Salary : $77,236.00 - $109,742.00 Annually
Location : 16451 El Sobrante Rd. Riverside, CA
Job Type: Full Time
Job Number: 26-14
Department: Mechanical Services
Opening Date: 06/10/2026
Closing Date: 6/25/2026 5:00 PM Pacific
Max Number of Applicants: 50

THE POSITIONThe Administrative Assistant is responsible for coordinating a variety of high level organizational, ministerial, and administrative support functions for the Western Water department staff, member agencies, and the general public. This position plays a significant role within the organization by supporting the department head and team with coordinating meetings and providing crucial administration and updates to the daily activities for effective, efficient, and highly responsive execution of tasks.

To join our team, you will need to:

• Collaborate effectively with our executives and staff.
• Be approachable, pleasant and welcoming.
• Assess priorities, frequently reorganize workflows and facilitate top-down and bottom-up communication within the executive department.

The Ideal Candidate at Western Water is more than just an administrative organizer. We are looking for a seasoned Administrative Assistant with strong interpersonal skills to support the day-to-day activities of the team. We need someone who has the experience of skillfully assisting with administrative functions, department level board and committee activities, meetings, and document preparation while having strong interaction with executive management and staff --all while bringing new ideas and approaches for improving processes to get the job done. Additionally, we need someone comfortable working both in an office environment and out in the field.

Personal Competencies/Characteristics:

• A relationship-builder who is proactive in establishing and maintaining partnerships with key internal and external stakeholders.
• A skilled professional with a heightened sense of emotional intelligence and an awareness of executive management, community and customer issues, and political sensitivities.
• Open, approachable, and action-oriented; exercises good judgment; treats others with respect.
• Collaborative approach to working with others; able to bring people together and leverage common interests to perpetuate the goals of Western Water.
• Outstanding organizational and leadership skills.
• A self-starter who exhibits high initiative and a strong work ethic; embraces the opportunity to make a difference along with:
  • Strong attention to detail with the ability to plan for and anticipate the needs of the department.
  • Effective organizational capabilities with the expertise to prioritize and manage multiple competing tasks with a calm and composed approach.
  • Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing, and facilitate communication between departments and individuals.
  • Demonstrates proficiency in holding oneself accountable coupled with the ability to understand own level of authority.

If you're ready to join a highly professional, results-oriented team, able to see the bigger picture, have a heightened sense of emotional intelligence, and are aware of Western Water's management and district and community issues--we'd love to hear from you.
This administrative position will have an emphasis on supporting the team by assisting with duties of an advanced, complex, and time sensitive nature. Under the direction of the department manager, the selected candidate performs a variety of complex office administrative, secretarial, and clerical duties requiring thorough knowledge of the assigned department, division, or program, its procedures, and operational details; coordinates assigned programs, projects, and services with other District departments, divisions, and outside agencies. The Administrative Assistant is the fully qualified journey-level classification responsible for performing a wide variety of complex office duties. Incumbents regularly work on tasks such as composing and preparing correspondence using considerable judgment in content and style; performs skilled word processing, data entry, and organization, telephone and counter reception, processing of invoices, recordkeeping, statistical and technical report preparation, and filing; provides information to the public and Western Water staff; and performs related work as required.

The selected candidate will be expected to use considerable discretion and independent judgement. Positions in the classification rely on experience and judgement to perform specialized and technical office support duties as well as performing various research and budgetary support functions. Assignments are given with general guidelines and incumbents are responsible for establishing objectives, timelines, and methods to complete assignments. Work is typically reviewed upon completion for soundness, appropriateness, and conformity to policy and requirements. This class is distinguished from the Executive Assistant in that the latter is a specialized class that provides complex administrative support direct to the General Manager, Executive staff and Board of Directors.

The Administrative Assistant position may also receive project assignments and direction from the department Director or Deputy Director.
Examples of Duties

The duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to this classification.

In addition to the essential administrative functions of this position, below are some of the specific duties expected for this role:
Depending on assignment:

• Relieves the department management team of a variety of administrative details by assisting with duties of an advanced, complex, and sensitive nature; plans, organizes, and carries out administrative assignments and special projects related to assigned department, including assisting with budget preparation, planning, and implementation; recommends organizational or procedural changes which impact support activities; recommends improvements in workflow, procedures, use of equipment, and forms.
• Collects and compiles material for review and analysis; provides recommendations for changes in programs, policies, or procedures to improve efficiency and cost effectiveness of operations.
• Participates in the preparation of department budget; monitors budget expenditures and revenues; initiates department purchases for office supplies and other items as assigned; authorizes payment of invoices.
• Performs other financial and accounting related duties, including receiving and reconciling payments with purchasing orders, tracking vendor and invoice information, and assisting with price quotes, purchase and expenditure requests, and purchase orders.
• Organizes and carries out administrative assignments; researches, compiles, and organizes information and data from various sources on a variety of specialized topics related to programs in assigned area; checks and tabulates standard mathematical or statistical data; prepares and assembles reports, meeting agendas and minutes, manuals, articles, announcements, and other informational materials.
• Composes, types, and edits a variety of documents including detailed and often confidential correspondence, forms, memos, reports, statistical reports, invitations, graphic materials, and specialized documents for the executive level managers and other management and department staff from rough draft, dictation equipment, handwritten copy, verbal instructions, or from other material; proofreads materials for accuracy, completeness, compliance with departmental policies, format, and English usage, including grammar, punctuation, and spelling; inputs and retrieves data and text using a computer.
• Assists with reviewing forms and reports for completeness and conformance with established regulations and procedures; applies departmental and program policies and procedures in determining completeness of applications, records, and files.
• Designs and implements file, index, tracking, and recordkeeping systems.
• May provide support to Western Water boards, committees, and task forces, including coordinating and scheduling meetings, appointments, and speaking engagements, reserving meeting rooms, maintaining reports, compiling and distributing agenda packets, attending meetings, formatting and distributing minutes, and following-up on decisions as required.
• Prepares and processes reports, forms, and records, such as Board meeting agenda items, requests for payments, requests for proposals, contracts and agreements, and reimbursement requests.
• Coordinates and integrates department services and activities with other Western Water departments and outside agencies.
• Coordinates travel arrangements and accommodations for department personnel and submits all related paperwork.
• Maintains calendars and makes meeting arrangements; schedules meetings; reserves meeting rooms for meetings and conferences; performs or arranges for necessary set-up, equipment, and materials to be available at meetings.
• Receives and screens visitors, telephone calls, emails, and regular mail; provides information to the public to ensure an understanding of departmental and District policies and procedures and handles issues which may require sensitivity and use of sound independent judgment; listens to questions and explains procedures according to existing guidelines; refers matters to appropriate Western Water staff and/or takes or recommends action to resolve the request or complaints to ensure the issue has been appropriately handled.
• May provide technical and functional direction to and train assigned subordinates to ensure office workflow is maintained and office goals are met; assigns work according to changes in workload priorities; evaluates office and administrative functions to recommend changes in office procedures.
• Completes special projects as assigned.
• Attends various meetings and training as required.
• Observes and complies with all Western Water and mandated safety rules, regulations, and protocols.
• When assigned to field inspection, must possess mobility to work in changing site conditions; possess the strength, stamina, and mobility to perform light to medium physical work; to sit, stand and walk on level, uneven, or slipper surfaces; to reach, twist, turn, kneel, and bend, to climb and descend ladders; entry into confined spaces and the use of confined entry equipment; and to operate a motor vehicle and visit various Western Water sites; vision to inspect site conditions and work in progress and color vision to observe color-specific safety symbols and signs.
• The job includes fieldwork requiring frequent walking in operational areas to identify problems or hazards, with exposure to hazardous materials in some site locations.
• Must possess the ability to lift, carry, push, and pull materials and objects averaging a weight of 30 pounds, or heavier weights, in all cases with the use of proper equipment and/or assistance from other staff.

Typical Qualifications
QUALIFICATIONS
Knowledge of:

• Business administrative policies and procedures.
• District and department programs, goals, and policies and procedures of the assigned department or division.
• Applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulatory codes, ordinances, and procedures relevant to assigned area of responsibility.
• Principles and practices of data collection and report generation.