed.

• Partners with the Executive Director to ensure compliance with the Compensation Philosophy and Employee Handbook, including maintenance, updates and creation of new policies as needed.

• Works with the Executive Director to ensu