Role: Executive Assistant
Location: Vancouver, BC
Salary Range: $65,000 - $80,000
Who We Are
Smith + Andersen is a trusted, Canadian engineering firm, recognized for its multi-disciplinary expertise. With more than seven hundred employees across eleven offices in five provinces, the firm delivers comprehensive solutions nationwide.
At Smith + Andersen our employees contribute to some of the most sustainable building design projects in Canada. The work we do has meaningful impact on the community by contributing to landmark projects such as hospitals, transit stations, parks, federal and provincial government buildings and post secondary institutions.
Our values drive and define everything we do, demonstrating a deep commitment to sustainability, mentorship and quality work that spans nearly six decades in business. In addition, we are proud to have been certified as a Great Place to Work™ and selected as one of Canada’s Best Workplaces™ for the highly collaborative culture we’ve built and for empowering employees to do great work!
This Opportunity
We are seeking a highly organized and proactive Executive Assistant to support a Principal at our Burnaby office. This is a dynamic, client-facing role that sits at the intersection of project coordination, business development, and office operations in a professional consulting engineering environment. The ideal candidate thrives in a fast-paced, deadline-driven setting and takes pride in enabling leaders to focus on delivering exceptional client outcomes.
This posting is for an existing vacancy within our organization.
Why choose Smith + Andersen?
In addition to an exciting career filled with meaningful work, we offer:
- Competitive salary
- Flexible hours and half day Fridays (all year round)
- Comprehensive Group Health Benefits Program, including a Health Spending Account
- Group Retirement Savings Plan (Employer and Employee Contributions)
- Employee Share Ownership Program (ESOP)
- Purchase Time off Program
- Transit Subsidy Program
- Wide variety of community and social events
- Great Place to Work-Certified™
- Best Workplaces™ in Canada
- Best Workplaces for Inclusion™
- Best Workplaces for Professional Services™
- Best Workplaces for Mental Wellness™
What You’ll Do
Executive & Administrative Support
- Provide comprehensive administrative support to one or more Principals, including calendar management, meeting coordination, correspondence, and travel arrangements.
- Prepare, edit, and format professional documents, reports, presentations, and correspondence to a high standard.
- Screen and manage incoming communications; exercise sound judgment in prioritizing and routing inquiries.
- Coordinate internal and external meetings, including drafting agendas, capturing meeting minutes, and following up on action items.
- Maintain organized electronic filing systems and ensure document version control.
Business Development & Proposals
- Monitor and review Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and Requests for Qualifications (RFQs); summarize requirements and coordinate response timelines.
- Lead or support the assembly of proposal packages and qualification submissions, coordinating inputs from technical staff, subconsultants, and the marketing team.
- Track proposal status and maintain a library of up-to-date project descriptions, staff CVs, and standard proposal content.
- Prepare and process Requests for Additional Fees (RAFs), including drafting, internal review coordination, and client communication.
- Maintain client and contact databases, ensuring entries are current and complete.
Project Administration
- Manage the project initiation process, including opening projects, maintaining project files, and coordinating setup in project management systems (e.g., Deltek Vantagepoint).
- Support project teams with administrative tasks including document control, correspondence management, and scheduling.
- Assist with tracking project milestones, deliverable deadlines, and key project correspondence.
Office & People Operations
- Support onboarding of new staff, including coordinating orientation, preparing materials, setting up workstations, and facilitating introductions to office procedures and systems.
- Assist with coordination of staff departures and off-boarding logistics in partnership with Human Resources.
- Organize and support planning of internal events, client appreciation events, team activities, and firm-wide initiatives.
- Manage office supply ordering, access card and equipment administration, and other day-to-day office needs.
- Liaise with Human Resources, IT, accounting, and other corporate functions on behalf of the local office team.
- Serve as a resource for Health & Safety compliance activities, including JHSC meeting participation and coordination of required training.
Who You Are:
- Post-secondary education in Business Administration, Office Administration, or a related field; an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience will be considered.
- Minimum 3–5 years of experience in an executive or senior administrative support role, ideally within a professional services environment (engineering, architecture, legal, accounting, or similar).
- Advanced proficiency in Microsoft 365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint); experience with project management or ERP platforms (e.g., Deltek Vantagepoint or equivalent) is an asset.
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with a keen eye for detail and professional presentation.
- Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities, meet deadlines, and adapt quickly to changing demands.
- High degree of discretion and confidentiality when handling sensitive business and personnel information.
- Self-motivated and solutions-oriented, with the ability to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary team.
- Familiarity with proposal and RFP/RFQ processes in a consulting or professional services context is a strong asset.
About Smith + Andersen
Founded in 1965, Smith + Andersen has organically grown from an established reputation as a trusted engineering consulting firm, reaching new levels of engineering and design excellence in the mechanical, electrical, communications, security and audiovisual fields, and providing enhanced services such as lighting, building automation systems, and intelligent integrated systems design. Thanks to our client-focused approach, we are able to apply efficient, sustainable, and reliable design and engineering solutions on the some of the most exciting projects across Canada.
For more information about Smith + Andersen, please visit our website at www.smithandandersen.com.
Accommodation
Appropriate accommodations will be provided to candidates upon request throughout the recruitment and hiring process. If you require accommodation during any phase of the hiring process, please advise the Human Resources Specialist with whom you are in contact.
Diversity
Smith + Andersen is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates of any age, culture, subculture, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, nationality, race, ethnicity, family status, religion, mental or physical status or veteran status.
Recruitment Agencies
Smith + Andersen welcomes interest by individual applicants. For resumes or applications submitted by agencies or recruiters with which Smith + Andersen does not have an agreement in place, Smith + Andersen will not pay any referral fee. Unsolicited resumes or applications from agencies or recruiters will be deemed to have been referred without fee or other charges.
Artificial Intelligence
Smith + Andersen does not use artificial intelligence (AI) to screen, assess or select applicants.
Smith + Andersen is an equal opportunity employer.
