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AFRICA EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAL SYMPOSIUM
CHARLES COTTER
ROYAL HOTEL, DURBAN
9 DECEMBER 2015
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PRESENTATION OVERVIEW
• SECRETS TO BECOMING A “CAN’T DO WITHOUT YOU” ASSISTANT - A CEO’S PERSPECTIVE
• EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE
• DARE TO BECOME A SUCCESS - LESSONS FROM ANTS
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SECRETS TO BECOMING A “CAN’T DO WITHOUT YOU” ASSISTANT - A CEO’S PERSPECTIVE
• How the role of the PA has changed over the years
• What steps PA’s can take to improve the Boss-PA partnership
• What new and exciting roles exist for PA’s
• Advice on how to enhance visibility and get ahead
• The skills and attributes that executives are looking for in a PA
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THE CHANGING ROLE OF THE P.A
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THE CHANGING ROLE OF THE P.A• Being a personal assistant isn't just about diary management,
nowadays P.As make key decisions and manage budgets
• The role of P.A has transformed from a support role to a key role (in supporting decisions)
• Technology has given PAs the opportunity to take on new responsibilities – assuming a middle management role, running their own team and/or conducting meetings on their boss's behalf.
• Gatekeepers - P.A’s are now agents (spies), communication’s conduits, representatives (public face) and negotiators
• Office managers and coordinators to organizational project managers
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THE CHANGING ROLE OF THE P.A• Providing help behind the scenes (stage-hand) to the fore-front (actor)
• Graduated from tactical and operational level to a strategic level – from secretary to business partner
• From reactive role, P.A’s are now proactively finding new ways to improve processes and contribute to the goals of the organization (from imitators to innovators)
• From takers to givers - Trusted researchers and advisors
• “An Assistant for the Assistant”
• CONCLUSION: “The role of the Executive Personal Assistant is growing exponentially.”
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BAD NEWS – GENDER WAGE DISPARITY
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GOOD NEWS - VALUE OF AN OFFICE PROFESSIONAL
In a survey of the Managing Directors of the Top
5 000 businesses in the UK, they concluded that having their P.A made them more than 32% more effective.
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THE SKILLS AND ATTRIBUTES THAT EXECUTIVES ARE LOOKING FOR IN A P.A
• #1: Understanding the business strategy
• #2: Understanding the wider business issues
• #3: Operating efficiently and effectively
• #4: Being a natural problem solver
• #5: Being a rigorous planner
• #6: Being a strong influencer
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THE SKILLS AND ATTRIBUTES THAT EXECUTIVES ARE LOOKING FOR IN A P.A
• #7: Using initiative and being pro-active
• #8: Focusing on providing support and being a sounding board
• #9: Interpersonal skills, efficiency and work ethic
• #10: Ability to understand and anticipate the needs of the CEO
• #11: Other crucial attributes are organizational ability, an awareness of world events and “mutual respect.”
• #12: Skills variety e.g. “exceptional organizational skills,” the ability to utilize new technology, “knowledge of cultural differences” around the world, good communication skills, EQ and professionalism.
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ATTRIBUTES OF PROFESSIONALISM
• Specialized Knowledge
• Competency
• Honesty and Integrity
• Accountability
• Self-Regulation
• Image
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CORE COMPETENCIES OF BEING A SUCCESSFUL PROFESSIONAL
• Identify our most valuable skill sets
• Market our skills that are most in-demand
• Target who we want to market ourselves to
• Articulate our ability to solve an employer's problems and alleviate their pain
• Proactively start and engage in meaningful industry conversations
• Position ourselves as a subject-matter expert
• Know our worth and limits
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NETWORKING AND BUSINESS CONTACTS
• “It’s not what you know, but who you know.”
• Research has proven that those employees better equipped with the social skills necessary to network effectively and build sustainable, professional relationships with key organizational decision-makers, tend to climb the corporate ladder substantially faster than those who lack this capability.
• Research indicates that between 50% and 75% of jobs are never
advertised. So networking can be 12 times more effective than answering an advertisement.
• Networking is a process of building strong and enduring relationships that are mutually beneficial.
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COVEY’S EMOTIONAL BANK ACCOUNT
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DEFINING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EQ)
• EQ is the skill to recognize different emotions in yourself and the world around you and to interpret and use these emotions to enhance your quality of life.
• EQ is a set of abilities that helps you manage your emotions and relate to others.
• EQ is the ability to recognize your emotions, understand what they're telling you and realize how your emotions affect people around you.
• EQ is the ability to understand and manage both your own emotions and those of the people around you.
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IQ vs. EQ• ‘Intelligence Quotient’ (IQ) is the measure most often used to determine how
clever people are.
• The most successful leaders tend to have an above average IQ, but this doesn’t make them successful. It’s another type of intelligence called ‘Emotional Intelligence’ or EQ.
• EQ enables leaders to better manage the emotional content of the relationships they have and, as a result, they are more influential.
• “The best leader is usually the most emotionally intelligent person in the team.”
• Realising that some people with a high IQ ‘underperformed’ in life, whilst others with a moderate IQ performed well, researchers were interested in understanding what was making this difference.
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IQ vs. EQ
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BUILDING A BUSINESS CASE FOR EQ
• “The single most important factor that distinguished star performers was EQ.”
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CHARACTERISTICS OF LOW/HIGH EQ
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PARENT-ADULT-CHILD (PAC) MODEL
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• #1: Emotional self-awareness: Do you notice your feelings and attribute them properly?
• #2: Emotional expression: Are you able to express your feelings and gut-level instincts?
• #3: Emotional awareness of others: Can you intuit what others may be feeling from their words, body language, or other clues?
• #4: Creativity: Do you tap into resources to help you envision new ideas, frame alternative solutions, and find effective ways of doing things?
• #5: Resilience: Do you bounce back and retain curiosity and hope in the face of adversity, change, and challenge?
• #6: Interpersonal connections: Have you formed a network of people with whom you can be your real and whole self?
• #7: Constructive discontent: Do you stay calm, focused, and emotionally grounded during disagreements and conflict?
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• #8: Optimism: Do you keep a positive outlook?• #9: Empathy: Do you appreciate and honour others’ feelings?• #10: Intuition: Do you notice, trust, and use your hunches, gut-
level reactions, and other non-cognitive responses produced by the senses, emotions, mind, and body?
• #11: Intentionality: Do you say what you mean and mean what you say? Are you willing to forgo distraction and temptations in order to be responsible for your actions?
• #12: Trust radius: Do you believe people are “good” until proven otherwise while at the same time not trusting in a naive way?
• #13: Personal power: Do you believe you can meet challenges and live the life you choose?
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THE FIVE (5) COMPETENCIES OF EQ
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SELF REGULATION
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SUMMARY OF EQ COMPETENCIES
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EQ DEVELOPMENT MAP/PATHWAY
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HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR EQ – GENERAL ADVICE
• Observe how you react to people
• Look at your work environment
• Do a self-evaluation
• Examine how you react to stressful situations
• Take responsibility for your actions
• Examine how your actions will affect others – before you take those actions
• With appropriate education and training, you can develop EQ throughout your life
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TARGETED EQ DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES – 5 COMPETENCIES
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CONSOLIDATION INTO A PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN (PDP)
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Dare to be a Success!
Life Lessons from
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THE FABLE OF THE ANT AND THE GRASSHOPPER
The moral of the story:
PREPARE TODAY FOR THE NEEDS THAT YOU WILL
HAVE TOMORROW.
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7 LIFE LESSONS YOU CAN LEARN FROM AN ANT
• #1: Ants are driven by purpose
• #2: Ants work as a team
• #3: Ants have a time to rest and a time to work
• #4: Ants think big
• #5: Ants prepare ahead of time
• #6: Ants carry workloads they can handle
• #7: Ants serve one another
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#1: Purpose-driven
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#2: TEAMWORK Principles and collective effort
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#3: Time to work
Time to rest
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#4: Think Big!
Persist!
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#5 Pro-active Preparation
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#6: Carry Manageable workloads
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#7: Serve one another
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EXCELL-ANT: 7 PRODUCTIVITY LESSONS FROM ANTS
• #1: Focus
• #2: Team-work
• #3: Develop a Routine
• #4: Communication
• #5: Stay Positive
• #6: Set Dead-lines
• #7: Division of work
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#1: FOCUS
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#2: PRODUCTIVE TEAM-WORK
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#3: Routine
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#4: CriticalCommunication
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#5: STAY POSITIVE
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Obstacle
Intentional & Efficient
#6: SET DEAD-LINES
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#7: Clear Division of Labour
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CONCLUSION
• Key points
• Summary
• Questions
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CONTACT DETAILS
• Charles Cotter
• (+27) 84 562 9446
• Twitter: Charles_Cotter
• http://www.slideshare.net/CharlesCotter