The 10 Characteristics of a Rockstar Executive Assistant
What Every Leader Needs to Know about ‘The Glue of the Team’
I’ve always had a passion for music (I’m the lead vocalist in a Rock band) along with ambitions to grow my career as an Executive Assistant. In order to harmonise both elements; I decided to become a Rockstar Executive Assistant!
Great accomplishments both personal and corporate happen when teams work effectively and efficiently. In the pursuit of excellence there are always going to be tremendous stumbling blocks which need to be converted into stepping stones.
The reality of deadlines, quarterly goals, staff turnover, schedule conflicts, and the like can often detract team members and especially busy Executives from focusing on what they are great at.
Over the last decade I’ve seen the value that an exceptional Executive Assistant brings to a team. A great executive assistant is like an air-traffic controller for your life. Not just your business—your whole life. They help manage not only the intricacies of the office, but all the treacherous intersections between work, family, social obligations, and more.
An Executive Assistant is an extension of the executive he or she works for. You are thinking and acting on their behalf all day long— solving minor issues which if left unchecked can cause major disruption.
Busy Executives don’t have the bandwidth to worry about logistics – they need to be focused on creating value for the company and ultimately the shareholders. Closing the deal at the next meeting is the main effort – not worrying about how to get there, where to sleep, eat, or to find the perfect gift for your other half when you return from a business trip.
Most importantly is helping the Executive balance the needs and demands of their life to eliminate any collisions between the personal and professional.
These are the ten characteristics that I believe every great EA personifies:
1. They serve to lead. This is the foundation for everything else. A Rockstar Executive Assistant wants to serve—and not just your company or organization. A Rockstar EA wants to serve you. Whether the task is big or little, he achieves his goals by helping you achieve yours. If potential EA’s don’t have this quality, no problem. But they probably should look for a different opportunity.
2. They have personalised expertise. A Rockstar EA is like a second brain. She knows what you like and don’t like. She knows where you are and where you need to go. She knows when to schedule meetings and when not to. A Rockstar EA will gather as much of this information as possible as early as possible—and proactively keep learning.
3. They master the calendar. In business we live and die by the calendar. Deadlines, appointments, meetings, presentations, calls—the calendar is the flight plan that keeps all of these moving parts from crashing into each other. And don’t forget scheduled commitments at home. If your EA doesn’t have mastery of the calendar, we’re not talking about a Rockstar EA.
4. They anticipate needs. A Rockstar EA sees in advance what an executive needs and plans accordingly. If it’s lunch before a meeting, reports emailed to a client, whatever, she’s already seen the need and addressed it. Anyone can take a direction. But a Rockstar is already moving the way you want to go.
5. They prioritise the personal. When I said an air-traffic controller for your whole life, this is what I meant. If your EA defaults to prioritising the professional at the expense of the personal, he’s not a Rockstar—at least not yet. Protecting their personal time lets the Executive maximise their professional time. A Rockstar EA knows that and helps to guard that time.
6. They are great at managing resources. A great EA knows how to keep you from burying yourself. At any given moment most Executives don’t know the full range of their commitments, obligations, and initiatives. It’s the EA’s responsibility and duty of care to push back when commitments outweigh the time available. Also, a great EA is able to harness internal and external resources to maximise stakeholder management.
7. They create and master systems. Whatever line of work you’re in, effective performance depends on a certain number of set preferences and procedures. What works best for you and your team? A Rockstar EA will document and systematise these things so you’re not always reinventing the wheel.
8. They know what’s on your plate. We all have too much on our plates. Your EA should know all that you’re dealing with and what’s critical to your success. If he knows that, he can keep you focused on the high-leverage activities and decline or delegate the rest.
9. They respect your confidentiality. A Rockstar EA will have all sorts of personal information and access. It’s critical she has integrity and a sense of discretion. It’s also important she sees when people are trying to get insider access or influence.
10. They have great communication skills. And by this, I don’t just mean he can carry on a conversation. A Rockstar EA will help facilitate communication in your organization—especially if you’re bottle necking things. Whether it’s email, calls, or other communication, a Rockstar EA will accelerate response times and keep the messages moving.
This list is not exhaustive; but if you’re an EA looking to become a Rockstar Executive Assistant for your team and organization start working towards achieving 10/10 on this list!
Media Contact:
Name: Chantal Frith
Email: chantalfrith@gmail.com
I am Darryl Broadhurst and i give investors an insight into the most recent news hitting the “Technology” sector in Wall Street. I have been an independent financial adviser for over 11 years in the city and in recent years turned my experience in finance and passion for journalism into a full time role. I perform analysis of Companies and publicizes valuable information for shareholder community.
