25 TOP TIPS FOR THE

ULTIMATE PA

Presented by Shilpa Wymer

Tel: 020 7025 4700

web: www.pitman-training.com

The Ultimate PA

16% - Boss regularly takes their recommendation on business

decisions

17% - Stand in for their manager at meetings at least monthly

29% - Undertake projects for wider organisation weekly

Survey by Hayes of 1700 PAs

1. MAKE IT YOUR BUSINESS

Get an induction:

- What does the business do?

- Who are the clients of the business?

- Who are the principle people in other

departments?

- How do all the departments work together?

2. CHOOSE CAREFULLY

It’s a Yin/Yan relationship!

3. BE ALL EYES & EARS

Keep asking questions.

3. BE ALL EYES & EARS

“My role is to know as much as I

can about what is happening in the

business and to make sure I know

everything that is going on around

me within the divisions so I can

make my boss aware of the key

issues and develop action plans.”

4. THINK LIKE YOUR BOSS

Learn about the world of business

• Balance sheets

• Profit & Loss

• How the Stock Market works

• What influences share prices

Use Google Alerts!

4. THINK LIKE YOUR BOSS

Two essential Pitman Training Courses:

• Introduction to Business Structure & Law

• Understanding Business Accounts

5. POLISH UP YOUR COMMUNICATION

How do you sound?

Slow down

Keep your communication simple

Get to the point

6. SAY IT LIKE IT IS

Practice assertiveness

“When you use assertiveness you can negotiate

reasonable changes by stating directly what you

think, feel and want”

6. SAY IT LIKE IT IS

When stating your preference

“My Preference is__________.”

“What I’d like is____________.”

6. SAY IT LIKE IT IS

When expressing your feelings:

“I feel ______ when_________.” (make it specific)

6. SAY IT LIKE IT IS

When making requests

“The pay rise is not what I hoped for. I was

expecting at least a 10% increase.”

6. SAY IT LIKE IT IS

When disagreeing with someone

“I disagree with you when you

say__________.”

6. SAY IT LIKE IT IS

When saying yes or no without excuses.

“I am unable to attend that function”

(say no more)

7. EASY AS ABC

Managing Time

Plan at the same time everyday

Use one planner

Write a to do list everyday

Prioritise your to do list

Start with the A’s

Cross off items

Leave time for emergencies

7. AS EASY AS ABC

Managing Paperwork & Emails

Block out time

Handle paper only once

Reduce filing trays

Emails – create Rules (more on this later)

Bin business cards – Use CamCard

7. AS EASY AS ABC

Quickly Scan

& Store

Business

Cards

7. AS EASY AS ABC

8. TAKE TWICE DAILY

Your role is to manage your boss!

Communicate with them about

What YOU are doing and what

THEY are doing.

8. TAKE TWICE DAILY

a.m. Meeting

What are they doing today?

What are you doing today?

What other tasks need to be included on your

list?

8. TAKE TWICE DAILY

p.m. meeting

How did their schedule go

today?

What were the outcomes of

your tasks that day?

Anything they need to be

aware of first thing before your

a.m. meeting?

8. TAKE TWICE DAILY

Keep it Brief

Face to Face or Over the Phone

Between 10 – 30 minutes

9. TWO WAY STREET

Treat their PA with respect

Ask them how they are each day

Invest in their personal and professional

development

Listen to them

Say “thank you”

Realise their PA has a life outside of work

Keep their PA in the loop

10. CREATE RULES

Automatically perform actions on incoming and

outgoing messages based on criteria you establish ie:

Forward to your manager all messages sent by a specific

person when it arrives in your inbox

Automatically assign certain emails to folders or sub-folders

Set up on-screen alerts when you get a message from your

boss

Flag each meeting request or meeting update you receive

from your manager

10. CREATE RULES

Flag message in Outlook with coloured Quick

Flags to help classify them or mark them for

action

Use the 6 different colour flags to identify items

for different kinds of follow-up

10. CREATE RULES

How to set-up on screen alerts when you get an email from VIP

10. CREATE RULES

11. MEMORY MASTER

Just make

sure

you’re

data is

backed-up

regularly!

12. PIVOT TABLES

Interactive table that allows you to quickly

summarise large amounts of data

Rotate, filter, or display the details for areas of

interest

12. PIVOT TABLES

Month Type Salesperson Sales Units Region

Jan Dairy Jenkins 2868 5611 West

Jan Beverages Smith 8725 6890 North

Jan Produce Jones 67158 2652 South

Jan Dairy James 4356 5636 East

Jan Meat Jenkins 9662 3400 North

Feb Produce Smith 1328 2861 West

Feb Beverages Jenkins 3571 5178 South

Feb Dairy Smith 6758 7817 South

Feb Beverages Smith 4953 5889 West

Feb Meat Jones 4923 124 South

Feb Meat James 1666 744 West

Feb Produce Smith 1450 234 West

• What are the

total sales

by

salesperson

for each

product by

region?

12. PIVOT TABLES

12. PIVOT TABLES

12. PIVOT TABLES

12. PIVOT TABLES

13. STAY IN SCHOOL

“80% of those interviewed used less than 10% of the

functionality that Microsoft Office offered”

14. PLANES, TRAINS &

AUTOMOBILES (& HOTELS)

Window or aisle?

Special dietary requirements?

What hotels do they prefer?

What sort of room do they prefer?

14. PLANES, TRAINS &

AUTOMOBILES (& HOTELS)

Tripit Enter all

travel detail

such as

flight times,

hotels,

dinner, etc

14. PLANES, TRAINS &

AUTOMOBILES (& HOTELS)

Citymapper

14. PLANES, TRAINS &

AUTOMOBILES (& HOTELS)

Wikihood Cool stuff to do

when they get

there!

15. BECOME A PROJECT MANAGER

What’s the objective of the project?

What departments are involved in this

project? And which particular people?

What partners, suppliers and other

parties are concerned in the project?

What is the budget and where has it

come from?

What specific plans have already been

proposed?

15. BECOME A PROJECT

MANAGER

Caterers

Transport

Printing

Visitors

Press information

Venue

Speakers

Equipment

Final Checks

15. BECOME A PROJECT

MANAGER

Evernote Premium

A notebook with all of your ideas,

receipts, links and clipped pages of

venues, caterers, menus contact

information for contractors, bills, notes,

and a project plan, neatly organized

15. BECOME A PROJECT

MANAGER

16. BECOME A CRITIC

www.venuefinder.com

www.opentable.co.uk

www.zomato.com

www.zagat.com

LinkedIn – join Executive Secretary Group

17. MAKE FRIENDS

6 ways to make people like you:

Become genuinely interested in other people

Smile

Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language

Be a good listener

Talk in terms of the other persons interests

Make the other person feel important

How to win friends and influence people

- Dale Carnegie

18. LEARN THE SHORTCUTS

Ctrl + 1 – Single line spacing

Ctrl + 2 – Double line spacing

Ctrl + 5 – 1.5 line spacing

Learn to Touch-Type!

19. USE YOUR PHYSICAL SPACE TO

CREATE AN IMPRESSIVE PRESENCE

Body Language - 55% of the perceived

impact of your overall message

20. DID YOU WRITE THAT

“ People who cannot write and communicate

clearly will not be hired, and if already working,

are unlikely to last long enough to be considered

for promotion”

National Commission on

Writing (US Body)

21. MIRROR, MIRROR

Too Low? Probably!

Dress for your shape

Dress for your business

Invest in a good haircut

22. SHHH – CAN YOU KEEP A

SECRET?

23. AT A LOSS FOR WORDS

Instead of “No Comment” try:

“I am unable to reply to that”

“ I will do what I can to help but I can’t

guarantee the outcome when others are

involved”

“I will pass on your comments, but I can’t

promise that he/she will return your call”

24. STAND OUT FROM THE

CROWD

Make time to learn new skills that help you stand

out from the crowd

25. DON’T LOSE YOURSELF

Are you where you want to be?

Are you enjoying it?

What have you done this month

that has grown you?

25. DON’T LOSE YOURSELF

Get to the gym

Go to yoga

Meet up with friends and family

Go to a gallery

Watch a movie

What next?

We’ll email each attendee the presentation

Contact us if we can help

www.pitman-training.com