How to Become an Executive Assistant

What do Executive Assistants do?

An Executive Assistant would typically need to:

• Act as an executive’s right hand, doing vital and diverse duties on time to keep executives organised and on top of their job, ultimately improving overall corporate efficiency.
• Prepare and format internal and external papers for approval and usage by executives, such as financial statements, reports, memos, presentations, and invoice letters.
• File electronic papers with various applications; keep a paper filing system in the office.
• Facilitate executive communications by answering and diverting phone calls to the right party, taking messages, and appropriately distributing company correspondence.
• Interact with executives, other employees, external partners, customers, and clients, and greet visitors.
• Manage an executive’s calendar; plan appointments and meetings; assist executives in preparation by performing research and data collection; keep meticulous minutes of meetings
• Make travel and lodging arrangements for executives.
• Maintain basic bookkeeping; track and compute expenses in order to compile weekly, monthly, and quarterly financial reports
• As an office manager, you will provide administrative support; you will order supplies and handle a strictly secret records database.
• Supervise the work of clerical workers to ensure the office maintains a high degree of professionalism.
• Organise corporate events outside of the workplace, such as fundraisers, employee appreciation events, and sporting events.

Standard Work Environment

An Executive Assistant spends practically all of her time in the office, interacting with guests, calls, and other executives. Depending on the industry, travel may be required simply on occasion. Some Executive Assistants work as virtual assistants from their homes.

Work Schedule

Executive Assistants often work 35 to 40 hours per week. The typical workday lasts from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., while some companies allow for flexible work hours. Assisting Executives who work long hours may need assistants to work extra late into the evening.

Interim, part-time, and temporary positions are also feasible. Career breaks are also achievable if you keep your skills, particularly your IT abilities, up to date.

Employers

Finding a new job may appear difficult. Executive Assistants can improve their job search by soliciting referrals from their network, contacting firms directly, using job search platforms, attending job fairs, leveraging social media, and contacting staffing agencies.

Executive Assistants are generally employed by:

• Academic Institutions
• Creative Industries
• Scientific & Technical Services
• Governmental Organisations
• Healthcare Industry
• Hospitals 
• General Medical Practices
• Legal & Financial Organisations
• Consultancies
• Marketing & Communications Firms
• Public & Private Companies
• Social Assistance Organisations
• Local Authorities 
•  Charities
• Property Firms
• Retail Companies
• Leisure Companies

Unions / Professional Organizations

Professional associations and organisations, such as The International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP), are essential for Executive Assistants who want to advance their careers or interact with other professionals in their sector or trade. Membership in one or more of these organisations adds value to your CV while strengthening your credentials and qualifications.

Workplace Challenges

• Dealing patiently and efficiently with the different expectations, demands and personalities of their bosses

• Physical strain or harm from sitting for long periods

• Eye strain from long periods of working on a computer or the phone

• Stress from having to deal with diverse tasks and responsibilities, often simultaneously

• Pressure to make sure that office administration work runs smoothly in the organisation

• Maintaining complete confidentiality

• Feeling as if it is a thankless job, even if the organisation or your boss appreciate your work

• Following their boss’s work schedule, even if it means early morning or late night calls or meetings and even if it is in a different time zone

• Lack of balance between personal and professional life

Suggested Work Experience

Any academic programme in which a potential Executive Assistant enrols often involves supervised experience, such as an internship.

Some businesses may regard a candidate’s relevant experience more than their qualifications. To land a place and flourish in the sector, potential Executive Assistants must have spent several years in previous administrative positions. Starting out in occupations like secretary or office clerk is a solid method to get the skills and experience needed to become an Executive Assistant.

Temporary jobs or internships for companies might provide you with valuable experience and lead to more permanent job placements. Such employment can be found through secretarial agencies, although direct applications to organisations may also be helpful.

Improving your typing and IT abilities will help you advance in your profession as an Executive Assistant.

Recommended Qualifications

While a bachelor’s degree is not required for most entry-level positions, some employers prefer Executive Assistant candidates who have a background in business, education, communications, or a similar subject. While the sector and company are frequently determining factors in the education required for aspiring Executive Assistants, an associate degree in administrative assisting or executive assisting is advantageous regardless.

A bachelor’s degree in English, business, accounting, computer technology, or human resources is particularly advantageous if you want to work for larger firms and advance in this industry. Law, government or public administration, and secretarial studies are also important disciplines.

Aspiring Executive Assistants should attend suitable courses in office administration and secretarial processes, which are frequently accessible at community colleges and technical schools. It is also beneficial to obtain training in software commonly used in the business sector, such as word processing, spreadsheets, and databases, through placement agencies or course providers. Those working in more specialised fields, such as medicine or law, may also enrol in courses to master specific terminology and practises.

Certifications, Licenses and Registration

While certification is not required to work as an Executive Assistant, some employers prefer individuals with credentials who can demonstrate competency in a skill set by work experience, training, and passing a test.

Certification, when obtained from an objective and reputable organisation, can carry a large wage premium of up to 18%, boost your chances of progression, and allow you to become an independent consultant. By including a Code of Ethics, successful certification programmes defend the public welfare.

The International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) offers the necessary certification. The International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) offers two qualifications, Certified Professional Secretary (CPS) and Certified Administrative Professional (CAP), that will help you boost your resume and stand out in a competitive employment process.

You can also obtain certification in office management software, such as word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation programmes, through online or in-person classes to demonstrate your knowledge and efficiency to prospective employers.

Executive Assistants are often not required to get a licence in order to work.

Projected Career Map

Career advancement is driven by performance, experience, and the acquisition of professional certifications. Employees who continuously demonstrate high levels of performance may be eligible for promotion every two to three years.

Executive Assistants can advance their careers in a variety of ways. You can gain knowledge in a certain business or region and hone your talents by mastering its jargon. You could possibly progress to a position that helps coordinate departmental or organisational activity. After gaining some experience, you may be able to serve as an Assistant to the Company Director or support other senior managers.

Your existing skills, as well as those you learn through training, can help you advance in your job. For instance, if you speak or are learning numerous languages, you may work as a bilingual assistant.

Some industries, such as charity and real estate, allow you to advance through internal promotions. Working in administration in your desired industry may also provide you with many ways to develop and advance provided you know how to use and refine your talents.

Job Prospects

Executive Assistants with a comparable degree, administrative experience, and great organisational and information technology skills have the highest work prospects.

Beneficial Professional Development

Continuing professional development (CPD) will assist an active Executive Assistant in developing personal skills and proficiency in order to consistently upskill.

Your employer will train you in company-specific rules, processes, and systems before you start your employment to acquaint you with the needs of the specific sector.

Executive Assistants can advance their education or skills through work-based learning, a professional activity, formal education, or self-directed learning. They may do so with or without the assistance of their employer. Typing, document preparation, IT skills, audio transcriptions, company administration, and administrative processes are common training topics.

When considering a job as an Executive Assistant, training in Microsoft Office programs, statistical software, web authoring, and design is always beneficial.

Acquiring a speciality in the medical or legal fields necessitates further training and education to build the necessary vocabulary and skills.

Conclusion of Executive Assistant

Executive Assistants are unsung heroes whose contributions are critical to an organization’s success. They work behind the scenes to help CEOs accomplish their obligations as efficiently as possible by organising records, calendars, notes, and archives. Their tailored assistance and diversified competencies elevate them to the status of superheroes who assure the seamless operation of a business on a daily and long-term basis.

Advice from the Wise

Time yourself through the tasks you complete to ensure you do not omit anything and that you complete the work in the allotted time, possibly using software tools. Start with the tasks you despise in order to get them out of the way. Make a running to-do list to keep track of remaining tasks. Use the Pomodoro method to divide a large activity into manageable bits of time. Be conscious of distractions, whether they are emails, people, or other disruptions, and deal with them wisely. Procrastination should be avoided.

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