Business etiquette is a fancy way of discussing how you behave while you are at work.  There are many behaviours that we just use automatically when we are in a professional environment such as being polite, friendly and treating others as we want to be treated.  When you are a personal assistant, there are also some traits that can help you to become a PA at the top of their profession.  But what are they?

Be an indispensable part of the system

Everyone wants to feel like they are a key part of the business infrastructure but as a PA, you are in a position to actually be indispensable.  You want to be the right arm of your boss, the person they turn to for everything done. This means learning the most about what your boss needs from you, their likes and dislikes.  It also means to understand their job completely, so you can anticipate their needs.

Make sure there are no surprises

The aim of the best personal assistant is to make their boss’ life easier.  This works in a number of ways and one of them is to ensure there are no surprises.  You don’t want to spring a meeting onto your boss an hour before they are due because that doesn’t give them time to prepare.  It also makes you seem a bit unreliable by not providing the information they need in plenty of time. It can also your boss seem badly organised.

Own up to your mistakes

We are all human and therefore we make mistakes.  No sensible boss will expect you to be perfect all of the time.  However, the important part of good business etiquette is to own up to your mistakes and put things right.  So you forget to prepare the boss for a meeting and they don’t have some of the information they need? Apologise and make sure you put it together quickly, so they have at least some information going into the meeting.

Never tell stories

As a PA, you will often be party to privileged information and it is important never to tell anyone this information.  Nor should you tell stories about your boss, what you see or hear. This is bad practice and if your boss finds out, there’s a good chance they will lose faith in you.  Plus you may have some kind of confidentiality agreement that you are breaking if you talk about what you hear as part of your role.

Keep learning

Being a PA is about learning and adapting as your role grows and this can include formal training as well as on the job training.  Even studying things in your spare time such as new computer software can help you offer more to your employer and therefore become ever more indispensable.  Plus you can be at the forefront of your industry, at the height of your knowledge and be a referral point for people in your company who know you will always have a reliable answer for them.

While most Senior PA or EA positions involve working in a corporate environment with a senior exec and carrying out general every day duties involving a high level of support and organisation, there are some jobs which are a little more creative and outside of the realms of what one might expect. Attic Recruitment take a look at some of the more creative duties of a Senior PA and what may be required in such a role:

Planning your employer’s wedding

OK so technically a wedding planner does organise parts of the day but what is really useful is having a PA that can ensure that everything goes smoothly including the work schedule and the honeymoon of the bride or groom, depending on who you work for. Ensuring that they are where they are supposed to be at certain times and that they are able to actually take a honeymoon without responding to emails every five seconds is critical. The continuity and support of a PA will make one of the more stressful times of their life run a lot more smoothly,

Organising holidays

You may not be choosing the destination for the boss’s next holiday but you might be required to find suitable accommodation, arrange travel to and from the accommodation, book flights, sort out car hire and anything else that is required when the boss and their family are travelling abroad. In some instances, the senior PA is required to travel with their employer or perhaps ahead of them. Not a bad perk, right? You’re already asking yourself where you can apply right? Don’t get too excited, sometimes you may be required to stay behind and man the fort so that the boss can enjoy their holiday with you looking after their interests.

Thinking outside of the box

Creativity is a key skill when it comes to the role of the Senior PA. There will be times when you will be expected to organise things that stand out from the rest. Imagine organising a meeting or training event that needs to be memorable. Perhaps your boss is trying to impress clients or peers and wants something that is extraordinary. Maybe you need to hire a local attraction exclusively to host an event plus the entertainment, the food and everything else that will make things memorable for all the right reasons. So many executive meetings take place in a board room and training events for company staff can become a bit repetitive. This is where they depend on you to pull something special out of the bag.

Perks of the role

With such a responsible role, that is so demanding of your time, often comes many benefits. We aren’t talking the salary or the health insurance but the perks of the job. Free holidays, travel, use of nice company vehicles (let’s face it the boss at such a level is bound to drive a nice car), corporate hospitality entertainment and so much more. While the role may require ample creativity and a lot of hard work on your part, the rewards are certainly worth the work that you put in.

The less glamorous tasks

Returning clothes, buying new technology, setting up new technology, organising staff gifts… there are many duties that a Senior PA may be called upon to undertake for their boss that they may not always relish. The not so glamourous tasks are often compensated by other things though (like the free holidays).

Having the skills to work at such a level is critical and it takes a certain type of person to be able to work under the pressure of a more creatively demanding role. Having the initiative to take on these sorts of tasks and the ability to think outside the box is a must so for those that prefer a more corporate environment then this sort of role may not be for you. For those who dream big though it is the ideal career.