If you've ever wanted to get an insight into what a PA job really entails, then stay tuned this week as one of the top London PAs from our leading PA recruitment agency gives you an all-access look into a week in her life...
9am: Becky has another manager visiting her this morning, so I greet him, get drinks for them both, and put her phone on divert so they’re not interrupted. Last time this manager was here, he was fairly rude to me and the other assistants, so he’s not my favourite guest, but I ensure I’m polite and professional nonetheless.
9.30am: After checking the emails, I schedule a telephone conference for Becky and prepare a PowerPoint presentation on grievances that she needs to share during the call. She’s already given me data from across the business, but I also have to research the national picture and compare the two. I email it over for her to check.
11am: There’s a pile of receipts on my desk from Becky’s recent business trip, so I attach them to the relevant forms, book them into the online system, and update my spreadsheets so I can track when they’ve been paid. I have a great relationship with the accounting department, which is ideal if the expenses deadline is near, as they make sure everything is processed in time.
11.30am: I catch up on some filing. It’s one of my least favourite things to do, but I don’t like it to get out of hand, and I know I can reward myself with lunch after!
12pm: I grab an early lunch so that I have plenty of time to prep for the afternoon’s meeting, which means I have lunch on my own. I don’t mind getting lunch alone though, as it means I can catch up on reading my book!
1pm: As a HR senior manager, Becky conducts grievance meetings for employees across the business. I prep the meeting room, adjust the aircon as it’s really warm in there, and get a jug of water and glasses for the attendees. Then I double-check the paperwork is ready to go, labelling it up with post-it notes to make it easy to work through in the hearing.
2pm: As Becky’s PA, I take minutes, which need to be near-verbatim for this type of meeting. Sometimes the hearings go on for hours, which can be a really tiring job. I used to hand-write the minutes, but I’ve found I can type much faster and can use keyboard shortcuts to speed it up. One of the great things about PA jobs is learning about things you never expected to know about.
4pm: I’m feeling pretty tired after, but I catch up on the day’s emails and action anything that needs to be done, prepping our to-do lists for tomorrow. During the meeting, I missed an important phone call, so I also need to sort this out before I leave the office, which sometimes meaning staying late, but thankfully it’s resolved quickly today.
5.15pm: I’m glad to head home today. While the meetings are interesting, they can be emotionally exhausting and it’s physically tiring typing non-stop for two hours!
Stay tuned to find out more about a week in the life of a Top London PA. If this sounds like your ideal role and you're looking for temporary or permanent PA jobs, get in touch with the team at Love Success today.
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