Dear Sir or Madam,

I was very excited to read the advertisement on the Abercrombie & Kent website for the role of a Sales Support Assistant. A graduate of the University of Kent with relevant experience as an assistant to the CEO of a children’s charity, I am confident that I possess the personal qualities as well as the professional skills required to have success in the advertised role.

My enthusiasm for pursuing a career in this area stems from my passionate interest in world travel, having independently travelled to Southeast Asia for three months, and my desire to provide exceptional administrative support within a fast-paced environment. In addition, I am motivated by a wish to make full use of my excellent interpersonal and organisational skills. Abercrombie & Kent has established its credentials as a leader in the provision of luxury and tailor-made holidays and the company’s success at the 2012 British Travel Awards is a testament to its client-focused philosophy and delivery of an extraordinary travel experience. Undoubtedly, I would relish the opportunity to pursue my interest in an administrative support and travel industry career with such a renowned organisation that would inevitably provide excellent opportunities for my personal and professional development.

Firstly, as an assistant to the CEO of a children’s charity, I have shown excellent communication skills and an ability to maintain effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders. Supporting the CEO and other senior level staff, I have communicated with partners, suppliers, supporters and trustees through e-mail, face-to-face and telephone correspondence. Responsible for merchandise sales at the charity’s annual fundraiser, my clear and enthusiastic face-to-face communication of the charity’s message to major donors resulted in the successful sale of items throughout the evening. I have also successfully corresponded by telephone with insurance providers with my ability to establish an instant rapport allowing me to negotiate favourable conditions for the charity. Moreover, I have produced well-received written reports that have summarised for internal audiences my research into topics such as the processes involved in reclaiming Gift Aid from donations.

Secondly, a meticulous nature has been critical in my role for the children’s charity. In my management of Excel databases that have recorded information on charitable and corporate partners, individual major donors and received donations, extraordinary attention to detail and a proactive approach has ensured that a wealth of information that had not been readily available is now accessible to the charity’s fundraising team. Whilst I have illustrated my meticulous nature in my accurate research, I have also demonstrated excellent problem solving skills in my logical codification and presentation of the assembled information. My diligent and thorough database management has proven crucial for the Fundraising Manager’s successful arrangement of the charity’s donor acquisition campaigns.

Thirdly, I have exhibited a high level of organisation and an ability to prioritise in my position for the children’s charity. I have undertaken a diversity of assignments, all of which have come with separate deadlines and required accountability to different members of the senior staff. For example, I have been responsible to the CEO for the drafting of updates for the charity’s Twitter pages whilst at the same time being responsible to the Fundraising Manager for research into CSR programmes suitable for application by the charity. I have also worked efficiently in pressurised circumstances when assigned tasks with a next day deadline. This was the case when I was responsible for producing the hand-out materials and PowerPoint presentation for the CEO’s pitch to corporate sponsors. On every occasion, in order to ensure the completion of tasks on time and to a high standard, I compare their urgency and assess the time commitment required before breaking them down into manageable targets.

Fourthly, and finally, my abilities to work in a team as well as autonomously were demonstrated throughout my university education as I worked on a number of group-based and independent projects. On the one hand, in my final year of undergraduate study, I worked in a team of four on a project that analysed a strategic problem faced by a multinational organisation. I focused on my strengths whilst welcoming constructive criticism from my peers to aid my improvement in areas where my knowledge was weak. I also respected the individual expertise of others in my group and welcomed their ideas for the project as a whole. Our group achieved one of the most impressive marks across the module and received incredibly positive feedback. On the other hand, I engaged independently with a twelve-thousand word postgraduate dissertation for which I received a high Merit. Preparation for the assessment required extensive research and analysis of a range of complex sources. The dissertation project honed my ability to work on my own initiative and nurtured a perseverance to overcome problems in pressurised circumstances.

I would like to thank you for reviewing my application and I attach my CV for your additional consideration. Should I be of interest to the organisation, I am immediately available to commence employment and would be happy to discuss my negotiable salary expectations. I very much look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours faithfully,