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ASSESSORIA EXECUTIVA VIRTUAL

Damiana Alves | Treinamento e Assessoria remota

Behind every good boss is a great executive assistant

Foto do escritor: Damiana AlvesDamiana Alves

Senior executives should do more to develop the careers of those below them. If nothing else, it will allow greater delegation

A good executive assistant can help his or her boss get ahead. A great one might even follow in the boss’s footsteps one day. As things stand, though, not enough senior executives give much thought to their assistants’ career development.

These people need to be tech savvy and social media aware, they have to be able to set up the boss’s laptop, phone and other communication tools. They have to be able to read and interpret financial statements, profit and loss accounts, share price data and information about corporate structures. They have to be able to say the right thing about the company at the right time. And they need regular development opportunities.

Simple self-interest should be a factor here, because the more chief executives can delegate to their PAs, the more time they will have to concentrate on their own targets. Many business leaders focus hard on their plans and objectives but, as a result, they can be less aware of the periphery — things like what is going on in the office or elsewhere in the company, or even in the industry as a whole. A good executive assistant will keep track of things like movements at competitors, and will bring them to the chief executive’s attention. They will help to pick up on things that [their bosses] may otherwise miss in their single-minded pursuit of business goals.

They can also help senior leaders maintain a human touch by prompting them to remember birthdays and other special events when talking to staff.

It is important to find an executive assistant with whom you get on. You spend more time with your assistant than your closest family. It takes time to build a relationship that allows executives to trust their assistant’s instincts — but once it is established, it is invaluable.

In the UK only about 40% of executive assistants and PAs have degrees, although demand for graduate assistants is increasing as a new generation of chief executives steps up. They are more likely to look for a graduate because they have analytical, research and critical thinking skills — though they may not have the same diplomatic skills or emotional intelligence. I say to [current] PAs that they need to skill up or they risk being outskilled.

Still, even at senior level, only about a third of the PA roles specify a degree, said Steve Heard, a director at the recruitment business. “However, for those that do require a degree, it is often seen as non-negotiable,” he added. “We know that PAs regularly stand in for their bosses at meetings and are heavily involved with wider business projects.”

That breadth of experience, combined with direct access to a senior business leader, means ambitious executive assistants could use their position as a stepping stone into a leadership role of their own, said Parr. And it seems some companies are starting to recognise this by following the US trend for creating executive assistant roles explicitly intended to be a fast-track route into senior management.

Gary Chaplin, an executive headhunter, filled four such posts last year, but said they should not be confused with more traditional PA roles. “It is a high quality breeding ground for future chief executives. [People in these] roles have been not only acting as the right hand to the chief executive, but fully shadowing them, deputising for them and usually performing tasks the chief executives wish they could perform for themselves if not for time constraints.

“And it is not uncommon for chief executives to send their executive assistants to meetings on their behalf,” he added. “They will have almost full sign-off powers. That part is automatically accepted with American businesses, [but] less so in the UK.”

Candidates for this sort of executive assistant role are generally expected to have an MBA, about five years of practical commercial experience and a willingness to work long hours. In return they are likely to earn between £50,000 and £75,000, although few remain in the post for long. “High performers tend to stay for 18 to 24 months before being poached by another part of the business, usually into a divisional general management role or to lead a significant project,” said Chaplin.

But for most traditional executive assistants, moving into general management is difficult — not least because HR departments are often unwilling to take an executive assistant away from a chief executive who is happy with them.

That said, for those who do shift roles, HR is one of the more common destinations, alongside project management and event management. In creative industries it is easier. Quite often it is seen as a way to get inside an organisation. It’s a chore but it is also a great way to start in the business. Most of his executive assistants have gone on to the editorial side.

 

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