How to thrive in executive support roles

Step into the world of executive support with Lydia Milosavljevic and Zoe Scanlon, who share essential tips for success in your role as executive assistant or chief of staff.

Executive support teams are very influential within their organisations, but they also have great responsibility to deliver in a high-pressure environment. Zoe Scanlon, chief of staff to Secretary Katherine Jones PSM of the Attorney-General’s Department and Lydia Milosavljevic, executive assistant to Deputy Secretary Simon Duggan from the Department of?Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, emphasise that their roles extend far beyond going into meetings and managing diaries. Success in these roles requires mastering some key skills from prioritising effectively to communicating clearly.

Prioritise well

When you’re in an executive support role, you’re constantly juggling with competing priorities. The ability to quickly assess and determine what’s important in the moment is crucial.

“It’s all about forming strategic judgement and trying to work out what is going to be the priority for right now,” Zoe explains.

Staying informed?through multiple sources, such as meetings, emails, and direct conversations will help you prioritise effectively and act with confidence. This does not only allow you to stay ahead of the workload but also empowers your executive to focus on what matters most.

Foster a shared sense of purpose

Having a shared goal keeps the team focused and promotes effective collaboration.

“We all have the same goal, which is to support our boss and make [them] as successful as [they] can be in [their] role,” Zoe says.

Lydia emphasises how each team member plays a part in the broader mission:

“If we talk about strategic goals with the department, everyone is playing some kind of part. I'm a cog in that machine, and so is this other person writing a brief. So, it's just about how we all come to work together to make that as efficient and seamless as possible.”

Invest in relationships

Strong relationships with both internal teams and external stakeholders are the bedrock of an executive support role.

Lydia points out, “It's [all about] building those relationships and investing in the people because they're the ones that'll help you and get things through.”

Zoe adds, “Make sure [you] have a strong foundation in place… spend the time building relationships with the relevant counterparts [to keep] things moving,” Zoe adds.

By developing rapport with key stakeholders, you can ensure smoother collaboration and early identification of potential issues.

Build trust and respect

Trust within the executive support team is critical to success.

“When I think about an EA-EO relationship and what makes that work is having that respect in each other's ability and trust that each other will get the job done… And because the SES-EA-EO relationship requires that ultimate level of trust, it can just take time to reach that kind of strong unit that you want to build that partnership,” Lydia says.

Trust also allows you to operate efficiently, especially in high-pressure situations.

"When you come under pressure, you don’t have time to be checking if someone has done their job. You just have to trust that you’re all running towards that goal and it's going to work because you've got the ability,” she adds.

Building this trust takes time, but the investment in a strong working relationship will pay off when you’re navigating challenging situations.

Communicate clearly

Clear and open communication is important in managing the fast pace and high volume of executive support work. This communication must extend beyond the support team to include the broader staff.

As Zoe stresses, “The volume of work that comes over our desks every day is enormous, and the pace at which you have to work to be effective in these roles is incredibly fast… Communicating information to one another and sharing information as much as possible really arms each of you to be better in your roles and to be able to support the [executive] as well as possible.”

Lydia adds, “[With] staff being open with me and saying, ‘actually, this has come about in this conversation, maybe just test it with Simon or test it with your EO.’ We're all in this together. It's just lots of communication, so please talk to us."

Shape your role

One of the most exciting aspects of being an executive assistant is the opportunity to shape the role to fit your strengths.

Lydia highlights the diversity and opportunities that come with the role:

“The EA role has opened so many doors for me and has strengthened my skills… You get to work with incredible and senior level people, and you get to influence workplaces and contribute your own ideas.”

Whether it’s taking on leadership roles, building networks, or exploring new challenges, you have the flexibility to tailor your role that support supports your career development and the organisation’s needs.

Listen to the full Work with Purpose episode here.