Overview
Executive Assistant Jobs in Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa at Vitroplant SA
Title: Executive Assistant
Company: Vitroplant SA
Location: Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa
Job Description
Executive Assistant to the Managing Directors
Company
Vitroplant SA (Pty) Ltd
Location
Somerset West / Stellenbosch, Western Cape
Role type
Full-time, Permanent
Reports to
Co-Managing Directors (Rijk Danckwerts & Harry Danckwerts)
Works with
Senior management, on behalf of the co-MDs
Role Overview
We are seeking a highly organised, tech-savvy, and process-driven Executive Assistant to support the co-Managing Directors of Vitroplant SA. You do not need prior experience in biotechnology or logistics — we will teach you the “what” and the “how.” What we do require is someone who is exceptionally competent with computers, masters new software quickly, has a sharp eye for detail, and can be trusted with confidential and high-value work.
This is a senior support role. You will be the right hand of the two directors — managing their time, their correspondence, and the critical export and contract processes that keep the business moving. You will also work side by side with our senior managers to put the directors’ decisions into action, coordinating across the business without managing those teams yourself.
Key ResponsibilitiesExecutive Support
• Diary & correspondence: manage the co-MDs’ calendars, handle professional phone calls, and manage their correspondence and email.
• Meetings & minutes: schedule and prepare meetings, and take accurate minutes with clear action points.
• Travel: arrange complex domestic and international travel and itineraries for the directors.
• Confidentiality: handle sensitive commercial and personal information with complete discretion.
Logistics & Export Compliance
• Shipments: follow step-by-step processes to organise cargo shipments for plant exports.
• Certificates & permits: apply for phytosanitary certificates and import permits, and track them to completion.
• Coordination: liaise with shipping agents, authorities, and customers to keep exports on schedule.
Contract & Document Management
• Contracts: maintain and update filing for specific supplier and customer contracts, tracking key dates such as expiry and notice periods.
• High-value documents: act as the custodian of the directors’ important documents within the company’s shared filing system.
Coordination with Senior Management
A key part of this role is working horizontally across the business to implement what the co-MDs need:
• Implementation: take instructions and decisions from the directors and coordinate with the relevant senior managers to carry them out.
• Follow-through: track progress on director-led initiatives and report back, chasing actions where needed.
• Bridge, not boss: you coordinate and facilitate across teams on the directors’ behalf; you do not line-manage those teams.
Technology & AI
• AI-assisted work: use AI tools (such as Claude) to draft correspondence, summarise documents, and streamline administrative and compliance tasks.
• Continuous improvement: look for ways technology can make the directors’ office faster and more reliable.
Candidate Requirements
• High tech fluency: very comfortable with Google Workspace and/or Microsoft 365, and keen to explore new AI productivity tools.
• Process-oriented: you enjoy following a clear system and take pride in accuracy.
• Discreet & trustworthy: comfortable handling confidential, high-value information.
• Strong communicator: polished written and spoken English; confident dealing with directors, managers, and external parties.
• Intellectual curiosity: a genuine interest in learning the business and the plant biotech industry.
• Reliability: you are the person who “never drops the ball.”
Nice to have (not essential): experience in a PA / EA or coordinator role, exposure to logistics or exports, and a valid passport for occasional travel coordination.