Executive Assistants
as Strategic Support Specialists,
Managers and Leaders: An
Expanding Universe
Melba J. Duncan
The Duncan Group Inc.
www.duncangroupinc.com
melba@duncangroupinc.com
212.297.6118
1
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
2
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
a very elite group, and you should know that we are proud of
what you do.
Most of the people I recruit into the executive assistant
position work in the private sector. But I am as comfortable
speaking with you, as I am with those assistants. I understand
the role, because the core skills and personality requirements
are the same in business, non-profit or government.
The job is often the same, although the goals and the
environment in which you function are vastly different. What
changes is the environment in which we make our journey, not
the nature of the journey itself.
Corporate Assistants contribute order, accountability,
and efficiency to the worlds of corporate executives who are
committed to the search for market share.
On the other hand, you add order, accountability, and
efficiency to the daily efforts of those whose leadership have
freedom as its aim.
One skill all expert Executive Assistants have in common,
regardless of their mission or environment, are highly
developed anticipatory skills.
3
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
exactly what your superiors are going to need next. You have a
way of seeing the most critical logistical challenges just over
the horizon, perhaps before your superiors do. You develop a
way of offering solutions to problems before they materialize.
As we travel together this afternoon, let’s look at where
the Executive Assistant position is headed in the New World of
work. We will discuss the MEGATRENDS that are driving
change in the workplace, and their impact on skill
development needs at the Executive Assistant level.
In this New World of work, you will find a new
perspective, a new optimism, and a new respect for the
Executive Assistant position. To reach these new levels of
performance requires an understanding of, and adaptability
to, the complex skills that are steadily being incorporated into
your daily routine. Keen attention must be given to building
complementary strengths to adapt to this changing role.
Career Assistants must seize every opportunity to learn new
techniques and protocols to keep up with rapidly advancing
changes.
4
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
5
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
6
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
7
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
8
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
9
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
10
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
11
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
12
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
13
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
14
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
15
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
The facts:
Organizations need highly analytical individuals with
technological savvy, creativity, global-know-how, adaptability
and great communication skills. Assistants are expected to
collaboratively solve complex and rapidly-changing problems
every moment of every day.
16
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
17
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
18
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
19
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
20
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
Indispensable, you must know how get your work done within
a certain work environment.
FIFTH: It means MAKING NO ASSUMPTIONS. The
simple fact that something is familiar to us is no guarantee, in
today’s economy, that it is useful or relevant to a given
challenge that our organization faces. To me, assumptions are
like perceptions: they are opinions not fact, and always
require thorough scrutiny.
To be Indispensable, we must learn when to look past our
assumptions about a given situation. We must check the facts.
SIXTH: To be Indispensable means connecting
PROCESS INNOVATION to your role. Tomorrow’s leaders
will invest in innovative ideas, and they will appreciate those
employees who bring about process change and thereby create
a winning situation for more than one person or team.
I predict that mastering these practices is necessary for
EVERYBODY in virtually EVERY thriving organization.
These six elements – being Proactive, Future-Focused,
Committed to Multi-Disciplinary Learning, Adapting Your
Knowledge and Skills to the Personality of Your Organization,
The Make-no-Assumptions Principle, and Connecting to
Process Innovation -- are the building blocks to acquiring and
maintaining what I refer to as “Long-Term Indispensability.”
21
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
22
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
23
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
24
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
25
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
26
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
27
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
28
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
29
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
30
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
the right place, with the right people and with the right
information.
As support-level Managers, you pull things together, keep
them together, and make things happen. On EVERY
executive’s behalf, you integrate the elements of their daily
activities, so that the implementation is fluid and seamless.
You set and maintain high expectations for all the work that
you do. You take an idea from conception through research,
analysis, collaboration, teambuilding, execution and follow
through.
Just as important, you know what NOT to do in a given
situation. You apply common sense and insight to understand
a situation completely, and understand the ramifications of
intentionally NOT doing something that’s clearly important.
For example, the executive says, “no calls for me during this
meeting.” Then, of course, the exceptional call comes in, a call
that you know must be taken, a call that demands action. You
interrupt for this call; you take action; your intuition and
judgment are on point. This elegant response assures that you
have transformed the traditionally administrative role to one
with clear strategic responsibility.
31
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
32
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
33
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
34
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
35
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
36
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
37
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
38
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
39
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
40
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
• Personal Style
• Professional Judgment
• Self-management
Your personal style is your attitude and your
communication skills.
Your professional judgment is your unique body of
accumulated experiences.
Your ability to self-manage is the source of your personal
power. An aspect of self-management is taking control of your
circumstances. British playwright, George Bernard Shaw,
puts it this way: “I don’t believe in circumstances. The people
who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for
the circumstances that they want, and if they can’t find them,
make them.”
Self-management begins with a mental aspect. Self-
managers recognize the details that need to be handled. Self-
managers recognize the qualities that make a team or
themselves high functioning. Self-managers don’t require
outward influence or supervision to complete their jobs. They
create doable tasks from the hypothetical – for example, they
don’t deal with the issues of determining direction. If it was a
41
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
road trip, the self-manager would (without being asked) get the
maps, plan out a route, book hotels along the way and ensure
that the executive had the money to pay for the trip. The self-
manager sticks to the plan but is also adaptable to any
unforeseen events.
As Strategic Support Specialists, with leadership and
management aspects to your role, character is your #1
attribute. And we can choose one of two paths: character or
compromise. We don’t choose our parents, the location or
circumstances of our birth and upbringing, but we do choose
our character, and we do choose whether, and how, we will
develop in each of these three areas.
Once we do that, we have identified the critical
formula for strategic success:
Attitude + Commitment + Vocabulary
=
Your Reality
Attitude determines how we handle every relationship,
task, and circumstance. Attitude is a reflection of our self-
esteem. Attitude is a choice.
Commitment is our willingness to follow through, right
here, right now, in the real world.
42
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
43
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
44
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
45
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
executive does. You shape the broad picture into a set of action
steps – and then you execute!
Keep moving forward. Do what you do from a sense of
deep personal commitment – from a sense of mission. Don’t
just contribute -- be inspired to contribute. Your position is
valuable and important in your organizations. Never be
imprisoned by your job description; it’s probably out of date,
anyway.
And I send a message to your employers. First, that new
titles should be considered for the advanced skills you bring to
your organizations. We are shifting to Strategic Support
Specialists or Executive Managers.
Second: That your job descriptions should updated
regularly, and should reflect the skills and attributes I have
spoken about today.
Third: That Executive Assistant compensation should be
commensurate with this new job description.
Know your power! You are entering a new
dimension of accomplishment in your career. Remember that
honesty, great interpersonal skills and flawless execution are
what matter!
46
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
47
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
Sources
Papers
Books:
48
Copy rig ht © 2 007, Me lba J. D unca n. All rig hts res erv ed.
www.d unc angroupinc.c om
Pocket Books:
49