A Comprehensive Guide to Hiring the Perfect Executive Assistant
Are you looking for the perfect candidate to fill your Executive Assistant (EA) role?
If so, you need to ensure they have the right Executive Assistant skills to ensure success. Here is a complete guide to the skills and responsibilities to look out for when hiring a top-performing EA.
Executive Assistants (EAs) are pivotal contributors to the productivity of an organisation.
By providing high-level administrative support and task management, effective EAs facilitate smooth operations and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of business executives and their teams.
As explained by the Harvard Business Review the best Executive Assistants “can make enormous contributions to productivity at all levels of the organisation” due to the trickle-down effect that their contributions have on a business.
With that in mind, we’ve put together a comprehensive guide to demystifying the role of an EA.
Designed to offer a clearer understanding of Executive Assistant duties and responsibilities, the qualities of a good Executive Assistant and the key skills for an Executive Assistant, we hope to boost your team’s efficiency and effectiveness by ensuring you hire an Executive Assistant who not only understands their role but excels in it.
Understanding the role of an Executive Assistant
The role of an Executive Assistant (EA) is essential to the ongoing effectiveness of executive operations and therefore the access of a business. A Personal Assistant (PA) title is often given to someone who primarily assists an individual in a higher office or managerial position, an EA is generally a title given to someone entrusted with the responsibility of looking after a C-suite executive – the highest level of executive in a corporate hierarchy.
It’s also important to distinguish between an Executive Assistant (EA) and an Assistant Executive (AE). On the one hand, an AE is a strategic partner, a business assistant, and a representative who stands in on behalf of the Executive where needed. This role requires them to possess an in-depth understanding of the responsibilities of an executive so that they can fill the role if required.
Although an Executive Assistant doesn’t possess this same level of decision-making responsibility, they do remain a vital link between top executives and the broader team or business and are key to ongoing organisational success.
Executive Assistants as a Brand Ambassador
An Executive Assistant is the link between top-level executives and staff or external stakeholders. So, an Executive Assistant is directly linked to the image and ethos of an organisation. Every interaction, every phone call and every email is a small, yet cumulative reflection of an EA’s managing executive and the brand they want to portray.
In this way, an Executive Assistant is a projection of an executive’s values and professionalism, and therefore the broader ethos of the company they work for.
When hiring an EA, a great way to frame your decision is to ask yourself and the hiring team around you: does this person embody the values and ideals that I want to represent to current and potential key stakeholders including clients and our internal teams?
If so, it’s important to do everything you can to attract that person with the right ‘fit’ for your organisation, provided they also possess the right skillset to perform the duties of an Executive Assistant. Fit is often just as, if not more, important than skillset as skills can often be learnt and developed whilst fit is innate.
The Key Skills for an Executive Assistant
Selecting the right person for the role of EA is not just advisable; it is imperative.
The Harvard Business Review explains that “for the organisation to break even, the assistant must make the executive 8% more productive than he or she would be working solo.”
This statistic underscores the importance of hiring the right EA and the impact that they can have on the overall productivity and profitability of a business. They do not just assist but enhance the manager and are a catalyst for managerial success and organisational growth.
A Proactive Mindset
Proactivity is the engine that drives all successful assistants, especially Executive Assistants. With an endless list of high-pressure and high-stakes tasks to complete as a C-suite executive, it’s important that Executive Assistants do not require constant oversight and micromanaging but that instead, they can complete their responsibilities on their own accord.
A proactive EA anticipates the needs of their manager, identifies potential challenges well in advance, and takes the time to address them before they escalate. This “one-step-ahead” approach ensures the smooth functioning of the C-suite executive’s daily responsibilities so that they can drive the business forward as seamlessly as possible.
A crucial element for a seamless workflow within your team is having an Executive Assistant who can adeptly navigate challenges independently, so, when making hiring decisions it’s best to find a highly proactive EA.
Business Acumen
The best Executive Assistants all possess a high level of business acumen.
By understanding the ins and outs of a business, especially when it comes to the executive’s role within a business, EAs can better prioritise tasks according to what is most fundamental to the success of the organisation.
They can also make better decisions, guided by their basic knowledge about how efficient businesses operate. By ensuring that the Executive Assistant that you hire has a solid level of business acumen, you can ensure that they speak the language of their executive as well as other key stakeholders, improving operational productivity.
A Vocation-based Attitude
To compile the best Executive Assistant job description and to find the perfect candidate as a result, it is essential to view the role of an EA as much more than a set of administrative responsibilities.
Instead, it is important to note that success within this role transcends skill and is largely if not entirely dependent upon attitude.
Although possessing basic Executive Assistant skills is undeniably crucial, the right attitude is what separates the best Executive Assistants from the rest of the pack. In other words, without the right attitude, even the most skilled assistants will fall short over the long run.
Ultimately, the best attitude for prospective Executive Assistants is to view their role as more than a job but instead as a vocation. Ideally, the person you hire aspires to become a respected peer within your business, one who is capable of making a transformative difference.
As well as viewing the role as a vocation, rather than just a job, it’s also key that potential candidates embody trust and transparency within their attitude and approach, each of which are the foundations upon which a harmonious and impactful professional relationship is built with their EA.
A Visionary’s Approach
The role of an Executive Assistant requires much more than rapport or likeability; it involves bringing a unique perspective and skill set to the table. As such, when choosing an Executive Assistant, a key metric to look for is if they offer a distinct skill set that complements rather than duplicates the executive’s strengths.
This means an Executive Assistant must not only understand the executive’s vision but also be able to add a layer of insight and capability to enhance this vision.
In other words, the EA must be somewhat of a visionary themselves.
With two parties bringing ideas to the table, Executive Assistants and their executives can create a dynamic collaboration that goes beyond personal compatibility to elevate the overall team’s effectiveness.
The Final Key to Finding the Right Executive Assistant
The last piece of the puzzle when recruiting the ideal EA to support your executive lies in partnering with a dedicated Executive Assistant recruitment agency like MJD Recruitment.
As a team of office support recruitment experts with 80 years of specialised administrative recruitment experience, we take the time to assess all competencies including fit which can’t be understood from a resume. We conduct behavioural-based assessments and interviews to determine the behavioural competencies and motivations of potential EA candidates to ensure they not only fit the job description but also align seamlessly with an organisation’s culture.
With a wide and trusted network that spans the Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane markets, MJD Recruitment is networking and connecting daily with high value EA candidates who are not necessarily active job seekers responding to general job boards and ads.
It is a proven fact that securing the right EA can improve the efficiency of an executive, so tapping into a specialist recruiter’s knowledge and networks becomes crucial for a successful and efficient recruitment process.
Looking For a Specialised Executive Assistant Recruitment Agency?
When it comes to office support recruitment, and hiring an Executive Assistant in Sydney, an Executive Assistant in Brisbane or an Executive Assistant in Melbourne, MJD Recruitment is trusted by many high-value organisations for tailored and personalised recruitment services.
Contact us on 1300 251 905 or reach out to Michael Adams, one of our Specialist Recruitment Consultants who is an expert in Executive Assistant recruitment to learn more about how we can assist.
