Executive assistants nowadays hold a very important position of influence and need to build a powerful partnership with the senior management team. This course will enable you to have the right competencies in order to work in partnership with your manager. After all, your success will have a direct effect on your manager's success. This course seeks to supplement your current set of capabilities by adding other highly needed competencies that will lead to excellence in your position.

During this course, you will discover ways to enhance your confidence and forward-thinking ability, allowing you to become a true business partner with the executive team. You will learn and practice powerful emotional intelligence strategies which you can immediately apply at the workplace. Moreover, you will participate in detailed discussions on the importance of building systems and having a systematic thinking approach, leading you to create several systems at the workplace. The next segment of this course discusses how to professionally deal with visitors, internal customers and external customers and how to make your department and company more customer friendly. Finally, you will learn how to develop action plans that will enhance your professional image and the image of your department and company.

Course Methodology

This is a highly interactive course which uses several group and individual role plays. You will be constantly engaged in practical group and individual activities which will allow you to immediately test and apply your learning. Moreover, the use of several self-assessment tests will enable you to discover your hidden talents and areas of improvement. Finally, you will get an opportunity to discuss, share and find solutions to your work challenges in a supportive environment.

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Provide full support to stakeholders in order to enhance the success of the business
• Apply emotional intelligence to foster excellent business relationships both laterally and vertically
• Harness modern communication concepts and strategies to facilitate workflow
• Use the main functions of management to build and maintain different organizing systems that will lead to increased productivity
• Demonstrate professional skills in using creativity, serving internal customers, and managing stress

Target Audience

Senior administrators, office managers, executive assistants and supervisors of junior staff who already possess the essential administration skills and are seeking to further advance their career.

Target Competencies

• Forward thinking
• Emotional control
• Building and maintaining systems
• Image building
• Interpersonal communication
  • Handling stress
  • Service orientation

Course Outline

Progressive Role of the Executive or Personal Assistant

• Understanding the strategic role of today’s executive assistant
• Working 'with' versus working 'for' your leader
• The challenges impacting the 21st century administrators
• The competencies of the modern personal assistant
• Self-empowerment: creating your own mission statement
• Developing forward thinking: being a proactive thinker
• Using technology to get things done

Emotional Intelligence (EI) Tact and Skills for Handling People

• Definition of EI
• The conceptual model
• Understanding the four dimensions of EI:
• Awareness of own role
• Management of own responsibilities
• Awareness of office politics and environment
• Management of stakeholders
• Recognizing how stress and feelings affect performance
• Applying EI in building relations and dealing with difficult situations

Effective Interpersonal and Written Communication

• Building excellent relationships with colleagues
• Dealing with difficult personalities
• Developing self-confidence and assertiveness
• Presenting your ideas and influencing others
• Effective Business writing:
• Writing powerful emails
• Writing minutes of the meeting

Mastering Management Practices 

• Planning
• Setting SMART objectives
• Writing your personal goal setting plan
• Organizing
• Delegating effectively  
• Setting task priorities
• Directing/leading
• Understanding the team dynamics
• The coaching clinic
• Controlling
• Setting useful metrics
• Building and maintaining systems  

The Executive/PA Guidelines for Success 

• Forging a customer service culture in your office 
• The importance of internal customer service
• Making your department customer friendly
• Dealing with visitors 
• Creativity tools for decision making
• Definition of creativity
• Creativity tools for generating improvements 
• The personal creativity profiles
• Stress management
• Identifying causes of stress
• The personal stress worksheet
• Time management preventive measures