Administrative Assistant's Update

JULY 2017 4 An agenda that recognizes admin delegates are at different stages of their career and have varied profes- sional interests is key, says Taylor. "It is a real balance of hard and soft skills and you can't overwhelm and overload them [delegates]." Preparation for an event begins early. For the OHA admin conference, as soon as one year's event ends, planning begins for the following year. "We have already started talk- ing about the format for next year's conference," says Taylor. For her and her organizing committee colleagues, one important planning tool is a post- conference survey of delegates. In addition to giving feedback, delegates are asked what new skills or knowl- edge they want to acquire for their professional development. "The reason why we do it [the sur- vey] is that we want to understand if they felt they received good value for money," she says. "Did they go home with something tangible?" The organizing committee – usu- ally four or five admin professionals representing different regions of the province and different institutions in the health care field – and OHA staff (who manage the over-all confer- ence) hold an initial conference call to evaluate feedback from the previ- ous event and recommend content and speakers for the next one. In preparation, Taylor talks to her admin colleagues at St. Joe's, asking them "what is it that you don't know that you wished you did?" As important, she puts a similar question to middle and senior man- agers at the hospital. "What do you wish we [admins] knew?" she asks, noting that managers "have a differ- ent perspective than we do." By October, the committee and OHA staff members have identified themes and speakers for the follow- ing year's conference. By design, the agenda is ready to be released in time for a major health care convention in November that attracts physicians, hospitals and others in the sector. In this year, OHA is able to promote its signature event for admins several months later. In the run-up to the OHA admin conference held in late April, com- mittee members check off details they see as essential for a smooth-running event. For example, a conference call with speakers a month or so before the conference is a way to ensure everyone is on same page to deliver an informative event for delegates. As chair of this year's event, Taylor received speaker biogra- phies two days ahead to review key information for her introduction of session presenters. The event opener included an "ice-breaker" challenge (how to build a tower with dry pasta noodles and string) so delegates at the same table had to introduce themselves and work on the 20-min- ute project. "As much as they support a lot of people, you would be surprised how shy these girls are," she says. So is Taylor ready to volunteer again for next year's OHA admin con- ference? "I am hoping they will allow me to come back," she says. Plan carefully to put audience first Continued from page 1 Tips for planning a successful event By Staff Kelly Taylor, an administrative assistant at St. Joseph's Health Care London and chair of the 2017 OHA conference for administrative profes- sionals, offers some tips for a successful meeting or event: • Get started early to prepare an agenda, includ- ing a list of potential speakers and topics. • Use web apps and other software (for example Doodle Polls) to organize telephone conference calls, saving time for all participants. • Be willing to compromise to achieve a consen- sus on an event agenda. "Everyone knows you are not going to get everything you come forward with so it is about having the right mindset," says Taylor. • Create (and follow) a checklist with deadlines, including a timetable for confirming speakers, publicizing the event and securing delegate door prizes. • Run the meeting on time. • Seek post-conference feedback, through sur - veys and other tools, identifying what worked (and did not work) well. Act on what you learn.

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