Project Administrator (Temporary Position: Eighteen month contract) at Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)

About the job:

The CSIR has a temporary vacancy for a Project Administrator in the Mandela Mining Precinct. The incumbent will be responsible to provide administrative support according to applicable project management framework in support of the effective and efficient delivery of projects. This positions are based in Carlow Road, Johannesburg.

Key responsibilities:

• Assist with coordinating milestone deliverables, which includes correspondence, scheduling, progress tracking, documentation control, and report edits/review;
• Coach and guide new interns, provide induction to new interns into their roles, and do hand-over activities where required;
• Update and maintain audit files/records, update and maintain SharePoint information, update, and maintain risk register, update and maintain projects tracking;
• Support programme managers in the compilation of Terms of References, the review of contracts, and all related requirements associated with project coordination;
• Support the programme managers in the co-ordination of Open Day/Workshops arrangements;
• Create a project start up file and update accordingly until close out;
• Assist the Programme Manager with the administrative aspects required to establish, implement and maintain project controls;
• Collect documentation required for compliance to project control standards and procedures;
• Participate in line project office meetings by capturing actions and resolutions and provide required information for decision making;
• Assist with the calculation of income to be declared and running costs against timesheet bookings by monitoring the financial dashboard system;
• Highlight red flags (e.g. incorrect booking) and inform the project lead and/or other relevant stakeholders;
• Review and update the project budget forecast each quarter and submit to the leader for verification;
• Obtain project status feedback and record in relevant status document;
• Provide inputs requested to and prepare documentation required by relevant programme governance committees;
• Perform continuous quality checks and report anomalies to the Programme Manager;
• Assist the Programme/Contracts Manager to capture project configuration data and documentation into appropriate configuration/document management system;
• Assist the Contracts Manager with administrative tasks for project close out;
• Facilitate project documentation and ensure compliance with project management, business frameworks and CSIR quality standards;
• Assist with office management including meeting and event management, travel bookings and drafting agenda/minute-taking;
• Ensure that the office is in a position to function effectively on a day-to-day basis;
• Support good contact with senior stakeholders internally and externally;
• Prepare expense reconciliations.

Qualifications, skills and experience:

• A National Diploma in project management with at least one year project administration experience within a project/programme management.
• A post graduate qualification in mining related disciplines such as geology, mining, survey, social sciences would be an advantage.
• Experience in assisting with project coordination of multiple projects would be an advantage.
• Proficient in Microsoft Project or similar software.
• Good numerical skills.
• Excellent writing and communication skills in English a requirement.
• Attention to detail.
• Need to have drivers’ licence and own transport and willing to travel.
• All international qualifications require an evaluation report / certificate issued by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).