Job Description

Are you looking to support a mission-driven organization? Do you thrive working amongst passionate, dedicated coworkers? Synapse is the place for you! Synapse is a consulting company that has been providing rigorous analysis on behalf of public interest clients in the energy and electricity sector for more than 25 years. Our work includes expert analysis, reports, and high-impact expert testimony in hundreds of docketed proceedings across the United States and Canada. Our clients include environmental non-profits, state agencies, federal agencies, and consumer and environmental advocacy groups. 

Synapse is seeking an experienced Executive Assistant to support our Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chief Scientist (CS). The CEO and CS are the dedicated founders of Synapse and are looking for executive support to amplify their day-to-day capacities. 

The ideal candidate has some of the qualities below: 

• Flexibility to collaborate with different working styles and personalities 
• Technologically savvy; quick to learn new systems and technologies 
• Strong interpersonal skills and sense of humor 
• Interest in supporting highly mission-driven individuals 
• Experience assisting executive leaders to integrate their individual process and styles with company processes and technologies 
• Capability to quickly develop the ability to anticipate the needs of CEO and CS 

Job Responsibilities 

Executive Assistance (immediate needs)

• Manage complex calendars, schedule meetings, anticipate and highlight potential conflicts or bottlenecks; keep CEO and CS informed of upcoming commitments and responsibilities, following up appropriately
• Book travel, prepare expense reports, adjust expectations for various time zones
• Manage last-minute changes and conflicts with flexibility and a sense of calm control
• Liaise between CEO and CS and IT team for support of continuous, smooth technology operations; support CEO and CS with software upgrades and troubleshooting programs as needed—common software includes MS Suite (Teams, Excel, Powerpoint, Word), Salesforce, Slack, Zoom, and more
• Track client and collaborator outreach and communication, reminding Synapse teams to follow up as needed
• Coordinate internal and external meetings including scheduling, logistics, set up, preparation of materials, taking detailed notes and follow-up communications
• Handle confidential information with the utmost integrity and discretion
• Manage files and some light datawork by working within Synapse’s processes and software systems such as Salesforce, Trakstar, Box, and more.
• Learn about Synapse’s mission, organization, project history, skills, teams and strengths
• Prepare initial meeting materials for CEO and CS such as slide deck and memo templates
• Support strategic initiatives and special projects to help the CEO and CS and Synapse run effectively; this could include: tracking deadlines, preparing background materials, ensuring completion of tasks, highlighting and leveraging resources within the organization
• Embrace new challenges and responsibilities as the role evolves

Ideal Candidate Profile 

This is not a stepping-stone role. We are seeking a strong, motivated Executive Assistant – someone who is passionate about helping others succeed and can grow into a trusted resource and support. We envision this person enabling organizational leadership to function at its best. We see this role as a juggler of many tasks, being key to maintaining the forward momentum of Synapse operations and its mission.

We are looking for candidates with the following qualities:

• Organized, detail-oriented, and can effectively manage time – we need someone who can manage priorities, parallel tasks, and set and stick to boundaries and commitments.
• Tech Savvy – we need someone who can liaise between our CEO, CS, and our IT Support teams to keep our technology operating smoothly. Support upgrades as needed and troubleshoot programs such as MS Suite (Teams, Excel, PowerPoint, Word), Salesforce, Box, Slack, Zoom, and more.
• Professional maturity, communicative, and accountable – we are looking for someone who can grow into a trusted resource and indispensable support, someone who can represent the CEO and CS and communicate with a variety of parties at Synapse.
• Strong work ethic, high integrity, and a commitment to Synapse’s mission and clients – Whenever we hire at Synapse, we look for candidates that fit our culture of leading with integrity and passion.

Required Qualifications:

• 3+ years of experience as an Executive Assistant, or similar
• Comfort and professionalism working with executive management
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work in Synapse’s Central Square office five days/week, flexibility to occasionally work from various locations across Boston and Cambridge when needed to support CEO and CS
• Experience with Slack, MS Office, Google Suite; Ability and willingness to learn software like Salesforce, Trakstar, Box
• Technologically capable and comfortable liaising between CEO/CS and IT teams

Working at Synapse: 

During your career as an Executive Assistant at Synapse, our CEO and CS will be committed to supporting you. This support can be guaranteed to look like:

• Highly valued deep, trusting, and long-term working relationships 
• Investment in your growth, stability, and success
• Respect and encouragement of your work-life balance

Synapse prides itself on its flexible and collaborative working environment: everybody contributes, asks questions, proposes solutions, and works on interesting research and analysis. This role is expected to be in-person at Synapse’s Cambridge, MA office space with sit-stand desks, lots of meeting space, indoor bike parking, and plenty of nitro cold-brew and kombucha on tap. In addition, this role also provides:

• Generous and flexible PTO
• Flexible work hours and holidays
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Work-life balance
• 401K plan; Synapse makes a safe harbor contribution of 3% salary 
• Life Insurance
• Short- and long-term disability
• Employee Assistance Program
• Participation in Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP): a tax-deferred retirement plan that offers employees a chance to be partial owners of Synapse
• Extensive professional development opportunities 

The salary for this position will range from $30 to $46 per hour, depending on experience and qualifications. 

This is a full-time, non-exempt (hourly) position, required to be primarily performed on-site during normal business hours, with flexibility based on CEO and CS location needs. There will be occasional times when working outside of the normal schedule is required, particularly to adjust availability reasonably in line with various time zones of occasional CS/CEO travel. The candidates should be able to move items weighing up to 30 pounds for events and general business needs on an occasional basis. 

To Apply

To apply, please submit your cover letter and resume. We will be accepting applications on a rolling basis and will keep the application open until we find the right candidate.  

We are unable to sponsor work visas for this position. Authorization to work in the United States is required to be considered.   

Synapse is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to building a culturally diverse company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We strongly encourage applications from all qualified candidates including women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, veterans, and individuals from the LGBTIQ community. 

This position is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts.