Administrative Assistant's Update - sample

AUGUST 2016 4 can learn from others. "So now we can have a person who recently has been through it and can mentor and share stories about what it was like," says McVie. "I can give them reassurance, but to have others talk about what it is like has really provided a lot of insight and comfort to the staff going through this big undertaking." Bree Austen, executive assistant to the dean of the Haskayne School of Business, sees value in the men - toring opportuni- ties available when the admins meet as a group. "Getting together and bouncing our challenges off and having that best practice and pulling from the expertise [of others] is really amazing," she says. Sometimes the sessions are very casual, as when the admins go out for lunch. "It might be 'hey, this is going on; how have you dealt with it?'" she says. "Having those relationships and under - standing and knowing everyone's face and having an idea of what their work- load looks like, I think that has opened the door for the times when you have something very specific [to deal with]." Having established relationships in place makes it easier to ask for help, she adds. "Once we get to know each other then there is a community," she says. "The position of dean's EA can be seen as a bit of a silo position." Austen's boss, Jim Dewald, sees value for his office in his assistant de - veloping contacts across campus. "It is good for Bree and others to connect with each other and find out how to strengthen these relationships," says Dewald. "Bree has carried a lot of that depth through our own faculty." McVie sees the collaborative men- toring as a tool to promote a well-run organization. After a meeting of deans and the provost, the onus is on the assistants to ensure recommended policy changes are communicated to other decision- making bodies on campus. "The deans get so busy that some- times they don't have time to down- load everything that happens," she says. "I can fill the gap and download the information [to the admins] and also collect information [from the admins] and make sure everything is running smoothly." Mentoring is also a way to give assistants new to campus a hand-up on their new job. "It is a great support network for the team and helps with on-boarding new EAs because we all work in different areas," says McVie. "It provides a fantastic opportunity to share best practices." Tips for teamwork Peer mentoring by administrative assistants can generate positive out- comes for the organization, writes Joan Burge in a recent commentary for Office Dynamics.com. "When you are trying to create change, whether in a process or for the administrative community in your organization, it is much easier to be persuasive when there is a group," writes Burge, identifying five effective strategies: Show interest in people� "Some- times, it is just learning the basics about peers. Also be interested in their challenges at work as well as their area of expertise." Welcome input� "Since you can't control how your administrative peers will communicate with you, just be open to the idea they are sharing with you." Share� "Extend your best prac- tices to others for their benefit." Create ideas across functional areas� "[Increase] the available input of fresh new ideas and creative solu- tions while eliminating blind spots." Value diversity� "If you wanted to create the perfect administrative group or team, you would want as- sistants who each bring a different gift or perspective to the group." Source: OfficeDynamics.Com "Five powerhouse strategies for creating administrative peer power" Jim Dewald Mentoring, collaboration build admin muscle Continued from page 1 Bree Austen

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