Executive Assistant Interview Questions and What To Look For
Choosing to hire an executive assistant is a smart move. An executive assistant (EA) can take a load off your shoulders, handling everything from managing your diary to running your…
What is a Personal Assistant?
Understanding the personal assistant role is the first step to answering the question of ‘Why hire a personal assistant?’ A personal assistant (PA) is employed by a private individual to provide day-to-day support for themselves and/or their family. While this will look different depending on the needs of the employer, some form of administrative support will almost always be involved.
Some of the most common responsibilities of a PA include diary management, travel coordination, inbox and call management, project management, meeting coordination and event planning.
If you are considering hiring a personal assistant and looking for guidance, make a hire request and one of our specialist consultants will reach out to you.
Administrative Duties
Most PA roles will include administrative duties such as household management, answering phones, managing inboxes, arranging dinners and parties, coordinating meetings, arranging travel, taking meeting minutes, collating documents, creating presentations, and managing diaries. Other common tasks might include fixing technical issues, co-ordinating with household contractors, and getting quotes for products / services.
Why You Need a Personal Assistant
There are a myriad of reasons why you may need a personal assistant. For entrepreneurs and executives with a demanding schedule, a PA can provide invaluable support. Below we have outlined just a few of the biggest advantages of recruiting an exceptional PA. If you have been wondering ‘why hire a personal assistant’, here are just some of the reasons to take the plunge.
Free Up Your Time
If you’re deciding whether you need a personal assistant, take some time to consider what personal and business tasks you complete in a week, and which of these could realistically be done by somebody else. That person may need some specialized knowledge and need to be incredibly trustworthy, but that’s what PAs are for: meeting your highly specific needs.
A reliable PA will free up time in your calendar by taking on tasks, large or small, that allow you to focus on the bigger decisions.
Increase Your Productivity
Administrative tasks can be highly interruptive – ever answered an email or accepted a calendar invite while in a meeting or during a family meal? Research shows that multitasking like this can be costly to productivity. While managing your own inbox and calendar provides valuable control and oversight, it’s also taking your attention away from your most important work.
Entrusting an exceptional PA with these types of tasks will allow you to re-focus your mind, improve your productivity and, in turn, the quality of your decisions.
Reduce Stress
Many employers report personal assistants as being essential in reducing stress and improving wellbeing. It’s incredibly important to take steps to support one’s mental health, particularly for top executives and high-profile individuals. Hiring a great PA is an good step towards reducing stress in your job and personal life.
Utilize Skills and Expertise
Many personal assistants have spent years honing highly specialized skills that can prove invaluable. Those working with high-profile employers may excel in social media management and online branding. A PA who has worked for a long time in the legal sector may excel at preparing legal documents. Whatever the nature of your needs, we can help you find a PA with aligned expertise.
To get started on recruiting a personal assistant, get in touch with us today. A consultant will reach out to discuss your requirements and get you started on the path to finding a perfect PA.
Maintain an Organized Routine
As an entrepreneur or executive, you probably find that each day feels exceptionally hectic, with information and potential opportunities coming from all directions. There are personal assistants there who have mastered the art of turning chaos into order. These PAs can help you create some routine in your working days and keep your calendar as organized as possible. This not only helps streamline your work processes but can ensure that you’re reliably carving out time for your own wellbeing.
Support When You Need It
Personal assistant roles are created to match the needs of employers. This means that if you work unusual hours or travel a lot, you may need a PA who will be adaptable and match your schedule.
A PA can also be hired on an as-needed basis for specific projects, vacations, or particularly busy times of year. This is where a strong relationship with a PA recruitment agency can prove invaluable.
Tiger’s temporary business support team specialize in placing PAs in contract or last-minute roles, as needed by employers. If your business could benefit from a partnership where all payroll and temporary recruitment admin is taken care of for you, get in touch today.
Ready To Hire a Personal Assistant?
If we’ve answered your questions about why to hire a personal assistant, we’d love to hear from you. Still not sure? Our consultants can provide further guidance on whether hiring a personal assistant is the right decision for your business.
