Flexible Work: Rethinking Remote Work for Administrative Professionals

Meet Jean Latta. Jean has been with the company for 13 years and is an executive administrative assistant in the Law department, providing support to our Government Affairs, Procurement, and Marketing & Sales law practice groups.

Jean, like many other employees, has chosen to embrace Altria’s flexible work approach to get her work done where, when and how it works best for her and the teams she supports.

Learn more about this approach by reading Jean’s full story below.

How are you implementing flexible working?

I think a lot of people did not believe the role of an administrative professional could be performed remotely. But the pandemic has helped remove that barrier for administrative professionals.?

Our work has changed. Many tasks – like copying, faxing, scanning, answering numerous phone extensions – have been eliminated.?

As a result, I’m doing more meaningful work and taking on different projects and actively seeking development opportunities. With the elimination of some clerical tasks, I had the capacity to join Altria’s Workplace Flexibility Team, continue my work on the Law department’s Inclusion, Diversity & Equity Committee, and be a voice for admins generally, which was huge for me. It’s a positive change, and I prefer the depth of the work I do now.?

How do you get the work done?

I’m essentially working the same traditional schedule as when I went into the office – roughly 9-to-5. If I have something else to do in the middle of the day, I can tack more time on in the evening or hit it early in the morning. Flexibility and output are key.

Before the pandemic, I supported two teams – a Senior Assistant General Counsel and two managers under him and another attorney and his three analysts. Four months ago, my manager suggested I take on another seven-person legal team after their admin retired. With changes to work and new technologies, I think admins can add more value and support larger teams.

Had you worked flexibly in the past?

Before the pandemic, I’d occasionally worked from home if a workman was coming to the house or something, but it was strictly as needed.?

When did you realize you might want to try working flexibly?

After about a year of working remotely, I realized, “Wow. Not only have I figured this out, but I can embrace this.”

I’m saving gas money and spending less time driving in traffic or inclement weather. I like to exercise, and now I can work out during lunchtime without worrying about coming back to my cube or office all sweaty.?

Describe your workspace.

It varies. If I want a larger screen, I work in my main office space in the dining room. In the summer, I worked on my screened porch. In the fall, sometimes I’d work by my firepit.?It’s also nice to have the opportunity to work remotely from another house.

How did you work it out with your manager and team?

When we first started working from home, my boss and I immediately set up weekly times to talk. Sometimes it’s one-on-one, other times it’s the four of us – my boss and two other managers. I also join weekly staff meetings for the other teams I support.?

Checking in is a two-way street. If a manager or a direct report isn’t good at communicating, you’ll have problems. My boss knows what I’m doing and now knows I’m working with more than just him.?

When Altria initially considered reopening our facilities and asked people how they wanted to return to work, I had already decided that one or two days a week in the office would be ideal. I thought it would be easier for the people I support to have a little face time every week. My boss is very agreeable to a hybrid schedule, because he understands that most people are choosing a hybrid schedule. Just like for every employee, you must have an open dialogue with your boss about when, where and how you want to work.?

As far as the team goes, some of the folks I work with decided this was the perfect time to leave Richmond and work elsewhere. I support people in California, Colorado, Florida and D.C., so we’ve all become more conscious of each other’s time differences and try to accommodate that.

What is the big-picture benefit of this approach?

I think flexible work means we can now expand our talent pool. We can hire people who don’t want to relocate to Richmond and retain people who might have to move because their spouse got a job elsewhere.?

This approach has also forced the Law department to embrace technology more. In my experience, we were a group that liked printed paper. With flexible work, I’m no longer printing mounds and mounds of paper — leaving stacks on desks or filling binders.

From a personal standpoint, the last year and a half has improved my work-life balance. But it’s so much more than that. For people in my ranks of work, it’s helped us to take on more substantive roles, including project management, that makes us feel more valued.