Entrepreneurs growing a start-up find that one critical staff position is crucial to early success: the executive assistant.
Some CEOs balk at the idea of hiring an assistant right out of the gate. They want to avoid appearing too pampered, too self-centered, too corporate. Start-ups, after all, are supposed to be independent, aggressive, and robust. Why would the CEO want to delegate any responsibility to an executive assistant?
The real question is, why wouldn’t the CEO delegate to an executive assistant?
Every CEO Must Have an Executive Assistant
The most important reason to hire an executive assistant for your start-up is to give you the time to focus on the business matters that only you can handle. Your start-up is your vision, and you already devote most of your waking hours to its success.
The executive assistant is your chief of staff, the person who will take care of all the tasks you don’t have time for. If you have the financial capacity to bring one employee onboard, hire the staff position that will grow with your company and help develop your vision.
The Many Chiefs of Staff Duties
An executive assistant (EA) is invaluable to your success because of three critical skills:
- Prioritization: An EA will prioritize workload, meetings, and who will be allowed to interrupt your work. Probably no one, including your mother-in-law, will get past your EA gatekeeper.
- Organization: Count on your EA to know where to find everything, from your accounting documents to local zucchini lasagna that melts in your mouth. Your EA can even tell you where the latest version of your pitch deck is filed.
- Communication: Well-known for their communication skills, EAs will initiate conversations via email, phone, and virtual meeting software. They’ll also make sure you have the words you need for expressing ideas. The EA hires copywriters and speechmakers.
You’ll find that your EA can meet demanding deadlines, handle impossible tasks with grace, and apply emotional intelligence in situations that would unnerve 5-star generals.
Eventually, your executive assistant will become your chief of staff, overseeing other assistants’ work in the workspace you created.
Hiring the Executive Assistant for Your C-Suite
Once you hire your c-suite, the executive assistant becomes your center of operations, often handling multiple roles simultaneously.
Everyone has the same 24 hours in a day, including start-up entrepreneurs. How you use these hours is up to you.
Hiring an executive assistant can give you the additional hours you need. With an EA onboard, you can build your business, practice work-life balance, or even catch on your sleep at night.
To make even better use of your time, turn to an executive assistant recruiter who can help you find the right person to make that happen.
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