Being an executive assistant can be a great career path to use your organisational and interpersonal skills. Learn how to enter the field, how to grow within it, and what an executive assistant salary is.
An executive assistant works directly with top executives in a company or organisation, fulfilling high-level administrative needs and standard assistant tasks. You will find opportunities to enter this field in most major cities throughout the United Kingdom, with the highest pay rate in London. According to Glassdoor, the average national salary is £42,208 [1], while the base pay for executive assistants working in London averages £45,437 [2].
Learn about the different types of assistants and what sets them apart, as well as the required skills, experience, and education.
An executive assistant plays a major role in a company's structure by providing clerical and communication assistance to high-level executives. Working directly with these executives requires discretion and organisation, as they rely heavily on an executive assistant's ability to handle most contact with clients, partners, and subordinate employees.
A day as an executive assistant typically involves various tasks such as scheduling, drafting memos, interacting with others, and record-keeping, depending on the company and executive’s needs. Your duties will likely include, but are not limited to:
Performing administrative tasks such as writing emails, creating memos, and drafting communications
Maintaining comprehensive records and creating accurate reports
Completing payroll and other accounting needs
Planning meetings by managing schedules and sending reminders
Answering the phones in a timely and helpful manner
Being the face of the company for anyone entering the office
Managing the executives' calendar, appointments, and travel details, with a critical focus on the organisation
Employers look for candidates who can handle a large workload of varying tasks and projects. If you can multitask and prioritise assignments, a role as an executive assistant may be a natural fit for you. Here are some skills that employers may look for in this role.
You will be responsible for managing your time and the executives' time. Activities include scheduling meetings, appointments, and travel arrangements, freeing executives to focus on their responsibilities and keep the workflow on track.
In addition to managing executives' time, managing your own time will be equally important for your success. The company relies on you, so maintaining a track record of arriving to work on time and completing projects within their deadlines will reflect well when you're looking to advance your role.
Daily tasks include crafting emails and reports, making phone calls, and networking. Therefore, employers expect an executive assistant to have strong written and verbal communication skills. Using a clear and consistent tone will often help you maintain your professional relationships and those of executives.
In this role, you will be responsible for noting a large amount of information, making organisation a critical skill needed for the position. Administrative, organisational tasks include filing, categorising emails, sorting mail, and screening phone calls. For executives, you must have an organisational system for calendars, appointments, reports, and budgets.
Companies have an executive assistant to free up an executive's time, prioritise their workload, and delegate responsibilities. To do this effectively, you must make decisions independently. It requires confidence in your abilities and a high level of strategic thinking. You'll also need to be able to proactively assess a project, predict a wide range of possible outcomes, and plan contingent solutions.
In this role, you'll be in contact with people with various personalities, both external and within the company, making patience and kindness vital. Often, an executive assistant will be the first line of defence against unhappy clients and in-house employees, so it's essential to diffuse situations before involving executives. You represent both the executives and the company, allowing you to set the tone for the workplace.
When entering into an executive assistant role, it's essential to consider the industry you'll be working in. While a higher national diploma or foundation degree can be enough qualifications for an entry role in some companies, medical, tech, and legal industries often require additional courses in industry-specific terminology.
An entry-level position in this field usually requires a minimum of a higher national diploma or foundation degree. Your qualifications and experience in word processing and spreadsheets can set you up for success. Some executive assistants have either a college diploma or bachelor’s degree; some employers may expect this. However, it is not usually a requirement, and years of work experience can often substitute for education requirements.
When considering whether to take training courses, it's important to research the industry you would like to work in and its requirements. The medical field, as well as legal and tech, usually has industry-specific needs you can meet after gaining experience or completing training courses. In any industry segment, it's vital to have computer skills, including word processing and data entry. Newly hired executive assistants will receive on-the-job training in the first weeks or months.
To advance to an executive assistant position, you may start as an office assistant, secretary, or administrative assistant. These roles provide critical work experience needed to move into an executive assistant position. This job depends on your interpersonal and organisational skills, which should develop over time through relevant work experience.
Beyond work experience and education, Professional Certificates are usually optional. However, they can help demonstrate your competency and increase your earning potential. You might consider various certifications offered by Microsoft to show your proficiency in using its Office products. You can also pursue certifications specific to executive or administrative assistant roles.
The Advanced Certificate for the Executive Assistant is a five-day intensive training program accredited internationally by Qualifi, an official UK government-regulated awarding body. During the five days, you will learn practical skills and a deeper understanding of operational business needs.
The International Association of Administrative Professionals offers the Certified Administrative Professional Certification. You'll need a foundation, bachelor’s degree, or two or three years of relevant experience to qualify for this certification. Four years of relevant experience will qualify you instead of a college degree. Once deemed eligible, an exam is required to demonstrate your knowledge.
If you have yet to gain administrative experience but want to become an executive assistant, consider these positions as a starting point to gain experience.
*All average salary data is sourced from Glassdoor UK as of May 2024.
An administrative assistant's role is similar to that of an executive assistant but usually less specialised. Tasks often include scheduling meetings, screening phone calls, managing deadlines and projects, and preparing travel itineraries.
Average annual salary (UK): £23,888
An administrative officer tends to work for an entire office instead of assisting one person's day-to-day needs. Typical tasks involve stocking paper and supply needs, managing payroll, working the front desk, and additional general office needs.
Average annual salary (UK): £22,782
This is a managerial role in companies that require a team of administrators to run smoothly. Larger organisations tend to have a team of administrative assistants or clerical aids. The administrative manager is responsible for the entire team and training new administrative assistants.
Average annual salary (UK): £32,857
This role is common in large companies located in popular metropolitan areas. The highest-paying executive assistant jobs are in the London and Cambridge urban areas.
The national average salary for an executive assistant is £42,208 [1]. Depending on your education and work experience, you can find significant room for growth and higher pay.
This job can be an opportunity for someone without formal education beyond a higher national diploma or foundation degree who has the technical skills for a business organisation. Due to its fast-paced nature, this career offers growth and challenges. Every day is different, and it can be a fulfilling career for the right person.
As you gain more experience as an executive assistant, you will often have the opportunity to work with higher-level executives up to the CEO. Another move for an executive assistant is to aspire to advance into larger and larger companies. A large company tends to offer more room to grow and higher pay. If you’re interested in becoming an executive, this role can serve as a mentorship with the executive you’re assisting.
If you’re interested in building your organisational and communication skills, a career as an executive assistant could be your next career move. To develop these essential skills, consider taking one or more Courses or Specialisations on Coursera. For example, the University of Pennsylvania’s Improving Communication Skills course and the University of California Davis’s Professional Skills for the Workplace Specialisation offer personal and professional growth options.
An administrative assistant is a more generalised role that works with teams or multiple people in a company. An executive assistant works directly with one executive and tends to provide advice and strategic thinking. Both roles focus heavily on clerical work, such as managing schedules, stocking supplies, and answering phone calls.
It’s essential to highlight past relevant work experience and any higher education. An executive assistant role usually requires past employment history in similar positions to demonstrate a clear understanding of the required tasks.
Standard daily tasks involve administrative needs as well as highly skilled assistant duties. Some administrative responsibilities include writing emails, creating memos, and drafting communications on the executive’s request. It’s also sometimes expected to complete payroll and other accounting needs. The more executive needs include creating accurate reports, planning travel, and scheduling meetings as needed for the executive.
Glassdoor. “Executive Assistant Salaries in United Kingdom, https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Salaries/executive-assistant-salary-SRCH_KO0,19.htm?clickSource=careerNav.” Accessed May 30, 2024.
Glassdoor. “Executive Assistant Salaries in London, UK, https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Salaries/executive-assistant-salary-SRCH_IM1035_KO0,19.htm?clickSource=searchBtn.” Accessed May 30, 2024.
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