Careers @ MSU

Position Summary 

Honorifics Office Assistant provides high-level administrative, operational, and project coordination support for Michigan State University’s institutional strategy for faculty and academic staff awards, honors, and recognition. 

Working closely with the Assistant Director of Honorifics, this position coordinates the day-to-day activities required to identify, track, develop, and advance faculty and academic staff award opportunities. The position serves as a central point for maintaining award information, candidate and nomination records, deadlines, submission materials, communications, meetings, and follow-up activities. 

The position requires a high degree of organization, attention to detail, independent judgment, discretion, and the ability to manage multiple projects and competing deadlines. The successful candidate will interact regularly with faculty, academic leaders, administrative staff, university offices, external award organizations, and other stakeholders. 

The position will help ensure that the University’s honorifics operations are organized, timely, accurate, and responsive, while providing the administrative infrastructure necessary to support a proactive and sustainable institutional awards strategy. 

Characteristic Duties – Responsibilities 

1. Honorifics Operations & Nomination Support – 40% 

• Coordinates the administrative and operational activities associated with internal and external faculty and academic staff awards and honorifics. 

• Maintains a centralized database and tracking system of award opportunities, eligibility requirements, deadlines, nominees, nominations, submissions, outcomes, and related activities. 

• Monitors award calendars and deadlines and proactively communicates upcoming requirements to the Assistant Director, faculty, nominators, colleges, and other appropriate partners. 

• Coordinates nomination timelines and submission logistics, including collection and organization of nomination materials, letters of support, biographies, CVs, supporting documentation, and other required materials. 

• Maintains standardized nomination templates, checklists, tracking tools, and process documentation. 

• Reviews nomination materials for completeness, formatting, consistency, and adherence to submission requirements. 

• Coordinates routing and approvals associated with nominations and ensures required materials are received by established deadlines. 

• Maintains organized electronic files and records for nominations, awards, correspondence, and related documentation. 

• Tracks award outcomes and maintains historical records to support future nomination planning and institutional analysis. 

• Provides administrative support for internal awards, recognition programs, and honorific initiatives. 

2. Faculty, College & Stakeholder Coordination – 25% 

• Serves as a primary administrative point of contact for faculty, nominators, college staff, and university partners regarding award timelines, requirements, processes, and documentation. 

• Responds to inquiries and provides accurate information regarding nomination procedures, deadlines, eligibility requirements, and next steps. 

• Coordinates meetings, consultations, workshops, and other activities supporting faculty recognition and honorifics. 

• Schedules meetings and maintains calendars for the Assistant Director of Honorifics and, as appropriate, faculty and university partners. 

• Prepares agendas, briefing materials, meeting notes, action items, and follow-up communications. 

• Tracks commitments and follow-up activities resulting from meetings and consultations. 

• Coordinates communications with colleges and partnering units to gather information and advance nomination activities. 

• Attends meetings on behalf of the Assistant Director when appropriate and communicates relevant information and action items. 

• Establishes and maintains effective working relationships with University personnel, faculty, academic staff, external organizations, and other stakeholders. 

3. Data, Reporting & Research Support – 20% 

• Collects, verifies, organizes, and maintains data related to awards, nominations, candidates, outcomes, participation, and institutional recognition. 

• Conducts research on award opportunities, eligibility criteria, deadlines, nomination requirements, and related information. 

• Assists with environmental scans and benchmarking activities related to faculty awards and recognition. 

• Prepares recurring and ad hoc reports, summaries, tables, dashboards, and other materials for the Assistant Director and senior leadership. 

• Assists with analyzing nomination and award data to identify trends, gaps, opportunities, and follow-up needs. 

• Maintains accurate records to support institutional reporting and assessment. 

• Researches and compiles information needed for briefings, proposals, presentations, reports, and strategic planning. 

• Assists in developing presentations and briefing materials for university leaders, college partners, and other stakeholders. 

• Supports continuous improvement by identifying administrative process issues and recommending improvements to tracking, communication, documentation, and workflow. 

4. Administrative & Executive Support – 15% 

• Provides high-level administrative support to the Assistant Director of Honorifics and related FASA activities. 

• Prepares, edits, proofreads, and formats correspondence, reports, presentations, nomination materials, briefing documents, and other communications. 

• Drafts routine correspondence and communications related to award opportunities, deadlines, nomination activities, meetings, and follow-up. 

• Maintains confidential and sensitive records and exercises appropriate discretion in handling faculty and personnel information. 

• Coordinates meeting logistics, including rooms, technology, materials, invitations, and follow-up. 

• Maintains organized electronic files and records in accordance with University policies and established procedures. 

• Assists with travel arrangements, reimbursements, purchasing, and other administrative activities as needed. 

• May assist with budget tracking, reconciliation, purchasing, and financial documentation related to honorifics programs and activities. 

• Completes special projects and assignments independently to support the goals of the Assistant Director and FASA. 

Key Areas of Accountability 

The position is expected to demonstrate: 

• Exceptional organization and follow-through in managing multiple concurrent deadlines and projects. 

• Attention to detail in nomination materials, databases, correspondence, and reporting. 

• Independent judgment in determining appropriate actions, escalating issues, and resolving routine problems. 

• Responsiveness and professionalism when interacting with faculty, administrators, staff, and external organizations. 

• Discretion and confidentiality when handling sensitive faculty and institutional information. 

• Strong written and verbal communication skills. 

• Proficiency with technology and data management tools, including Microsoft Office and related systems. 

• Ability to establish and maintain effective tracking systems for complex, deadline-driven work. 

• Ability to anticipate needs and proactively identify upcoming deadlines, missing information, and potential issues. 

• Ability to work effectively in a complex, decentralized university environment. 

Working Relationships 

The position works closely with: 

• Assistant Director of Honorifics 

• FASA leadership and staff 

• Faculty and academic staff 

• College deans and associate deans 

• College faculty affairs and administrative teams 

• Research development and Research and Innovation teams 

• University Communications 

• Office of the Provost 

• Office of the President 

• Institutional Research 

• University Advancement 

• External award organizations, foundations, and professional associations 

Core Competencies 

Organization & Execution 
Effectively manages details, deadlines, competing priorities, and follow-up activities. 

Communication 
Communicates clearly, professionally, and appropriately with faculty, administrators, staff, and external partners. 

Customer & Relationship Focus 
Provides responsive and professional service while building productive relationships across organizational boundaries. 

Judgment & Problem Solving 
Recognizes issues, independently determines appropriate next steps, and knows when to escalate matters. 

Data Management & Analysis 
Maintains accurate information and uses data to support reporting, decision-making, and continuous improvement. 

Confidentiality & Discretion 
Handles sensitive information appropriately and demonstrates sound professional judgment. 

Initiative & Anticipation 
Identifies upcoming needs, potential issues, and opportunities to improve processes without waiting for direction. 

Teamwork & Collaboration 
Works effectively with a broad range of internal and external stakeholders to accomplish shared objectives. 

• Knowledge equivalent to that which normally would be acquired in the first two or three years in college, technical school or related field; one to three years of related and progressively more responsible or expansive work experience in providing administrative, project, program, or operational support in a complex organization. 

• Experience independently managing multiple priorities, projects, deadlines, and stakeholders. 

• Demonstrated ability to organize, track, verify, and maintain complex information and records. 

• Strong written and verbal communication skills. 

• Demonstrated proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. 

• Demonstrated ability to exercise independent judgment and handle confidential or sensitive information appropriately. 

• Strong attention to detail and demonstrated follow-through. 

• Ability to work effectively with individuals at varying levels of an organization. 

• Or an equivalent combination of education and experience.