Executive assistants, administrative assistants, personal assistants, and secretaries all support a business or other professionals’ work by completing essential office duties. Executive assistants differ because they work directly for top executives and are considered senior staff members.
The duties of an executive assistant consist of providing high-level administrative support to the executive they work for. The role is important as the responsibilities often can directly add to the success of a business.
Here we’ll go over all you need to know about the executive assistant position.
An executive assistant performs a variety of administrative tasks that support one or more executives. The day-to-day responsibilities include handling emails, managing calendars, making travel arrangements, and organizing meetings.
To be successful in this executive assistant role, you must be extremely organized, self-motivated, a quick learner, and an excellent communicator. This position is expected to contribute to the company’s efficiency by providing the support its executives need.
The responsibilities of an executive assistant depend on the executive they support and the industry of the business. The duties help executives focus on their core functions to maximize their productivity and add to their success and the success of the company. Some of the everyday tasks performed by executive assistants are:
Executives rely on their assistants to manage their calendars to ensure their days run smoothly and meetings are not double booked. As appointments get scheduled and canceled, the executive assistant will update the calendar for the executive.
Executive assistants are often responsible for training and managing lower-level staff such as clerical workers to ensure the office is effective and runs smoothly.
Tracking expenses and preparing reports weekly, monthly, or quarterly is often the responsibility of the executive assistant, and the information is delivered directly to the executives.
Booking flights and other accommodations, including rental cars, dinner reservations, and entertainment when executives travel gets handled by the executive assistants.
When a company hosts an event, such as a company Christmas party, the executive assistant will plan almost every detail, including choosing and negotiating vendors and planning the food and drink menus.
In an office, there are a lot of supplies that need to remain in stock for the office to function properly. The executive assistant sometimes is responsible for managing inventory and ordering supplies and other office essentials when needed. They also shop vendors to ensure they buy the best products for the lowest price.
An executive assistant ensures important files are organized and in order so they can access them quickly.
Scheduling meetings, including ensuring all essential staff are available to attend, is an executive assistant’s responsibility. They plan the meeting’s agenda, prepare necessary documents and presentations needed. They also sit in on the meetings and take minutes for the executives.
An executive assistant researches specific topics for the executive, including ways to increase efficiency, lower costs, and industry research. They often are responsible for pulling statistical data and providing graphs that the executives use to make essential business decisions.
Executive assistants help ensure that databases are up-to-date and accurate.
Executives often have a high volume of calls, emails, in-person visits from various people. The executive assistant is the gatekeeper to the executive and decides who gets through to them or who they will address themselves. Executives don’t have enough time in the day to take all the incoming traffic they receive.
When executives have documents to type up, they often pass the time-consuming task onto their assistant to put together for them.
An executive assistant typically manages their email inbox, and the executives ensure critical ones get through to their boss, and they respond to ones they can handle themselves.
Executive assistants create and manage spreadsheets for the executive. Many times they have several spreadsheets to update daily.
Any projects that come up that are time-consuming, the executive usually passes at least some of the duty on to their assistant to tackle. Anything that the assistant can handle, the executive will pass onto them so that they can focus on more pressing tasks.
Executive assistants are employed by companies in almost every industry, including government, healthcare, and private corporations. They commonly work full-time in an office setting and spend much of their day behind computers or on the phone.
Dedicated executive assistants sometimes take work home to complete when needed to meet deadlines. Some executive assistants work remotely permanently.
Executive assistants are highly organized professionals with strong attention to detail. They can work independently with little to no supervision. They must have basic knowledge of many office programs and can type fast and accurately.
Communication skills – Executive assistants communicate with many people daily, including executives and other staff members, vendors, and clients, so they must be excellent communicators both verbally and in writing.
Interpersonal skills – Since executive assistants are the gatekeeper for executives and communicate with various people every day, great interpersonal skills are required. They must have a positive people-pleasing attitude but be still firm when needed.
Time management skills – Since executive assistants manage an executive’s time as well as their own, they must be great with time management and handling multiple schedules. They sometimes work on projects with tight deadlines that directly add to the company’s success, so time management is critical for an executive assistant.
Ability to multitask – Many studies show multitasking isn’t efficient, but executive assistants often are needed to juggle multiple projects simultaneously to get their workload completed. There’s no room for error with the high-importance work they perform, so they must be able to multitask effectively.
Highly confidential – An executive assistant has access to highly confidential information that must remain private. The executive assistant must be honest and keep classified information a secret.
Most executives looking to hire an executive assistant require at least a bachelor’s degree. Some have a Master of Business Administration (MBA). Although, there isn’t a set industry education requirement to be an executive assistant.
Sometimes experience and skills are what some employers focus on when looking for the right executive assistant rather than degrees. The most in-demand executive assistants take additional courses to advance their skills to become more valuable to an executive. Technology certifications are beneficial for an executive assistant since they deal with many programs and technology.
First and foremost, a great executive assistant needs to be the right fit for the executive and company culture. The executive works closely with their assistant day in and day out, so they must get along, communicate effectively, and have working styles that fit well together.
Excellent executive assistants are troubleshooters and fix problems before anyone notices the issue. They are outgoing, confident, and friendly with all types of people. They maintain a positive attitude and can remain calm through stressful situations.
The best executive assistants work hard to relieve their boss of tedious and time-consuming tasks that they can handle successfully. This way, the executive can improve their efficiency and focus on more critical functions that add to the business’ success.
Executive assistants handle some of the executives’ workload, so they have more time to focus on ways to improve efficiency, increase productivity, lower costs, and scale. Many executives see a great return on their investment into an executive assistant. Hiring an executive assistant is an excellent business decision.
No matter how fast or efficient an executive is, they often need to work long hours and quickly get burned out without an assistant helping them. An assistant helps with some of the workloads so the executive can handle their work successfully while having a healthy work-life balance.
Executive assistants work directly to the company’s success since they support executives who make essential business decisions. Executives delegate some of their responsibilities to their assistants, which are commonly administrative duties such as answering calls, handling emails, and typing documents.
Top executives depend on their assistants to help them increase productivity and increase efficiency. Executive assistants must have several skills such as excellent communication skills, outstanding organizational skills, and great interpersonal skills.
Are you ready to hire an executive assistant or want to become one? If so, contact the Pocketbook Agency today, and we’ll find you your perfect match!
Sources:
Why Multitasking Isn’t Efficient | WebMD
What Training Is Needed to Become an Executive Assistant? | Learn.org