Graduate Project Assistant

Arcadis is the world's leading company delivering sustainable design, engineering, and consultancy solutions for natural and built assets.

We are more than 36,000 people, in over 70 countries, dedicated to improving quality of life. Everyone has an important role to play. With the power of many curious minds, together we can solve the world’s most complex challenges and deliver more impact together.

**Role description**:
The Project Assistant performs the timely and accurate activities related to Arcadis Way of Project Management to support the project manager across the lifecycle of a project. Responsibilities may include administrative tasks around updating schedules and resource plans, maintaining project documentation, delivering supporting information to understand project progress sand support project reviews (health checks), and preparing progress reporting information. In addition, the project assistant may be called upon to schedule meetings and coordinate communication among team members and helping to monitor project progress.

This role reports to a Project Assistant Team leader and during the duration of projects, the Project Manager.

**Role accountabilities**:
**Process Delivery**
- Typically supports projects up to the value of 500k, with light/low project complexity with direct supervision and guidance of more experienced team members.
- Have knowledge and understanding of Oracle ERP and the Arcadis Way of Project Management.
- The Project Assistant reports to a project manager and may support multiple projects concurrently.
- Support the collation of project planning information to enable effective set up of projects in the ERP (including confirming contract value, contract type, rates, pay terms, address details, taxing criteria, etc). Consult with the Project Manager and Project Finance when contract documentation is not provided to fully document requirements and provide a suitable audit trail.
- Review and update the Oracle workplan as needed with direction of the Project Manager to ensure resources and dates/ durations of tasks are correct.
- Review cash flow management that debts have been paid and invoices have been requested in a timely fashion and in accordance with the contract and project status.
- Raise purchase requisitions and attach the supporting documents to PO (Purchase Order) creation. Ensure agreements are in place for suppliers/ subcontractors can be used and manage PO spend on the projects
- Follow monthly deadlines from Project Finance to proactively drive the need for invoicing and communicate with the Project Manager related invoicing delays.
- Monitor the Global Invoicing Dashboard for invoicing needs and continuously check payment statuses.
- Assist in ensuring compliance to project management processes such as the tagging (identification) and completion of mandatory project control documentation (key documents) on the Collaboration Hub (Project SharePoint site)
- Monitor working capital for projects in weekly/ monthly Project Manager meetings. Reviewing WIP and liaising with Project Finance to provide insight and commentary to project controller to support with working capital reviews to drive lower DRO. Highlighting and escalating to Project Finance any risks to WIP or expected delays to the billing schedule, at the project level expected changes.
- Review project financial performance, including cost and revenue with the Project Manager including preparation of data for progress reporting. Liaise with Project Finance to provide insight/intervention to support performance.
- Attend project reviews for assigned projects and take note of actions and updates required that they are responsible for completing, post review. Version Date 2
- Review project forecast changes, escalating to the Project Manager and Project Finance to support where material financial impact is expected.
- Support the review and update of financial forecasts based on the project status and progress.
- Be accountable for your project deliverables and notify the Project Manager and Line Manager if expectations cannot be met.
- Support in the documentation of risks and risk treatment plans and following up on status of mitigation actions.
- General project management support from tracking project schedules, resource planning/ co-ordination, supporting and updating project plans and updating the risk management and lessons learnt record.
- Assist in developing and maintaining standardized document control procedures

**Key shared accountabilities**
- Support the Project Manager and Project Finance in ensuring the accuracy of project performance and escalate and risk or issues that can impact the project performance. - If required, train any new Project Assistants joining the team.
- Overall accountability for the successful delivery of the project remains with the Arcadis Way Project Manager

**Qualifications & Experience**:

- Proficient capability in MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint which is p