A Practical Guide for Personal Assistants

By Grace Tu

A practical guide for on-the-job personal assistants, executive assistants and secretaries having similar responsibilities. This book is targeted to improve their overall presentation and professionalism as they strive to climb up the corporate ladder. Some specific chapters, e.g. language proficiency, are helpful to people whose mother tongue is not English.

This is not a book to teach shorthand, typing skills or the basic office routines. This is a book for those who would like to advance themselves through some practical guidance with emphasis on a hands-on and functional approach. In fact, theoretical knowledge and technical skills can be obtained from school but things like common sense and integrity can only be obtained through life experience. The thirteen chapters are split into two major modules coaching assistants how they can manage their jobs in both practical and ethical ways with appendices of samples and helpful business terms.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Nov 20, 2013
• ISBN: 9781304642073

Book preview

A Practical Guide for Personal Assistants

A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR

PERSONAL ASSISTANTS

By Grace Tu

Copyright © 2013, Grace Tu

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission of both publisher and author. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

INTRODUCTION

Although the world changes every minute, personal assistants are valued by all busy executives in this fast paced, modern business world.  There are different job titles, i.e. personal assistants, executive assistants, executive secretaries, etc. having similar responsibilities.

No one is indispensable but you can make yourself an asset in your company and make your boss feel proud to have you, count on you to perform his work and look after the office in his absence.  Your success is that on top of job satisfaction, you also make him feel that you are not only incredible but also indispensable.

A top-flight assistant is one who acts and speaks professionally in her daily work life, who is presentable in her appearance and, most importantly, confident, efficient and helpful in the way she performs her job and presents herself.  In short, she is a professional herself.  Unfortunately, the young generation today has overlooked the true side of professionalism when everyone talks casually everyday on facebook, twitter and phone apps.  If you need to succeed in your profession, there is much to learn in manners, respect, etiquette and office skills.

The author of this e-book has accumulated over 30 years of management and administrative experience and was a lecturer and manual writer having coached and guided many assistants and secretaries in her career.  She is now retired and is an independent freelance writer, and she has written this e-book to share her experience.  It is targeted to help all incumbent personal assistants to improve their overall presentation as they strive to climb up the corporate ladder.  Some specific chapters, e.g. language proficiency, are helpful to people whose mother tongue is not English.

This is not a book to teach you shorthand, typing skills or the basic office routines.  This is a book for assistants who would like to advance themselves through some practical guidance with emphasis on a hands-on and functional approach.  In fact, theoretical knowledge and technical skills can be obtained from school but things like common sense and integrity can only be obtained through life experience.  The following thirteen chapters are split into two major modules coaching personal assistants how they can manage their jobs in both practical and ethical ways.

It is hoped that by reviewing the daily office practice, related skills and tips, this e-book can instill some functional administrative know-how to conduct yourself with the correct behavior and attitude, to improve your personal demeanor and business acumen and to help you establish a win-win and effective boss and assistant relationship.

The role of an assistant is important.  Many personal assistants or senior executive assistants can qualify themselves for positions as office manager or other more responsible positions in their later career years and can realistically convert their roles which lead to greater job satisfaction and better work prospects.

NB:     Masculine gender is used for boss and feminine gender for assistant in all chapters for expression convenience. There is no sexual preference where opposite sexes take the two roles in the business world today.

THE PRACTICAL MODULES

CHAPTER ONE - RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

FILING SYSTEM & ERM

When everything is computerized these days, filing has appeared to be the least important task on the agenda and the system can be streamlined to keeping only the necessary and important.  Most corporations have now implemented their ERM (electronic records management) systems deploying computer software programs as well as process and image management technologies to manage documents and records as part of the best practice policy.  For this very reason, a compact but efficient filing system is extremely important since most employers would feel the same way and they would rather spend money to maximize office usable space than to make space for storage.   After all, office space is precious and costly in big cities and you cannot afford to buy new filing cabinets whenever they are filled to capacity.

ERM is not a total solution.  In fact, ERM requires the same common sense and organizational skills to design, develop and implement what and where should go to scan and storage.  ERM can be tedious and time-consuming involving more work and labor than a straightforward filing system.  Our business world today demands a practical filing system for important documents and an efficient ERM system for archival documents.

The best filing or ERM system should be accessible and functional.  It is accessible even when you are absent, and it is functional in the sense that documents are retrievable by the system, not by your own memory.  The best system is neat, tidy and valuable keeping the keepable documents without trash and unnecessary papers.  It is something that you can work with, add or delete contents when you see fit, and live by for many years.

The following tips are applicable to both filing and ERM, while some are specific for filing system which are mostly overlooked.

Tips:

-     A simple-to-use system

Documents can be filed or scanned in the order of subjects, departments or geographical references, whichever appropriate for your company or department.

-     Life cycle

Except important documents, e.g. legal, contractual and statutory documents, the life cycle policy varies from company to company.  Under normal circumstances, hard copies may be discarded after 2-3 years to give space to new papers, statutory documents after 7 years and legal & contractual documents perpetually.  Archival records may go to ERM immediately and their original copies be kept for a specific time period, subject to individual company control procedures or policies.

-     Coding system

A good system can be enhanced with the proper use of file names and codes.  In the past, file