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I’ve had an EA for three years dedicated to me (before that in my career it was always shared). They are definitely a super power, but only if you trust them. T
by sulam 5y ago
I’ve had an EA for three years dedicated to me (before that in my career it was always shared). They are definitely a super power, but only if you trust them. They really have to have a lot of context to do things you’d normally be doing. Without that trust you aren’t going to be getting the full potential out of the role.
I’ll give one example. My EA is aware that I have a desire to take some time off through the rest of the year. She knows what planned family vacations are of course and I gave her carte blanche to clear my schedule so I can take a day off here or there through the rest of the year. She knows my preferences in terms of ideal days of the week, which meetings are easy to reschedule vs which aren’t, what projects are especially hot right now, which execs I meet with that are usually flexible, etc. I keep her up to date on my priorities so she can always shift things appropriately. Project Take Time Off wouldn’t really be possible for me to delegate to her if she didn’t have all that context.
- actually_a_dog 5y agoThat's interesting. Are you saying that instead of telling her "I want to take next Friday off," she tells you "I cleared your schedule for next Friday so you can take off?"
- 6nf 5y agoI wouldn't bother hiring a PA that wasn't proactive to the point of doing that sort of thing
- diordiderot 5y agoProactive! More like telepathic
- burnished 5y agoMaybe thats the 'executive' part of 'executive assistant'? They are taking action based on a abstract goal rather than a concrete wish. At least, that is my interpretation!
- krapp 5y agoNo, the 'executive' part of 'executive assistant' refers to the assistant typically working for an executive, or performing more advanced executive duties as opposed to an administrative assistant, whose role may be more general across a company. No one's livelihood should depend on having to read the room like a geisha.
- totony 5y ago>No one's livelihood should depend on having to read the room like a geisha. Why not? Isn't that most jobs? Seems to me a lot of jobs require you to "read the room" in one way or another. If some work doesn't need that, then a machine should just do it since that's what human excel at.
- krapp 5y ago>Why not? Isn't that most jobs? No. In most jobs, employees know specifically what their employers' requirements are, they have specific tasks and itineraries and boundaries. "Know what I want before I want it" isn't an appropriate expectation to have of any assistant.
- ABeeSea 5y agoI certainly would expect, for example, a senior or staff engineer to have far more autonomy in setting the requirements, specific tasks, and boundaries. Being able to predict the technical needs of the company before they are needed is a big part of those roles.
- bigyikes 5y agoAt a certain price point, it certainly is an appropriate expectation. Even at my job, where all my work is laid out for me in the form of Jira tickets, fulfilling unsaid (or unknown) desires is hugely beneficial for my team, company, and career. Sure, I’m technically paid to solve problems, but really I’m paid for the ability to think creatively and execute autonomously.
- 5y ago
- sulam 5y agoI’ve been working with this person for three years. It’s not telepathy, it’s shared context and experience.
- actually_a_dog 5y agoWell, I want days off when I want days off, and I wouldn't want that.
- newsclues 5y agoShe doesn’t schedule things on Fridays and if it were required for something important she would communicate it to you.
- someuname 5y agoImagine being this disorganized
- sulam 5y agoThat’s right. I have the 6th off because that was relatively easy to clear. I realize this seems bass-ackwards to how you normally do things. The normal way of doing things results in my not taking days off.
- 88913527 5y agoIf it takes great effort to bestow this institutional knowledge on the EA, is it buying you that much of your time back? You already know the algorithm for when free time can be most easily made. Just a matter of flipping through the calendar for a brief, few moments, versus the hours spent with the EA getting them up to speed on these nuances.
- xeromal 5y agoSounds like once there is an initial brain dump, the rest of the year you can unload that stress
- jimmyed 5y agoThe calendar flips don't scale as well as the EA does. The holidays are just an example, there are a million similar things that the EA can do with the same training.
- jcims 5y agoNot to mention some people are just better at that than others. When I’m operating at my full personal capacity, ‘just spend a few minutes’ is the siren’s call. I’m not an executive but I’d pay out of my own pocket if i could find the right person for that job.
- mikepurvis 5y agoYeah, the proactive part of it could become so much more than "it's been two months since you took a long weekend— I cleared your calendar so you can have next Friday off," it might also be "and here are 2-3 possible options for gifts for your spouse / activities to do with the kids that weekend / options for date night / birthday cards to send to Aunt Flo / etc etc" I've never had someone be this role for me, but I definitely know I waste a lot of time during the day (both working and non-working) thinking/fretting/researching these kinds of things, and I could imagine it being a real boon to be able to fully set that all aside, knowing it was in good hands. Nothing is a silver bullet on being able to focus on the things we want to focus on, of course, but it would be one more set of excuses to remove.
- 5y ago
- jacquesm 5y agoEAs on a mission for their boss are a major pain in the behind, they tend to act as though their boss is the most important person in the universe, which inside the company they work for may well be the case, but they tend to project that well outside the company as well. They also tend to consume a disproportionate amount of time in others to save their precious boss a few minutes. The main function of EAs for people that aren't all that important is to make them feel more important. "I'll have my EA contact your EA to set up a date for a five minute phone call".
- Johnny555 5y agoI'll have my EA contact your EA to set up a date for a five minute phone call I’m not even an executive but this is a big time suck with someone outside your organization so you can’t see their calendar. I wish I could outsource this to an EA
- ivan_gammel 5y agoCalendly is a much cheaper option. Managing my calendar would be the last thing I delegate to PA.
- yc-kraln 5y agoI find calendly depersonalizing and extremely insulting. I.e. the shift of power when someone says "Hey, let's find a time to chat" and the answer is "Here is my calendly link, good luck". I usually break off the conversation there.
- Yiin 5y agoI am slightly confused, why is saving time for both parties considered insulting?
- hansel_der 5y agomy take from parents post is that he finds "the shift in power" insulting. while i agree that saving time is a worthwhile goal, i can sympathise with the unhappiness over beeing deferred to an (online) form for stuff that could be tackeld here and now.