Administrative Assistant's Update - sample

May 2017

Focuses on the training and development needs of admin professionals and features topics such as hard skills (software competencies, writing, communication, filing) and soft skills (teamwork, time management, leadership).

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MAY 2017 2 E D I TO R ' S N OT E George Pearson Newly hired execs need EA insights Do executives know innately how to best utilize their admins? "This is important information that is not taught in business school or anywhere," maintains Bonnie Low-Kramen, founder of Be the Ultimate Assistant and author of a book with the same name, in a column written for SmartCEO Magazine. Ms. Low-Kramen was in Toronto recently for a workshop produced by Q1 Productions: Executive Leadership Support Forum. In her SmartCEO column, Ms. Low-Kramen proposes training for executives in how to use assistants. A two or three-hour class, she says, would be part of the onboarding process for newly hired executives and would include a discussion about what is and is not appropriate to ask of the assistant. A high-level executive assistant would plan and deliver the training in cooperation with the human resources department during the first week of employment. The workplace is increasingly complicated, Ms. Low-Kramen points out. The role of the administrative professional is evolving and often includes becoming a strategic partner. "Assistants are often acting on behalf of their executives, writing their emails, and sitting in on meetings," she says. "For both the executives and the assistants, to do all this seamlessly takes time and training." Ms. Low-Kramen sees distinct advantages to providing newly hired executives with this kind of training: • a faster, more comfortable start because the executives get answers to FAQ right from the beginning; • instant insights into how the company really works ("because nobody knows this better than the executive assistants"); • clarification of the expectations and processes that guide the executive/ admin relationship, laying the foun - dation for future success. "The training also allows for red flags and potential problems to be revealed and handled immediately," says Ms. Low-Kramen. "The time that is taken for training during the first week will have long-term positive pay-offs for everyone." The wisdom and insights characteristic of the astute admin are priceless treasures that perceptive executives tap to their great advantage as one benefit of a respectful, fruitful exec/admin relationship. That respectful relationship was so important to Lili de Granpré, managing director of a business consultancy in Montreal, that she always included her admin in post- interview assessments of executives who had applied to join the consultancy. (See Working partners …, July 2016 AAU.) She wanted to know how the candidate had treated de Granpré's admin upon the candidate's arrival. Disrespect for the admin, de Granpré said, "was a sign of somebody we never wanted to work with." Administrative Assistant's Update is published once a month by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. Director, Media Solutions, Canada: Karen Lorimer Publisher: Todd Humber Editor: George Pearson george@adminupdate.ca Associate Editor: Jennifer Lewington jennifer@adminupdate.ca EDITORIAL OFFICE (519) 271-6000 Administrative Assistant's Update Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. 1 Corporate Plaza, 2075 Kennedy Road Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 CUSTOMER SERVICE (416) 609-3800 (800) 387-5164 FAX (416) 298-5082 (877) 750-9041 customersupport.legaltaxcanada @tr.com Contents copyright. All rights reserved. © 2017 Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. Contents may not be reproduced without written permission. Brief extracts may be made with due acknowledgement. Annual subscription: $189. Publications Mail Registration No. 40065782 GST# 897176350 UPDATE Administrative Assistant's Digital AAU is versatile, easy to share Are you sharing highlights of your Administrative Assistant's Update with colleagues and friends? It's especially easy to do with the digital version, which is available to all subscribers. If you are an AAU subscriber and are not receiving an emailed link to each digital issue as it is released, send a note to aaron.green@tr.com and ask to be added to the list.

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