How Executive Assistants Support Leadership

Most people are surprised when I share that in the early days of Google, nearly 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙀𝙭𝙚𝙘𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝘼𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 on the Product Team had a master’s degree. This was by design. It was one of our drivers of growth. One of the things I see leaders get wrong in their critical growth window is treating support positions as low-level jobs. They are anything but that! When optimized correctly, your EAs, Senior EAs, Chief of Staff, and Executive Project Managers are not silent, reactive contributors – they are proactive, highly skilled, intellectual equals, sparring partners, and proxies. When hired and empowered correctly: -They are the ones who hold your executives accountable for deliverables. -They are the ones who can sit in a meeting and respond how you would respond. -They are the ones that are critical to translating your vision into trackable action items. -They are your eyes, ears, and heart connection to your team. -They are an extension of you and effective in a way you could never be for yourself. In fact, when I was Eric Schmidt’s Chief of Staff, he routinely tossed (quite literally) newspapers, magazines, and books to me while we traveled together. He was never looking for just a distillation or summary. He wanted me to read through them and see what correlations, insights, ideas, and recommendations he may not have gleaned at first glance. This intellectual partnership brought out the best in both of us and made each of us more effective at our jobs. Remember, your “support staff” can be the factor between a 2x C-Suite and a 10x C-Suite. Hire, train, and promote accordingly. #leadership #scale #culture #growth

An Executive Assistant (EA) can be a game-changing hire for a CEO. If you find the right person, set the right expectations, build the right relationship, give them the right authority and have them work on the right things they can make you 20% more efficient and effective. I know that a lot of CEOs, especially first time CEOs, don’t see the value in hiring a full time EA. They think calendly, an AI notetaker and a virtual EA can deliver the same things. I speak from experience when I say that the right EA will literally change your life as a CEO. Here are all the things that a great EA can and should be doing for you: - Calendar management - If you’re the CEO of a growing company your calendar will inevitably become crazy. A great EA will not only handle scheduling meetings but will be constantly moving things around (without asking you) to ensure that they’re removing or working around conflicts (including personal conflicts), prioritizing the right meetings, coordinating meetings that are a quarter or a year out (i.e. board meetings) and making sure that they schedule according to your preferences (i.e. back to back all day, 10 min breaks between meetings). - Coordinating deliverables - In an ideal world, everyone would get everything done the right way and on time, in reality that doesn’t happen. A great EA can be the air traffic controller for things like collecting slides for a board deck, ensuring that your team gets you their one on one topics 24 hours before your one on one, capturing follow up items from your weekly leadership meetings and ensuring they get completed by the agreed upon date, making sure that you’re adequately prepared for any presentations you’re doing. - Event management - Most companies will do things like all hands, leadership team offsites, company kickoffs, board dinners, team dinners, holiday parties, etc. Different companies have different people or departments owning these events but if you can find an EA that can own some or all of these events then the ROI on that person is extremely high. - Daily digest - This is the real unlock. I’ve attached an image of a real one that I received from Dani H. (my EA for many years at BetterCloud who taught me these lessons). This is an email that your EA should be sending you every day. She’d make sure I understood who I was meeting with, the context, the last time I met with them, their linkedin profiles. She would include the one on one agendas that she had to chase people down for. The presentations I was going to use for different meetings. She was able to give me a pulse on the sentiment of the people I was meeting with. And every digest had a list of to-dos or decisions I had to make at the bottom. Imagine that you never had to worry about any of the items listed above, imagine that you never had to context switch into your calendar, imagine that you didn’t have to remember and chase people for deliverables… how much better would you be at your job?

One part of the Executive Assistant (EA) role that doesn’t get talked about enough? >>How much influence an EA has on a CEO’s reputation inside the organization. While the CEO sets the vision, the EA often shapes the experience people have when they interact with that leader. That experience matters because it directly impacts how employees perceive accessibility, reliability, and leadership style. Here’s where EAs quietly make a big difference: ✨ Responsiveness. When the EA keeps communication flowing, people feel heard. Quick follow-ups, clear answers, and organized coordination all reflect positively on the CEO. ✨ Professionalism with warmth. The EA often sets the tone for interactions before the CEO even enters the room. A respectful, friendly, organized approach helps build trust and humanizes leadership. ✨ Consistency. A CEO’s calendar, commitments, and expectations stay aligned because the EA keeps everything in sync. That consistency shows employees that their leader values time, people, and follow-through. ✨ Protecting focus. By filtering information, managing priorities, and creating space for meaningful work, the EA helps the CEO show up as prepared, present, and confident. That level of readiness builds credibility. ✨ Bridge-building. EAs connect people to leadership, clarify needs, and reduce friction across teams. Those smooth interactions contribute directly to how approachable and collaborative the CEO is perceived to be. The EA may work behind the scenes, but their impact is seen everywhere because the way a leader shows up every day is often a direct reflection of the partnership supporting them. A strong EA doesn’t JUST manage schedules. They help shape reputation, trust, and culture, and that influence reaches much further than most people realize. #executiveassistant #EA #trust #integrity #csuite #partnership #culture #CEO #influence #character

Being a high-level Executive Assistant is not about taking orders. It’s about taking ownership. After 15+ years supporting C-suite executives and board members, here’s what I know for sure: the most effective EAs don’t just make things run smoothly. They make impact. If you’re stepping into this space or leveling up, here are my top tips to truly excel: 🧠 Think like an executive Understand the business. Know the goals, the pressure points, the decision-making process. Anticipate what's needed before it’s requested. 📅 Master calendar strategy, not just scheduling You’re not managing time. You’re managing energy, priorities, and outcomes. Be intentional. Know when to say no or reschedule. 🚪 Be a gatekeeper and a bridge Balance access with protection. Communicate clearly and graciously. Know when to shield, when to inform, and how to keep momentum. 🔍 Stay three steps ahead Prep for board meetings early. Confirm logistics down to the last detail. Think ahead so your executive doesn’t have to. 🧭 Manage up like a pro Learn your executive’s style, pace, and preferences. Tailor your support to how they work best and help them stay at their best. 🤝 Build trust relentlessly Integrity, discretion, and follow-through earn influence. That influence allows you to make things happen behind the scenes. 📚 Stay curious. Keep learning Learn the language of the business. Ask questions. Understand the why, not just the what. 🏛️ Own the room, even when you’re not in it When an EA is sharp and aligned, people notice. Meetings flow, decisions stick, and everything runs smoothly. 💡 Balance fierce efficiency with human warmth Systems matter, but so does emotional intelligence. Be the calm in the chaos. The one who remembers both the details and the people. 📣 Know your value. Act like it This is a strategic role. Advocate for your seat at the table. And when you're there, use it to elevate others too. Being an EA at this level takes more than coordination. It takes clarity, confidence, and leadership of your own. If you’ve been in the EA seat at the top level, what would you add to this list? I’d love to hear what’s helped you thrive.

If your Executive Assistant (EA) is only supporting you... they’re a bottleneck, not a bridge. Founders, the power of an EA isn’t just in handling your inbox or scheduling meetings. It’s in embedding them as a true extension of your operating system... empowering your team, streamlining workflows, and multiplying your leverage. Here’s how you can transform your EA from isolated to integrated: 1. Connect Your EA to Your Core Tools - Don’t let your EA dwell in your inbox. Grant access to project management, CRM, and messaging platforms. This empowers them to coordinate directly with your team and stay aligned with organizational priorities 2. Standardize Workflows, Not Just Tasks - Build out SOPs for recurring processes (from recruiting to onboarding to weekly reporting). Enable your EA to manage these flows, catching issues early and proactively nudging teammates instead of waiting for you to delegate. 3. Make Them a Team Resource, Not Just a Personal One - A top-performing EA answers team questions, handles cross-department handoffs, and acts as a communication conduit. Encourage your team to go to your EA for updates, approvals, and routine decisions. 4. Use Automation, Data, and Communication Platforms - Leverage tools that allow your EA to automate calendar bookings, manage internal dashboards, or set up internal briefings using Slack, Notion, or Asana. This magnifies their impact and reduces your dependency as the center point. When your EA is integrated into your company’s operating system, they boost efficiency across the board, keeping you free to focus on strategic moves, not task triage. Start by mapping your critical workflows and identify anywhere an EA could slot in as the operator, not just the admin. Empower, automate, and embed... don’t just delegate. How are you using your EA today? Where could they add more value for your whole team? Let’s share best practices in the comments below.

The real job of an EA isn't doing more tasks faster. Let me tell you what it actually is: It's deciding what never reaches you in the first place. I've seen the difference this makes with every executive I support: → Decisions handled before they hit the executive's desk → Meetings declined that didn't deserve their time → Requests rerouted to the right person upstream → Emails filtered before they create distraction When that happens, something powerful shifts. Most leaders think support means time savings. But the real value? Focus protection. Every interruption prevented stops decision fatigue. Every unnecessary item filtered out eliminates context switching. In my experience, great EAs don't just manage calendars or inboxes. We act as gatekeepers for attention and energy. Using judgment to determine what actually deserves the executive's time. The difference between overwhelmed leaders and effective ones isn't better systems or longer hours. It's fewer things getting through. Some complications show up when everything reaches you: → Your effectiveness drops from decision fatigue → Your focus shifts from strategy to reactive mode → Your energy gets drained by low-value decisions → Your capacity shrinks because of constant interruptions So, what's the real shift? It's understanding that protection of your attention is just as valuable as completion of tasks. The best executives aren't the ones handling everything. They're the ones with someone deciding what never reaches them at all. Making this shift? It changes everything about how you operate as a leader. What would you accomplish if 80% of the noise never reached you?

The Most Misunderstood Role in Business Everyone thinks they know what an Executive Assistant does. Managing calendars, booking travel, taking notes. Right? Wrong. A great EA doesn’t just manage schedules, they manage capacity. They don’t just take notes, they track priorities. They don’t just handle logistics, they remove friction so decisions happen faster and goals are met sooner. The best EAs don’t just support, they orchestrate. They anticipate problems before they arise, connect the right people at the right time, and create the kind of efficiency that makes businesses actually work. An executive without a great EA is like a race car with no pit crew - capable of high performance but constantly slowed down by preventable obstacles. So here’s a challenge: The next time you meet an EA, don’t ask who they support. Ask what they make possible. #ExecutiveAssistant #Leadership #Efficiency #BeyondTheTitle 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑖𝑒𝑤𝑠 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑑 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑚𝑦 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑦 𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑜𝑦𝑒𝑟.

The Executive Assistant manages calendars, filters information, handles logistics, and serves as the critical interface between leaders and everyone seeking access to them. Today, #AI can automate perhaps 80% of these tasks with remarkable efficiency. But I believe automation will not eliminate this role, it will elevate it from #assistant to genuine partner. The future EA will spend less time on bookings and more time on judgment calls: deciding what deserves the executive's attention, prioritizing competing demands, analyzing plans before they reach the decision-maker, and anticipating needs before they become urgent. Throughout my career, my executive meetings were scheduled twelve months in advance, requiring thoughtful planning rather than reactive scheduling from assistants who knew what truly mattered. The qualities that make an exceptional EA cannot be automated: making #leadership possible, providing the human touch that keeps intense schedules bearable, and demonstrating the loyalty built through years of consistent judgment. These are delicate, well-compensated roles that are becoming more valuable as AI handles the routine and frees these professionals to focus on what truly differentiates them. What roles in your organization will AI elevate rather than eliminate?

The most important person who helped me get promoted was not only my sponsors and mentors. It was the Executive Assistant. In honor of Administrative Professionals Day, I want to share why we should never overlook the people who sit closest to leadership. Years ago, I recruited an Executive Assistant for the President of our division. She was brilliant, strategic, resourceful, three steps ahead. Only 3 years after leaving that role, we reconnected on LinkedIn. She had been promoted to an executive. I know firsthand that the Executive Assistant role prepares you for leadership in ways few others can. I held that role myself for about one year right after college. (Yes, I have had about 20 jobs in my life 😩.) The truth is: some of the fastest rising executives started exactly here. Behind the scenes. Managing the unmanageable. Building skills that most leaders wish they had. Learning how to lead without a title (knowing how to balance that influence without getting exploited with tactical work). If you are an Executive Assistant or you work with one know this: There is a blueprint to fast-track into leadership: • Identify your executive-level skills early (time, people, power dynamics) • Reframe your language to strategic outcomes (“executive prioritization” over “calendar management”) • Own a cross-functional initiative beyond your lane • Work in the language of the business (data, frameworks, decision impact) • Build executive communication across teams and leaders These are the roles Executive Assistants often move into: • Chief of Staff • Operations Director • Program Manager • Business Manager • Communications Leader • Strategy and Planning Lead • Executive in cross-functional leadership roles And if you are moving up yourself, do not overlook the power of having an Executive Assistant as part of your success cabinet. They can offer insights and strategic guidance few others can because they work so closely with the C-suite. This role is not a dead end. It is a launch pad. There are so many of you sitting in roles right now with an executive already inside you, even if no one else sees it yet. I see you. And you are closer than you think. #executivematerial —-