What Executives Think

How do executives view admins and EAs? We talked to two execs about the value of administrative roles and continued professional development.

Recorded at SHRM 2024 and produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals - ASAP. Learn more and submit a listener question at asaporg.com/podcast.

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Leah Warwick: Hi, everyone. I'm Leah Warwick, and you're listening to "The Admin Edge." This season was recorded at the HR event, SHRM, where we met with HR professionals and executives, asking them some questions you submitted. In this episode, I talked with two executives. The first is Kristy Ryan. Kristy is the Chief Operating Officer at Move for Hunger, a national nonprofit fighting food insecurity. Kristy speaks first here, talking about the admin professionals who work with her at Move for Hunger.

00:00:40                     

Kristy Ryan: We could not do what we do without Sammy, Lex, and now Bella.

Leah Warwick: Oh, that's so wonderful to hear because we know how hard admins work to keep organizations running smoothly. Sometimes, unfortunately, there is a perception of administrative professionals that isn't accurate, that they're not as valuable as they truly are to organizations. So, what are your thoughts on the best ways to change the perception of administrative professionals in the workplace?

Kristy Ryan: You know, I think it starts from the top down, right? If your executive team really finds value in your administrative team, then everybody else in the organization is going to respect them. I am blessed to say that our organization does. One of our admins just had an accident, and she's out of the office for an extended period of time. So many people on my team are stepping up to help out, and they're like, "Oh, my gosh. She does so much."

So, I think that's another really great tip. Have people shadow or fill in and support and learn just how much they really do, because it's amazing.

Leah Warwick: Yes, and sometimes you don't know until you're in their shoes. On that line of thinking, in terms of training for admins, a lot of people don't think about that. They're like, "Oh, why does my admin need training?"

00:01:52

Role-specific training has been shown to not only increase the skills of the admins you have in the workplace so they can do more for you. It also helps them to feel more valued by their organization, more likely to stay, and more likely to have a positive experience at the organization overall. 

So, when you look at training for admins, do you know what kind of training that they need? Have they asked for certain kinds of training? 

Kristy Ryan: Ours is pretty role-specific. My admin that handles our accounts payable and receivable, we are investing in her to become a certified bookkeeper. We said, "This is professional development. We value her. We see this path. We're going to do that." We actually have a professional development budget for every person in the organization, and one-on-one we sit together, myself and the employee, and we go through what their journey looks like, and then we develop what those courses are going to be based on needs of the organization as well as their personal goal.

00:02:49                     

Leah Warwick: That's wonderful that you individualize it and you sit down with each person, because everybody has different needs, and someone who is very skilled in one area may want to gain skills in another. Like you said with bookkeeping, getting a certification is a great way for them to stay on top of their skills and prove – a certification really proves that I did the work. I proved that I had the knowledge. I took the test and now I have this certification. It helps them feel valued by you. If you're the one saying, "I'm investing in you," that creates a really great relationship in the organization.

We actually have some questions that are community sent. They knew we were going to be at SHRM, and they had so many burning questions. For you, as an executive, there are a few questions that I think might fit for you. So, here's one. This person is an executive assistant. They say: "As the executive assistant to a very busy director who oversees a division of 350+ employees, I'm considered part of a ten-member division leadership team, but I often feel ignored, dismissed, and disregarded by my boss when we're in groups or meetings. I understand that as somebody in a support role my work occurs behind the scenes and is not often publicly recognized, but what can I do? What would you recommend so I stand out more?" 

00:04:00

This is a common theme that we hear. Often, admins aren't considered for special awards because they're already doing the work of supporting others, or they're not considered for mentorship programs. How would you recommend that this person starts to change that? 

Kristy Ryan: I think it starts with an honest conversation, right? Set time on your leader's calendar and say, "I would like to own this agenda." I actually tell my entire team, "Everybody gets a one-on-one with me. I don't own the agenda. We're going to talk about what you want." And I set that expectation. But, conversely, if they're not doing that for you, set it yourself and say, "I'd love to own this. I want to talk to you about the following items." And then make sure that you do it consistently. Having one meeting, they're going to forget about it the next day, so set up recurring meetings where you are constantly evaluating your progress; you're asking them for guidance.

00:04:52

And then, lastly, get an external mentor. If you're not getting it in your organization, there are millions of people who want to mentor. Do your research. Reach out to them. Ask them very specific questions of why you want them as your mentor, and start developing your own personalized network. That is how you will grow when your company doesn't see it right immediately in front of you. 

And then put in front of them the various awards that are out there. If there's an opportunity for you to be nominated for an award and they're not seeing it, go ahead and send them – say, "I would really be honored if you'd consider nominating me for this award." 

Leah Warwick: Yes. At ASAP, we have the ASAP Awards, the Impact Award, and the DEIB Award. We have an online community, so that's a great place to start before going to an event. At SHRM, networking is a great opportunity. We have events for that, too. But starting out online, we have a community called The ASAP Circle that's free to join. So, finding your people. Or on LinkedIn – that's a great way to find a mentor. And, yes, an external mentor can be great because having mentors in your own company is good, but also getting some outside perspective will really help you along your journey.

00:05:58                     

Kristy Ryan: Absolutely.

Leah Warwick: From someone who may have been in a similar role as you or where are you right now and can provide that special insight.

Kristy Ryan: Absolutely.

Leah Warwick: Another question that is in here that I would like to ask you is more of a general question, too. It's really about what you, as an exec, would want in an ideal admin, thinking about: What are the skills and the qualities that I think make for a great admin where I work?

Kristy Ryan: I think somebody who takes being attentive to detail to the next level. There's a lot going on and a lot of moving pieces, especially in a nonprofit, where we're all taking 50 roles at a time. It's really important to have somebody who can keep all of that together and make sure that everybody understands the piece that they're playing in it. I look at my admin team to say, "Okay, we've got a special event going on, and I've got 15 people flying in and stuff coming from around the country." They're really making sure everybody is on the same page.

00:06:59

In addition to that, I think somebody who can just openly advocate for themselves, right? They're the unsung heroes so many times. And not that you mean to forget about them, but it can happen. We just talked about that. So, I need somebody who's going to speak up when they have a need that's not being met, and somebody who's going to call me out if I'm kind of ignoring them. I need that, too. Hold me accountable just as I'm holding you accountable. I don't know what I don't know, and I don't know what you need unless you tell me. I can't teach people to do that. 

Leah Warwick: Good things do not come to those who wait. They come to those who stand up and advocate for themselves. A common theme that we've found is your executive, as much as they want to support you in many cases, they're not mind readers. You have to tell them. If you're feeling like, my workload is too much, or I want to set a boundary here, or I want to learn more about project management and have the opportunity to do that, you've got to talk to your executive about it. Chances are, they're going to be open and they're going to want to chart a roadmap with you. It's a conversation about how do we get there.

00:08:03

A lot of them do – when we talk to executives like yourself, a lot of them say, "Oh, I do want to give professional development opportunities to my EAs and my admins, but I don't really know what it is that they need." So that's the first step, being able to advocate. 

Kristy Ryan: That's right. And letting them know what your interest is. If I did not know that my admin that handles all of our finance stuff – if I didn't know she actually loved bookkeeping, I would've never known to say, "Hey, let's take this time and invest in you." It came from a conversation. This is the job we need, but she loved it, so let's meet her where she is, too.

Leah Warwick: I love that. That's a great answer. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me. This was really fun.

Kristy Ryan: This was fun. Thanks so very much for having me.

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Kristy Ryan: Now let's listen in to my conversation with our second executive guest, Robert Hosking.

00:08:51                     

Robert Hosking: My name's Robert Hosking, and I'm the Executive Director for Robert Half, specifically the administrative and customer support practice. I look after that practice globally, and we help great individuals find opportunities, particularly in administrative roles.

Leah Warwick: That's great. I'm glad we're having this conversation because we love our administrative professionals. They have come to us with questions from the HR professionals here at this event, but also from recruiters and other professionals about: How can I move forward in my career? What skills do I need? How do I advocate for myself? Let's start with the skills questions. They're asking: "What skills should I stay on top of in my administrative career today?"

Robert Hosking: Right. It's interesting how the administrative field has changed dramatically, particularly over the last couple of years, sort of through COVID and then coming out of COVID as well. We're learning and seeing more and more that administrative professionals are being given greater responsibility in many cases, and duties that maybe they weren't responsible for even just a couple of years ago.

00:09:56

I would say the ability to be able to stay on top of AI and embrace AI as a friend. The reality of it is it's here to stay, but it's also something that can be utilized or built into your job to really help enhance your job. While there will be some responsibilities that AI may actually take away, there's a whole lot of things that it will open up the doors to. So learn, embrace, and certainly be a part of that as well. 

Leah Warwick: That's absolutely true. It's not just about, "Oh, the time that will be freed up for me to pursue more strategic work." It's also what you said: AI is going to be embedded in pretty much every technical aspect of our lives. It's already starting to. So, if there's a skill you want to develop, like data visualization, and you want to get better about that, there's not really a way to do that in a very high-impact way without using AI.

Robert Hosking: Right, agreed. Exactly.

Leah Warwick: And apply that to a lot of other skills, communication skills and so on. That also leads me to my next question, which is about leveling up. A lot of EAs we talk to especially say, "I want a seat at the table. I want to be a strategic business partner. How do I get there? How do I prove my value?" A lot of them know they're clearly highly valued in their roles. If they leave for professional development training, sometimes their executive is like, "I need you. Where are you?"

00:11:19

So they know they're valued, oftentimes, but it's really about: "How do I prove that value? And how do I use that as a way to get promoted, get raises, and really develop in my career?" That's really the main thing. They just want to keep learning and developing. How would you recommend they start that journey? 

Robert Hosking: Sometimes it's an opportunity to do some self-reflection, to start, and maybe even take a little bit of a step back and think: What do I really want to be doing? Where are my skills today? Where are the things maybe that I would prefer if I didn't have to do and I'd like to change?

Talk to your leader. Talk to your colleagues. Talk to a mentor. Really understand: "What do you think I need to do if I'd like to get to this role? I really want to be more involved in this area. I'd like to develop my project coordination skills, or I'd like to be involved in other areas. What do I need to do to be able to get there?" That's the first step. 

00:12:15

Then, once you've learned a little bit more – and that self-interest being a little reflective can help that. It's like, "Oh, my gosh. Now it's a little clearer, so here are the steps that I can put into place." That may mean enrolling in courses. It may mean being deliberate about: Here are some things I'm going to put up my hand to do within the organization. Maybe that means leading a committee or being responsible for something that's outside of your core duties or responsibilities, so taking on some of those additional tasks and being out there and being visible. And being visible with more than just your team or your colleagues or your leader, but with other leaders within the organization. Depending on the size of the company, there may be opportunities that exist outside of the department that you may not be aware of. 

00:12:59

So how can you develop skills that may lead to that? Open dialogue with your leader, though, is really important so that they can be an advocate for you and really help support that as well. 

Leah Warwick: Right. You need their buy-in and you need them to know, first of all, that you want to go in a certain direction. They don't know unless you talk to them about it.

Robert Hosking: Absolutely.

Leah Warwick: And moving on from there, it's so true. Administrative professionals are taking on more than they ever have before, especially in this new, hybrid world we're living in. The role has changed significantly. I think the biggest way is there are things that administrative professionals are doing now as part of their roles that weren't the case even four years ago. AI is one of them, but also, I feel, because of AI and because of taking on more and more work, a lot of administrative professionals are venturing more into project management than they ever have, more into strategic visibility and influencing work, and really becoming more of the strategic partners in the business. Less of an assistant and a support and more of a strategic advisor kind of role.

00:13:59

As an executive yourself, what do you think about that? For someone in a support role wanting to become more of a leader, wanting to move from more reactive to proactive in their development, what do you see as the top skills that are really needed in this new age of work we're living in? 

Robert Hosking: That's a great question. It really does lean into very strong communication skills. That's written and verbal communication skills. It's interesting how AI is one element, but the soft skills are so important and being who you are, and really being able to kind of come through in terms of: "Here's what I can do, and here's how I can deliver. Here's how I can support." Organizations need people today that are looking to take on more and do more and have more responsibility, because business is changing so much and so radically.

00:14:45

Knowing that that's of interest, because you've expressed it and said, "Hey, I really want to take on more, do something different, grow in the organization, become a leader." Leaders are very keen to pull that and be like, "Thank you for saying that." Sometimes the answer may be, well, be careful what you ask for because we've got a lot that we need to have accomplished. But I think it's terrific. Personally, when somebody comes to me and asks that question, it's like, "Let's go. Get on for the ride, because there's lots to be able to do and lots coming down the pike." 

Leah Warwick: I love that answer because it speaks to something we were talking about a little bit off mic, where our community will often come to us and say, "I'm burnt out. I'm doing way too many tasks. I'm saying yes to way too many things, and I need to learn how to say no and set boundaries." But we also know that to grow as a leader you need to start saying yes to things. The answer there is: Learn how to say no to things, and say yes to the right things.

Robert Hosking: That's right.

Leah Warwick: So it's really that strategic mindset. It's saying, "Okay, well, I can't say yes to everything because that's not a trait of a good leader," but it's knowing what to strategically say yes to. Say yes to the areas you want to grow in. So, we talked about knowing what you want to do, having those conversations with your leader, and then saying, if an opportunity comes up where I can maybe work with another leader at the organization, like you said, I can have more influence over other areas. Say yes to those opportunities. That's how you're going to grow, because then they'll see that you can do that.

00:16:06                     

Robert Hosking: That's right, exactly. It's human nature to be able to take on everything, right? It's like, "Yes, I can do it. Yes, I can do it." And particularly as an administrative professional, that's how you're rigged. It's like, "Yes, I can do it. I can do it all," but then, to your point, burnout then often happens. Or it's that I am way too stressed, or I'm working 12 hours/day. How am I going to be able to cope with that? And again, there's an opportunity to stop, reflect, take a look at: What are those duties or tasks that I'm doing today that I shouldn't necessarily be doing, that maybe can be delegated, or maybe can be tied up into a different bundle? I need to go to my leader and be able to say, "Here are the things I am going to take off my desk. Here's what I'll be able to accomplish, but this is where my skills are most utilized in the more strategic work, that more proactive work. That's where you'll get the best from me, so let's find a way to manage those other things together." Maybe there's somebody else that those duties can be passed along to within the team.

00:17:02

I think, often, a leader isn't even aware that that may be the case until you put up your hand and say it. And there's an opportunity, in some instances, to be able to identify greater efficiencies, and being able to create some process that maybe would eliminate the work, but we haven't had the time to actually do it. 

I'll give a live example of that. I had a senior executive assistant that reported to me, and I felt all the time that she was taking on so much, and she was trying to do everything for everybody, all the time. And when we really dug into the job description and the duties that she was doing, there were some areas where it's like, "Why are we doing it this way? Maybe there's a way we could do it that would make it a little more streamlined and save you an hour a week." Maybe there was some technology we needed to be able to build into it. 

00:17:51

In some cases, it was something somebody else was already doing. Maybe we could roll it in and it was already part of their job, so adding on that piece from one department into another. It just made sense to be able to do it, and it freed up time. There was a big of an "ah-ha" moment, I think, for her in that moment, to be able to say, "You're right. There are some things I can let go of," because they're maybe not as important, either, and the impact of those things not being completed wouldn't be as great as making sure that these things were completed, these other areas. 

Leah Warwick: A common theme that also comes up with EAs – and I wonder how you navigate this – is, in addition to maybe not having a specific development plan like other departments might, is a mentorship program. Or why, when there are company-wide awards, the assistants tend not to get the awards because they're always helping out and assisting and being stars. How do you make sure that your executive support staff are seen and heard and valued and validated? Because often, as you've I'm sure heard, administrative professionals tend to be in workplaces underrecognized, underappreciated, and undervalued for the work they do.

00:18:56                     

Robert Hosking: Absolutely. That is a real issue and certainly a challenge. As an organization, we do have an awards program, a reward program, for all of our operational support teams. They can be nominated and recognized and awarded. There's a separate category each year for that group of individuals as well. In many cases, that is as a result of many people weighing in on their capability and skills, and that really then speaks to their working with different departments or with different teams or expanding their scope and how they work. And they work very well together as a team, as well, and support one another that way.

We're very inclusive in terms of our team meetings. Danielle is brought into all of those. She's right at the beginning of anything we're working on. She's in the mix. She's part of it and offering ideas and offering opinions. She's been in the business a long time. She understands what goes on in the business and can offer her ideas or opinions on what maybe has worked in the past or maybe didn't work in the past, and suggestions or recommendations. We really want those from her, given her expertise. 

00:20:05                     

Leah Warwick: That is great to hear because a lot of EAs are like, "If they'd just asked me, this whole situation could've been avoided because I knew the answer, but nobody thought to ask me." And oftentimes, with the awards programs – it's great to hear about yours – it's often because – tied to something you said earlier – if an EA is only working with an exec, then only the exec really knows how well they're really going out to other teams and finding other projects to work on. Whereas, another employee might be working cross-functionally with all of these different people, so a lot of people know what they're contributing. An EA can often feel very siloed and like "people don't know how hard I'm working." So, it's great that you have that and that people are able to connect in that way. I also think that's a great way to grow your skills. I know, personally, I've grown my skills by stepping outside of my comfort zone and pursuing areas I'm interested in, and then also externally finding your people at places like this, at SHRM, or at the Administrative Professionals Conference.

00:21:02

The importance of networking is really there, and sharing information, and I think Robert Half does a really great job of sharing valuable information that then you can share with your colleagues. Knowledge is power in that sense. 

Robert Hosking: It is. And things are changing so rapidly, so that ability to be able to network: What's working in your organization? What are you doing? What are you integrating into your business? Depending on what your influence is or where you're influencing within the organization, making recommendations back to your organization around, "Hey, I just learned this. I just picked this up. This is a system that this company is working with that I think could be really beneficial for us in what we do, or help us to be more efficient, or help us to be more effective." And again, those very proactive moments really help to accelerate. It's like, "You're right. You're absolutely right. We are inefficient in this. We need your help to be able to change it." I think that networking, and finally being able to network life, in-person, is such a great thing.

00:22:05                     

Leah Warwick: Yes. It really makes a difference. I love remote work. I love hybrid work. But the networking piece? It's really special to be able to connect with people in a way that really can't be replicated online, and it goes back to what you said about: We need human skills in the workplace. It is so important. We're very focused on technical skills, and that's very important as well, but it can't be sacrificed at the altar of being a good communicator, having emotional intelligence, being an active listener. These are skills that will get you very far as an administrative professional.

Robert Hosking: Absolutely, and are looked for in organizations today. And again, it goes back to being able to communicate at every level within the organization effectively. In many cases, being involved in the hiring process or screening individuals, depending on what your role or duties or responsibilities may be. And being able to connect and being able to relate and being able to communicate effectively is so critical.

00:23:04                     

Leah Warwick: Yeah. And going back to being seen as a leader, if you want to be seen as a leader and have a seat at the table, then you have to, first of all, know the business and you have to speak the business. So, it's really important to keep growing your skills, not just technical, but the power skills as well.

Robert Hosking: Absolutely. Totally agree.

Leah Warwick: Well, thank you. This was a great conversation. I enjoyed it.

Robert Hosking: Great. My pleasure. It was great. I really appreciate it.

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Leah Warwick: Thank you for listening to "The Admin Edge," produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals. Original music and audio editing by Warwick Productions, with audio and video production at SHRM by 5Tool Productions. If you liked this podcast, please leave us a nice review, five stars, and subscribe. If you'd like to submit a listener question, you can do so on our website at asaporg.com/podcast.