Career Cafe jobs in Orpington

Do you thrive on bringing order to a busy committee cycle, from the first paper request to the final action log?

About us

The Science Museum Group (SMG) is one of the most important cultural institutions in the world, with outstanding collections and programmes that impact on millions of visitors. The Group encompasses the Science Museum in South Kensington, the Science and Industry Museum (SIM) in Manchester, the National Railway Museum (NRM) in York, Locomotion in Shildon and the National Science and Media Museum (NSMM) in Bradford.

Our Corporate Services directorate brings together Finance, ICT, Procurement and Legal, providing the expertise and infrastructure that keep a museum group visited by 4.5 million people a year running smoothly. It also leads the governance of the Group, working closely with our Board of Trustees and the Science Museum Foundation.

About the role

We are looking for an organised, proactive and highly discreet individual to provide executive and governance support to our Chief Finance Officer (CFO) and the Corporate Services leadership team. This is a full-time maternity cover role.

You will be the CFO's trusted partner, managing their diary and inbox and running the full meeting cycle for four Trustee and Foundation committees. You will join at an exciting time: Corporate Services is driving One Corporate Services, an initiative bringing its teams closer together, and a governance review is underway to streamline how decisions are made across the Group. You won't need technical finance knowledge, but you will need significant experience supporting senior leaders and boards.

This is a full-time, fixed-term maternity cover role (35 hours per week) until February 2028, with a salary of £40,961 per annum. The role is based at the Science Museum in London. Hybrid working is available, with at least two days a week on site.

About you

We're keen to see applications from candidates who have significant experience supporting senior executives at C-suite or director level, and who know how a board and sub-committee cycle works from start to finish. You'll be highly organised planning forward agendas, commissioning and chasing papers from busy senior colleagues, and producing clear, accurate minutes and action logs. You'll be comfortable building relationships with trustees, committee members and auditors. You don't need a finance background. What matters is that you're highly organised, plan ahead for peak periods, and can keep several deadlines moving at once without anything slipping.

You'll work on your own initiative and spot what's needed before you're asked. You'll be a clear communicator who can be professional and firm with senior stakeholders, especially when a deadline is at risk. You'll use sound judgement and the highest level of discretion with sensitive and confidential information. We'd also like to hear from people who enjoy change. This is an exciting time to join, as our One Corporate Services programme gathers pace early next year. You'll be comfortable using Microsoft 365 and AI tools such as Copilot to work smarter. Experience of governance in a charity, public sector or cultural organisation would be a bonus, but it isn't essential.

Don't feel you meet all the criteria? We welcome an application even if your experience doesn't match directly. With your transferable skills, you could be the right candidate for this, or other opportunities that we have.

Applying

View the Vacancy Information Pack listed under 'Attachments' on the vacancy listing on our website for more details about the role and the application process or click 'Apply Online' to submit an application.

What we offer

Working with a world-leading museum group that offers access to truly unique environments and collections, you'll benefit from the perks listed below, as well as full support for life events such as parental and adoption leave, sickness, and career breaks.

• Meaningful work. We're a mission-led organisation where the work you do supports us in Inspiring Futures.
• Career growth. We offer enhanced support with personal and professional development.
• Work/life balance. We offer 27 days annual leave in addition to bank holidays, along with flexible policies which support you and your home life.
• Healthcare cash plan. Digital health tools, gym discounts and cashback towards your everyday healthcare costs.
• All our colleagues can access an employee assistance programme and other wellbeing support.
• Colleague networks. Our colleague-led networks are an informal forum for colleagues to come together to discuss topics of shared interest and lived experience. They create a space for people to exchange ideas, discuss best practice, socialise and build a sense of community.
• Enhanced contributory pension. To support you in saving for the future.
• Interest-free loans. When you need a little extra cash for life events or home improvements.
• Great discounts. Free entry to exhibitions, discounts in our shops and cafes, and access to other museums in the NMDC network.

Open for All is one of the Science Museum Group's five core values and sets out our important aspiration to be a place for everyone. We are working hard to understand our organisation better and to develop a culture that recognises and values different backgrounds, mindsets, skills, experience, knowledge, and expertise. By having greater diversity, we believe that we will be a stronger and better organisation, capable to continue to Inspire Futures.