African PA named Pitman’s achiever

Uganda-based administrative assistant Florence Katono (pictured) has been awarded the title of PA of the Year in the Pitman Super Achievers Awards 2015. She is described as a role model who relentlessly pushes herself to be the best in her chosen field.

After leaving college, Florence enrolled for a degree in secretarial studies at Makerere University in Kampala. Graduating with first-class honours, she took admin work at the Centre Bank of Uganda and has since been promoted to Senior Administrative Assistant at the company.

Florence has faced practical challenges throughout her career, as she had limited access to technology during her studies and has experienced a shortage of resources since then. Determined to overcome these hurdles, she has joined international associations to gain as much knowledge as she can from her peers and often takes advantage of training and networking opportunities.

She is extremely motivated and proactive in progressing not only her own career, but also in raising the profile of PAs in Uganda. She aims to organise a conference for the African administrative professional community and would like to develop a magazine and online forum as a tool for her fellow assistants. Her goals also include writing a guide to procedures for those who are new to the role.

Manager of the Pitman Training centre in Lagos Ambimbola Soluade says: “We’re very happy to see an African PA win the award. Florence demonstrates a true passion for the administration and PA profession and is committed to excellence both for herself and others within the industry.”

Independent training provider Pitman launched the Super Achiever Awards four years ago to reward people committed to driving their career forward in a bid to inspire the British workforce to strive for more. Pitman Training offers tailor-made courses and qualifications with one-on-one student support. To find out more, visit pitman-training.com